Kyoshi Roger Dabney
48 Years in Martial Arts. 29 Years Building Champions in Henrico.
A Fighter Before He Was a Teacher
Roger Dabney’s martial arts foundation was built in American Open Style Karate — one of the most demanding and technically complete training systems in the American martial arts world. That foundation gave him the footwork, distance management, and angling that would define both his competitive career and his teaching for the next five decades.
His competitive arena was full-contact kickboxing — and he rose through it fast.
By age 17, he had already earned the number one amateur kickboxing ranking in Virginia. He transitioned to the professional circuit shortly after, climbing to a top 20 world ranking within three years of turning pro. By the time his competitive career peaked, he held a top 10 world ranking and competed as a member of the USA World Kickboxing Team — earning titles at the state, regional, national, and world levels.
He also trained under Jim West in American Extension Fighting, a system that sharpened his understanding of range control, tactical entry, and the use of reach as a fighter’s primary weapon — principles that remain at the core of how he teaches today.
In 1987, his father’s illness brought him home and redirected his focus toward teaching. But that wasn’t the end of his competitive story — it was the beginning of a longer one.
After returning, Kyoshi continued to compete and began channeling his competitive experience into developing the next generation. Between 2003 and 2010, his kickboxers went on to earn 23 titles — 8 state, 8 regional, 6 national, and 1 world title — all at the amateur level. That record isn’t a footnote. It’s proof that what Kyoshi teaches produces champions, not just participants.
When you add it all together — his own professional titles, his training under Jim West, and 23 titles earned by students he personally developed — you begin to understand what “Trained by a Champion. Taught by One.” actually means.
29 Years. 650+ Black Belts. One School.
Kyoshi Roger Dabney founded Competitive Edge Karate in Henrico, Virginia in 1997. In the 29 years since, he has become the longest-tenured Modern Karate instructor in the West End of Richmond — a record built not by franchising or scaling, but by showing up to the same school, teaching the same students, and watching generation after generation earn their black belts.
The number that defines his teaching career: 650+ black belts awarded.
That figure isn’t an estimate. It’s a documented body of work representing hundreds of individual students who started as beginners and earned the right to wear black through years of consistent training. Some of those original students now send their own children to train with Kyoshi. At least one reviewer on Google mentions that Kyoshi taught their daughter in the late 1980s — and now teaches their grandson.
That is what 29 years in one community looks like.
Teaching by Example — What That Actually Means
Kyoshi’s founding principle was simple: teach by example. His students would be able to say, without qualification, “I trained under, beside, and with a true champion.”
That phrase isn’t marketing. It shapes every class.
Because Kyoshi competed at the highest levels of his sport, he understands what technique actually needs to do under pressure — not what it looks like in a form, but what it produces when it counts. Every correction he makes, every drill he designs, every progression in the curriculum is filtered through that lens.
His teaching approach reflects 48 years of cross-system training:
American Open Style Karate gave him his competitive foundation — the footwork, angling, and distance management that define smart fighting in any system.
Full-contact kickboxing gave him real consequence for technique errors and a champion’s understanding of physical conditioning under duress.
Jim West’s American Extension Fighting deepened his tactical range control and his understanding of how to use extension — reach, timing, and entry — as a fighter’s primary asset.
Pekiti-Tirsia Kali, studied under Tuhon Apollo Ladra (direct lineage of Grandmaster Leo Gaje Jr.), gave him the parry-based deflection system and weapons-integrated combat methodology that he now brings to CEK’s iKali / Filipino Martial Arts program. He approaches this art honestly — as a student who trains alongside his students — and teaches what he has verified through his own training, not what sounds impressive.
The result is an instructor who sees every student’s movement through a fighter’s eye — identifying what works, what doesn’t, and what the student needs to develop next.
Trained by a Champion. Taught by One.
Published Author on Youth Development Through Martial Arts
Kyoshi Roger Dabney is the author of:
Teaching Children How to Overcome Adversities While Discovering Life Skills Through Martial Arts Training
The book documents the philosophy and methodology Kyoshi has developed over nearly three decades of teaching young people — not just martial arts technique, but the mental frameworks, character habits, and life skills that martial arts training uniquely develops.
It is used as a resource by instructors, parents, and youth development professionals who recognize that what happens in a martial arts school can reach far beyond the mat.
Self-Protection Is Bigger Than the Mat
For Kyoshi Roger Dabney, teaching people to protect themselves has never been limited to what happens inside CEK’s doors.
Over 29 years in Henrico, his commitment to self-protection has extended into the community in ways most martial arts schools never attempt:
Rianna’s Voice — Teen Dating Violence Awareness
Rianna’s Voice is a Henrico-based nonprofit dedicated to teen dating violence prevention, founded by Terry Glass. CEK is actively working to bring the “Before You Go” teen dating violence awareness workshop into the community — connecting students and families with resources, awareness, and the language young people need to recognize warning signs before a situation becomes dangerous.
Kyoshi is working to expand this initiative through churches and community organizations across the Henrico area, building a broader network of support around young people and families who need it.
This is self-protection education at its most important — not a punch or a kick, but awareness and resources that can change the outcome before a situation ever escalates.
Youth character development — CEK’s curriculum has always integrated life skills alongside physical training. Respect, focus, discipline, and resilience are not posters on the wall. They are taught explicitly and assessed in how students carry themselves on and off the mat.
Bully prevention — CEK has offered structured anti-bullying curriculum to Henrico County youth, addressing both the physical and social dynamics of how young people navigate conflict.
Kyoshi has been married for over 30 years and has two daughters. His investment in the Henrico community is not a marketing strategy. It reflects who he is — a man who believes that real self-protection starts with awareness, and that a martial arts school has a responsibility to the community it serves.
Kyoshi Roger Dabney — Credentials at a Glance
– 48 years of martial arts training (active)
– American Open Style Karate — primary foundational training system
– World-ranked professional kickboxer — top 10 world ranking, USA World Kickboxing Team member
– State, regional, national, and world title holder — full-contact kickboxing
– Coaching record — 23 student titles: 8 state, 8 regional, 6 national, 1 world (amateur kickboxing)
– American Extension Fighting — trained under Jim West
– Pekiti-Tirsia Kali — training under Tuhon Apollo Ladra, direct student of Grandmaster Leo Gaje Jr.
– 650+ black belts awarded over a 29-year teaching career
– Published author — Teaching Children How to Overcome Adversities While Discovering Life Skills Through Martial Arts Training
– Founder, Competitive Edge Karate — Henrico, VA — established 1997
– Longest-tenured Modern Karate instructor in the West End of Richmond
Frequently Asked Questions About Kyoshi Roger Dabney
Kyoshi Roger Dabney is the founder and head instructor of Competitive Edge Karate in Henrico, Virginia. He has 48 years of martial arts training, a national competitive ranking in American Open Style Karate, a top 10 world ranking in professional kickboxing, and has awarded more than 650 black belts over a 29-year teaching career. He founded CEK in 1997 and is the longest-tenured Modern Karate instructor in the West End of Richmond.
Kyoshi is a Japanese martial arts title denoting an advanced teaching rank — typically associated with significant experience, demonstrated mastery, and a recognized contribution to the art through instruction. It reflects both Roger Dabney’s rank and his identity as a career educator in the martial arts.
Kyoshi Dabney’s foundational training system is American Open Style Karate, which built the footwork, distance management, and technical base that defines his teaching. His competitive career was in full-contact kickboxing, where he achieved a top 10 world ranking and competed on the USA World Kickboxing Team. He also trained under Jim West in American Extension Fighting, and currently trains in Pekiti-Tirsia Kali / Filipino Martial Arts under Tuhon Apollo Ladra, direct lineage of Grandmaster Leo Gaje Jr.
Kyoshi has awarded more than 650 black belts over his 29-year teaching career at Competitive Edge Karate. This includes students who have gone on to become instructors themselves, and multi-generational families where Kyoshi has taught both parents and their children.
Yes. Kyoshi is the author of Teaching Children How to Overcome Adversities While Discovering Life Skills Through Martial Arts Training — a book documenting his philosophy and methods for developing character and life skills in young people through martial arts instruction.
Kyoshi’s core principle is “Teaching by Example” — meaning his students train under someone who has competed and achieved at the highest levels of the sport, not just someone who studied what others did. His instruction is filtered through 48 years of competitive and cross-system training, with a constant focus on technique that performs under real pressure.
Kyoshi teaches at Competitive Edge Karate, located at 3500 Mayland Court, Henrico, VA 23233 — serving students from Henrico, Short Pump, Glen Allen, Richmond, and Goochland.