Dear USA Karate Members,

I am honored to be serving as Interim Chair of USA Karate until our board elections are completed later this year. I would like to take a moment to discuss my immediate focus areas for USA Karate.

I joined the Board of USA Karate as an Independent Director in 2019 and had the opportunity to meet some of you during our Signature Events in 2019. During that time, I listened and learned about some of the challenges facing USA Karate. As the new Interim Chair, my initial areas of focus will be supporting our Athletes and improving the
Organization's communications and transparency.

The mission statement of USA Karate is "to enable United State athletes to achieve sustained competitive excellence and to promote and grow the sport of karate in the United States while maintaining the well-being of our members." We exist to further the sport of karate across the country and to advocate for the support of our athletes and members.

Since I joined the Board, I have heard from a variety of members, referees, coaches, and parents regarding the needs to increase the communication from the organization. As such, I am personally focused on ensuring USA Karate communicates effectively, often and with transparency to all our members.

As part of these initiatives, I invite you to join me at one of the following sessions during the upcoming 2021 USA National Karate Championships and US Team Trials in Chicago, Illinois from September 1-5. During these sessions, we will be discussing the USOPC Demand Letter, our recent governance changes, our athlete support model, and the upcoming Board elections. We will also be available to answer any questions you may have.

Karate General Assembly - Wednesday, September 1, 2021, 7:00-8:00pm
Athlete Town Hall - Friday, September 3, 2021, 7:00-8:00pm

We will be conducting Board elections by October 31, 2021, to fill new and expiring positions. The available board positions are as follows:

1 Independent Member
1 Athlete Representative
1 USOPC ACC Representative
1 Affiliated Organization Representative
1 Approved Sports Organization Representative

Details regarding the timeline for the elections were included in the message sent to you on August 13 about our governance changes.

I look forward to working with each of you to continue to grow USA Karate. If you have any questions, suggestions, or concerns regarding USA Karate, feel free to contact our national office via email at natoffice@usankf.org or by phone at (719) 477-6925. You may also contact me directly at rbawa@usankf.org.

I look forward to meeting many of you during the upcoming 2021 USA National Karate Championships and US Team Trials in Chicago and at the 2021 USA Open and Junior International Cup in Las Vegas from December 15-19, 2021.

Sincerely,

Rahul Bawa

Interim Board Chair
USA National Karate-do Federation

A Message From Rahul Bawa Interim Chair of USA Karate

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