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IKF &
ISCF This coming November 7th, the
California State Athletic Commission will welcome
a new Executive Director... | ||
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So many here in California want to know a little about Mr. Foster... Well, let us fill you in. Foster's roots in the fight sports are very well known to those of us here at the International Kickboxing Federation and our sister organization for Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) the International Sport Combat Federation. Since 1997 Foster has been a fighter, trainer, promoter as well as an official with both organizations. Knowing this, when promoters, trainers, fighters and other officials need to speak to the Executive Director in California, they won't encounter some pencil - pushing bureaucrat who knows very little about fight sports. Simply put, Foster literally has been in their shoes! He is an experienced multi-disciplined fighter and martial artist who has trained in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Taekwondo, Aikido, Judo, Hapkido, Muay Thai, Jeet Kune Do, Sambo, Kickboxing, and Boxing. By the time he retired as a professional MMA fighter he had a fight record of 17 wins with 2 loses. (8-0 Amateur and 9-2 Professional / Pro- 2 KOs, 7 Submissions, 1 TKO, 1 Decision). However MMA wasn't his only fight sport. He also has a 23-3 Amateur Boxing Record, a 77-4-2 Sport Grappling Record as well as some amateur kickboxing fights. However, being a successful fighter wasn't all he's done. He has promoted five professional MMA cards, four professional boxing matches, matchmaker of nine professional MMA cards, trained over 30 successful MMA fighters, refereed over 500 MMA bouts, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Instructor (2003–2007), served as Head Referee for the Georgia Athletic and Entertainment Commission (2007–2008), instructed several referee and judge training course on behalf of the Georgia Athletic and Entertainment Commission, and judged over 100 MMA bouts... So again... Foster has literally been in ALL our shoes! He was also a 3 time Champion. As an Amateur he won the ISCF Amateur East Coast Light Heavyweight Title on October 25th, 2003 in Dalton, Georgia, USA when he defeated Will Blankenship of Athens, Georgia, USA by Armbar submission at 2:18 of round 1. The following year he went on to win the ISCF Amateur East Coast Middleweight title on April 23rd, 2004 in Atlanta, Georgia, USA when he defeated Tim Stout by Rear Naked Choke in round 1. He also won the BodogFight Series III Costa Rica Combat winner in 2007. Foster retired his ISCF Amateur Titles when he turned Pro on August 2nd, 2004. While fighting he lived in Dalton, Georgia and was trained by Ben Kiker, who later became one of the Commissioner of the Georgia Athletic and Entertainment Commission. (See IKF January 2010 News - Changes To The Georgia Athletic & Entertainment Commission!) Foster also fought as a Kickboxer on several IKF Sanctioned events in Georgia. He eventually turned Pro on August 2nd, 2004 and then retired from fighting in 2007. With all his success as a professional mixed martial arts
fighter, in 2008, Foster gave it all up to help better the fight sports
from a regulatory position. Later that year he was named 2008 Georgia Boxing Official of the Year by the Georgia Championship Boxing Committee at the Committee's annual Awards Banquet. The Committee is comprised of managers, trainers, promoters, commissioners and officials throughout the state. "Andrew's efforts have helped boxing, wrestling and mixed martial arts create a positive impact on the Georgia economy, increase the safety for the participants of these sports, and make Georgia a more viable option to attract bigger name attractions," said then Secretary Handel. |
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In September of 2009 the ISCF teamed up with ISCF promoter Monica Sanford, the owner of Devil Dog (DD) Productions who is the wife of a U.S. Marine and accomplished something no one has ever done in the history of fight sports. Sanford worked with Armed Forces Entertainment, - www.ArmedForcesEntertainment.com Fight Party Productions & the ISCF to host the first ever MMA event held in a warzone within enemy territory. ( Full Story Click Here.) The location was a military base in Mosul, Kuwait, Iraq and the event was called "Fight Night For Heroes". ISCF President Steve Fossum was scheduled to attend as the chief ISCF Event Representative, however instead, he offered the opportunity to Foster who gladly accepted. (Above & Above At Right) Foster and ISCF Promoter Brett Moses (Fight Party Productions) and ISCF Official JJ Coronel (Who also served as a judge on the event) coordinated ISCF Referees Tony Mullinax & Kim Winslow along with ISCF Judges Chris McGloughlin & Cardo Urso to regulate the 17 bout event involving mainly active duty military and was held on Saturday, September 5th, 2009. Along with representing the Georgia Athletic and Entertainment Commission as a member of the Association of Boxing Commissions ( www.abcboxing.com) he is a member of the Unified Rules Committee of Matchmaking of Mixed Martial Arts (2008–Present); Association of Boxing Commissions Member of the Unified Rules Committee to review Unified Rules (2008–Present) and Association of Boxing Commissions Chairman of the Amateur Unified Rules Committee. "I'm very excited to be coming to California," stated Foster in the release. "It has a rich boxing and MMA presence with the largest number of shows in the nation, and I look forward to ensuring a regulatory environment that is consistent and fair based upon contestant safety, public protection, and economic growth." Foster will be a VERY WELCOME Executive Director for California. Former ED George Dodd had great intentions and did some very good things. However, his hands were tied in a lot of ways and he was often held back from the sitting board. Surly there are many different opinions as to what Dodd did or did not accomplish. For the IKF, he was exceptional and willing to try new things that included the "First Ever" State Commission regulated Amateur Muay Thai Kickboxing Tournament, the 2011 IKF West Coast Classic Amateur Muay Thai / Kickboxing Championships that were held on November 25th, 26th & 27th, 2011 in Sacramento, California. However it's not hard to find negative opinions about the CSAC on the internet. For the last several years it's been a smorgasbord of "Drama" topics fight sport writers have had to write about. Even Foster's appointment gave writers the opportunity to write about the CSAC's past. (Click Here.) Regardless, there is a strong sense of optimism here at the IKF and ISCF as well as with many others in California that Foster will step in and 'take the bull by the horns' per say and get the right things done. One thing the board can't do is claim inexperience of him. From the training gyms, to the ring, the cage all the way to the Executive Directors desk, Foster is without a doubt the MOST EXPERIENCED Executive Director California has EVER had! Hopefully the Commission Board will listen to Foster and his fresh ideas as to how he turned things around in Georgia and made it a welcome state for Fight Sports at both the Amateur and Professional levels. CSAC chairman John Frierson said today in a press release. "We are hoping he (Foster) can do in California what he did in Georgia in terms of increasing both revenue and the number of shows," To do so, Frierson and his board needs to allow Foster some open ground to implement new ideas, even if current laws and policies need to be changed or adapted, such as the requirement of ONLY a non-profit regulatory body can oversee amateur fight sports, or have the STATE Commission take over Amateur MMA like Foster did in Georgia. However Foster allowed, approved Muay Thai and Kickboxing sanctioning bodies to oversee Amateur Muay Thai and Kickboxing in Georgia, which has helped build the amateur fight sports, which build the pro fight sports, etc, you get the idea... Bottom line is more state revenue is what California needs to keep the Athletic Commission going... California needs Foster to do exactly that here! The question is, "Will Frierson and his board allow Foster to do so?"
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