| Tomasz Kucharzewski | |
| Birth Date: | August 13, 1968 |
| Birth Place: | Częstochowa, Poland |
| Death Place: | Windsor, Ontario, Canada |
| Nationality: | Polish Canadian |
| Weight: | 225lb |
| Weight Class: | Heavyweight Heavyweight |
| Stance: | Orthodox |
| Fighting Out Of: | Windsor, Ontario |
Tomasz Kucharzewski (August 13, 1968 – March 8, 2008) was a Polish-Canadian martial artist. Kucharzewski initially gained fame while fighting competitively in Kyokushin kaikan and Shidōkan styles of karate. Though greatly successful in karate, he became more involved in kickboxing during his later career. A dominating force in the ring, Kucharzewski was described by the veteran karate instructor and journalist Roger Salick as "indestructible" following his fourth (of five) International Shidōkan Championship wins.[1] He held notable victories over Glaube Feitosa and international karate champion Gerry Marketos.
Born in Częstochowa, Kucharzewski began training in karate at the age of 14. He had won three Polish national titles in Kyokushin kaikan karate and one European title by the time he was 20. He moved to Canada in 1991 and settled in Windsor, Ontario, from where he participated in an estimated 300 fights.[2] He achieved his greatest competitive success at this time, including two first-place wins in the annual US Sabaki Challenge and five consecutive gold medals at the International Shidokan Championships.
At the 1994 US International Shidokan Championships, Kucharzewski powered through opponent Christopher Harrison and knocked out Alain Grosdesormeaux with a knee strike en route to reaching the finals. The championship ended up being awarded to him without a fight, as his opponent Dontel Fleming forfeited the match in favor of hospitalization after experiencing concussion-like symptoms.[3] The following year, Kucharzewski endured a bizarre, DQ-bound single round against Soneybourne Ali before knocking out international karate champion Gerry Marketos and claiming his fourth shidokan title in a hard-fought match against Akio Kobayashi.[1]
With a substantial martial arts career already behind him, Kucharzewski accepted an invitation to K-1 - the era’s premier kickboxing organization. His initial bouts proved fruitless: he met Jean-Claude Leuyer and Lloyd van Dams at the K-1 USA Grand Prix '98 and K-1 Braves '99 events, and both defeated him with low kicks which injured his left knee. He fared considerably better at the K-1 USA Championships 2000 tournament, using substantial boxing skills to score TKO victories over American fighter Jason Johnson and future K-1 World Grand Prix finalist Glaube Feitosa. Despite a strong first round in the finals where he stunned opponent Andrei Dudko with a spinning back kick, Kucharzewski found his left leg under attack again and went to the canvas following two powerful low kicks, whereupon he was unable to meet the 10-count.
Kucharzewski fought twice more for K-1, his final match coming in the K-1 World Grand Prix 2001 Preliminary USA quarterfinals. After being pressed by opponent Duke Roufus throughout the first round, he suffered two knockdowns and the referee ended the fight.
During the later years of his life, Kucharzewski suffered a knee injury and ceased being as active in training and competition. He was found dead in his downtown Windsor apartment by family members on March 8, 2008. Although an autopsy was performed, the cause of death was not immediately known.[2] Doctors claimed that his death could have been caused by cardiac arrhythmia.
