By Steve Bigham

One of New England’s biggest karate events will take place here in Newtown this weekend as some 200 competitors will be on hand for the World Tang Soo Do Association’s Region 9 Championships.

 This year’s tournament – held in the ‘A’ gym at Newtown Middle School – is being hosted by Newtown Academy of Karate, owned and operated by Mike Porco, Sr, who says this is the first karate event of its kind ever to hit Newtown.

The black belt action takes place from 9 to 11 am on Saturday. Then, after opening ceremonies at noon, the kids will take the floor, a la The Karate Kid. Admission to the event is $3 with proceeds going to a scholarship fund.

On Friday, Grand Master Jae C. Shin of Philadelphia, who taught Chuck Norris everything he knows, will be on hand to give demonstrations and assist youngsters with their technique.

Mike Porco, who also owns Porco Construction of Newtown, took up karate in 1965 as a means of self-defense while growing up in Bridgeport. When his son, Mike, Jr, was seven, he urged his father to teach him martial arts. Before long, little Mike’s friends were coming over to the house with dreams of someday earning their black belts.

“That’s how the school started. It started in the basement,” Mr Porco said.

In 1986, Academy of Karate began holding its classes in the hall at the Sandy Hook firehouse and the Porco family has been teaching “respect, discipline, confidence and self esteem” ever since. This year, the academy celebrates its 15th anniversary. Today, both Mikes are third-degree black belts. Silvia Porco is a second-degree black belt.

The academy recently opened up a second karate facility in the Sandy Hook center along Church Hill Road. Mr Porco, who owns several buildings in Sandy Hook, hopes the new facility will bring added traffic to the area, not to mention an increased awareness in martial arts.

Mike Porco, Sr, the academy’s head instructor, was drafted by the US Army in 1969 and was sent to Vietnam soon thereafter. In 1970, he found himself in Cambodia as the United States sent forces there to stop the North Vietnamese who were using the route to infiltrate the southern half of Vietnam.