At the beginning of this month, in the quiet corner of Sofia in Bulgaria, the Indian flag rose on an unknown country. It wasn’t cricket. It wasn’t a match. There were no roaring crowds or initial broadcasts. But inside the modest arena, on a blue mat far from the center of attention, 25 -year -old Sagar, Madhya Pradesh, did something that no Indian man had ever done before.
Sohail Khan became the first Indian male warrior to achieve the final of the World Championship in Kudo.
When he returned home with a silver medal around his neck, it wasn’t just history – it was a statement. That even on the outskirts of Indian sport, few people in the corners of the exploration, someone was still fighting. He still shifts the boundaries. He still demands recognition.
The sport that found it
Before the discovery of Kudo was the already decorated athlete Karateka and Taekwondo. But something was missing.
“People often ask me – if I have already reached the national and international levels in karate, why did I switch?” Says. “Some even point out that Taekwondo and Karate are part of the Olympic Games. But for me he offered something deeper – he teaches everything together.”
The sport that would eventually define it was not introduced with medals or fame, but with curiosity.
“Son,” his coach told him, “there is a game where you learn to punch, dig, throw-all at once. It’s not just self-defense-it’s a complete sport.”
The playground remained with him.
“What I couldn’t learn by going to different places or trying different sports,” he says, “I was able to learn everything in one place.”
How does Kudo differ from MMA?
Kudo is a Japanese hybrid martial arts-metallized combat sport that combines safety with practicality. Unlike traditional styles, which focus exclusively on the strike or match, which integrates punches and kicks with feasts, locks, restrictions and nitric. Warriors wear heads and gloves and combine aggression with protection.
The discipline was founded in 1981 by Azuma Takashi, a black belt in Kyokushin karate and judo. Azuma imagined martial arts that exceeded the limits of a single discipline. He merged the most effective aspects of strikers and matches to create Daido Juku – a system based on a structured, competitive struggle. In 2001 he was formally renamed Kudo.
When Sohail tells people that he is playing Kudo, he often met empty glances. Most of them intended for judo. Others assume it’s a form of karate or kung fu.
“It’s still new in India,” he says. “Instead, many people hear” judo “. Others think it’s like karate or kung fu – but they’re completely different.”
Many of them also compare it with MMA, but Sohail quickly sets the record.
“The biggest difference,” he explains, “is that Kudo has a structure. It’s a sports-S point system and strict security rules. MMA is freestyle: either you win a knockout or subordinate. But in which it is full, security is always a priority.”
It breaks it: “There are strokes like boxing, kicks like Taekwondo, throwing as judo and submissions from Wrestling and Jiu-Jitsu. But it’s not free. It’s controlled, disciplined and respectful.”
This balance of intensity and order pulled it out.
“Kudo gave me the excitement of the fight, but also the certainty of control. It’s professional. It’s regulated. And it’s based.”
Today, Kudo in Japan is recognized as Budo Sport – one that honors the combat tradition and accepts modern sports values.
In India, his rise with Soshihan Mehul Vora, president of the Kifi Association, began. During the 3rd Akshay Kumar Invitational Karate-Do Tournament, Kudo techniques in India, India, showed six all-japan champions showing Kudo Kudo techniques in India. The impact was immediate – and it was transformative for young athletes like Sahail.
“Khel Kar Kar Ban Gaye Nawab”
As soon as he hugged sport, Sohail ceased to be a part -time athlete.
“In the end, I became a full -time player,” he says. “It was no longer a hobby.”
His biography is like a dream of martial arts: Gold at the World Championship in Kudo in 2017, bronze at the Eurosian Cup 2024 and now silver at the World Cup.
Back home got a new name: “The golden boy Madhya Pradesh.” He got stuck with a local journalist. He has now won 22 consecutive national championships – a stunning performance in Indian combat sport.
Behind these medals is the story of silent determination, working class and the lasting power of the faith of one mentor.
Sahail’s path to international success, born in the middle class in Sagar, was something other than smooth. His mother was a sub-in-inspector to the state police; His father worked as an official at the Agriculture Department. In its world, sport was not a career – it was a distraction.
In Sagar there is an ordinary chorus: “Kheloege Kudoge Banoge Kharab, Padhoge Likhoge Banoge Nawab.”
(If you are playing, you will destroy your future. If you are studying you will succeed.)
His parents naturally hesitated.
“They were fine when I played,” he says. “But the studies always came first.”
This changed when medals began to come. His coach, Dr. Ejaz Khan, not only trained him, but also convinced his parents that sport was not a detour – it was his fate.
“He told them I had the potential to go far. That caused the difference.”
Institutional support came slowly. In 2018–19, the Indian government officially recognized Kudo as a sport eligible for central sports quotas. Sohail is now working with the income tax department in Mumbai – a rare example of support for athletes Kudo.
Putting India on the map Kudo
In Bulgaria, Sahail walked through the quarterfinals (1–0), dominated the semifinals (4–0) and fought through the brutal finals that went to the rare third round – one of just two such seizures in the tournament. He didn’t just get gold.
But it wasn’t meaningful.
“I’ll tell you something interesting,” he says. “India is perceived as a loser in martial arts and combat sports around the world. This pressure – just win a single fight – was heavier than medals.”
Now that he interrupted the barrier, his monuments are set above.
“Sir, my other goal is to win gold for India,” he says. “For 13 years no Indian has won a single fight on a higher level. But now we are winning. We are on stage. This is the beginning of a new story.”
He hopes where sport is going.
“As soon as the Olympic Association is rising,” he says, “we will be much closer to see Kudo at the Asian Games – and maybe at the Olympics.”
– ends
Published:
Rishabh beniwal
Published on:
19 July 2025