Kucharzewski was known to his contemporaries for his calm and friendly demeanor. Albert Mady - his coach of 16 years - described him as "happy-go-lucky".[2] [4]
At his time of death, he worked at the Chromeshield steelmaking company in Windsor. He was unmarried and had no children.[4]
Karate
Kickboxing
Amateur boxing
|-|- bgcolor="#FFBBBB"| 2003-06-28 || Loss ||align=left|
Carter Williams || Tales of Pain - Final || Chicago, United States || TKO (Doctor stoppage) || 1 || || |-! style=background:white colspan=9 ||-|- bgcolor="#CCFFCC"| 2003-06-28 || Win ||align=left|
Giuseppe de Natale || Tales of Pain - Semifinals || Chicago, United States || || || || |-|- bgcolor="#CCFFCC"| 2003-06-28 || Win ||align=left| Lane Collyer || Tales of Pain - Quarterfinals || Chicago, United States || TKO (Corner stoppage) || || || |-|- bgcolor="#FFBBBB"| 2001-05-05 || Loss ||align=left| Duke Roufus || K-1 World Grand Prix 2001 Preliminary USA Quarterfinals || Las Vegas, United States || TKO (2 Knockdowns/Punches) || 1 || 2:26 || 69-8|-|- bgcolor="#FFBBBB"| 2000-10-09 || Loss ||align=left|
Hiromi Amada || K-1 World Grand Prix 2000 in Fukuoka Quarterfinals || Fukuoka, Japan || KO (Right Cross) || 1 || 1:49 || 69-7|-|- bgcolor="#FFBBBB"| 2000-08-05 || Loss ||align=left|
Andrei Dudko || K-1 USA Championships 2000 Finals || Las Vegas, United States || KO (Right Low Kick) || 2 || 1:25 || 69-6|-! style=background:white colspan=9 ||-|- bgcolor="#CCFFCC"| 2000-08-05 || Win ||align=left|
Glaube Feitosa || K-1 USA Championships 2000 Semifinals || Las Vegas, United States || TKO (Referee Stoppage/Punches) || 1 || 2:03 || 69-5|-|- bgcolor="#CCFFCC"| 2000-08-05 || Win ||align=left| Jason Johnson || K-1 USA Championships 2000 Quarterfinals || Las Vegas, United States || TKO (2 Knockdowns/Right Cross) || 1 || 0:56 || 68-5|-|- bgcolor="#FFBBBB"| 1999-06-20 || Loss ||align=left|
Lloyd van Dams || K-1 Braves '99 Quarterfinals || Fukuoka, Japan || KO (Right Low Kick) || 2 || 1:48 || 61-4|-|- bgcolor="#FFBBBB"| 1998-08-07 || Loss ||align=left| Jean-Claude Leuyer || K-1 USA Grand Prix '98 Quarterfinals || Las Vegas, United States || TKO (Corner Stoppage/Right Low Kick) || 1 || 3:00 || |-|-| colspan=9 | Legend:
|-|- bgcolor="#CCFFCC"| 1996-00-00 || Win ||align=left| Shuji Abe || 1996 US International Shidokan Championships – Finals || Chicago, United States || TKO (Referee Stoppage/Knee) || 2 || |-! style=background:white colspan=9 ||-|- bgcolor="#CCFFCC"| 1996-00-00 || Win ||align=left| || 1996 US International Shidokan Championships – Semifinals || Chicago, United States || || || |-|- bgcolor="#CCFFCC"| 1996-00-00 || Win ||align=left| || 1996 US International Shidokan Championships – Quarterfinals || Chicago, United States || || || |-|- bgcolor="#CCFFCC"| 1995-10-00 || Win ||align=left| Akio Kobayashi || 1995 US International Shidokan Championships – Finals || Chicago, United States || || || |-! style=background:white colspan=9 ||-|- bgcolor="#CCFFCC"| 1995-10-00 || Win ||align=left| Gerry Marketos || 1995 US International Shidokan Championships – Semifinals || Chicago, United States || KO (Knee) || 1 || |-|- bgcolor="#CCFFCC"| 1995-10-00 || Win ||align=left| Soneybourne Ali || 1995 US International Shidokan Championships – Quarterfinals || Chicago, United States || DQ || 1 || |-! style=background:white colspan=9 ||-|- bgcolor="#CCFFCC"| 1994-00-00 || Win ||align=left| Dontel Fleming || 1994 US International Shidokan Championships – Finals || Chicago, United States || Forfeiture (Unable to fight) || 1 || 0:00 |-! style=background:white colspan=9 ||-|- bgcolor="#CCFFCC"| 1994-00-00 || Win ||align=left| Alain Grosdesormeaux || 1994 US International Shidokan Championships – Semifinals || Chicago, United States || KO (Knee) || 1 || |-|- bgcolor="#CCFFCC"| 1994-00-00 || Win ||align=left| Christopher Harrison || 1994 US International Shidokan Championships – Quarterfinals || Chicago, United States || KO (Knee) || 1 || |-|- bgcolor="#FFBBBB"| 1993-04-17 || Loss ||align=left| Patrick Smith || 1993 US Sabaki Challenge – Finals || Denver, United States || Decision || || |-! style=background:white colspan=9 ||-|- bgcolor="#CCFFCC"| 1993-04-17 || Win ||align=left| Michael Gallant || 1993 US Sabaki Challenge – Semifinals || Denver, United States || Decision (Unanimous) || 1 || |-|- bgcolor="#CCFFCC"| 1993-04-17 || Win ||align=left| Jay Pommrehn || 1993 US Sabaki Challenge – Quarterfinals || Denver, United States || Decision (Unanimous) || 2 || |-|-| colspan=9 | Legend: