KEITH D. YATES started training in 1965, becoming one of the youngest black belts in the country when he earned his rank at 17 from former International Champion Allen R. Steen. Mr. Yates established a reputation as one of the top kata champions in the Southwest, including winning the famous Texas State Championships in 1971.

He trained with many other famous masters, notably Skipper Mullins, Jhoon Rhee, and J. Pat Burleson. He has also has earned black belts in Japanese Jui-Jitsu and Okinawan Kobudo. A prolific writer and respected teacher, he holds the tenth dan black belt from the AKBBA and above mentioned teachers.

• Founder and president of the AKATO.

• Began the first college “karate for credit” program in the Southwest in 1972, at Southern Methodist University. He served as an adjunct professor at SMU for eight years in both the Physical Education and Communications Departments.

• Inducted into numerous Halls of Fame worldwide, including the Official Taekwondo Hall of Fame, the Martial Arts History Museum in Burbank, CA, and the Texas Martial Arts HOF.

• In the first class of Nationally Certified Instructors of the American Council on Martial Arts (ACMA) in association with the Cooper Institute.

• One of the world's most prolific writers on the martial arts with almost 500 magazine articles and author or co-author of 19 books (some are available on this website or at Amazon.com.) For many years he wrote monthly columns in “Inside Karate,” “Kick Illustrated,” and “Martial Arts Professional” magazines.

• Former managing editor of “Official Karate Magazine.”

• In 1991 produced the documentary, “A History of Korean Karate in America,” (you can see it on his YouTube channel). He was also featured in several martial arts video series.

• A popular speaker and seminar leader, he has been featured in articles in major martial arts publications and Dallas newspapers. He's been profiled on the Dallas ABC and FOX News affiliates, featuring his work with children and in the area of Christian martial arts. He has been a guest on both cable TV and national radio talk shows.

• Did his Master's thesis at Dallas Theological Seminary on “The Demystification of Ki: The Spiritual Aspects of the Martial Arts.” And Dr. Yates received his Humanities PhD in 2019.

• For years he served on the board of Chuck Norris’ KickStart and was Chairman of the American Karate Black Belt Assn.

• He currently serves as the Chairman of the Board of the Gospel Martial Arts Union (headquartered in Indianapolis). www.gmau.org