# Medals Don't Define Us: Sensei James Luk and the Shotojuku Karate Way Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/a-black-belt-way-of-life-7024093/medals-don-t-define-us-sensei-james-luk-and-the-shotojuku-karate-way Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/a-black-belt-way-of-life-7024093/medals-don-t-define-us-sensei-james-luk-and-the-shotojuku-karate-way.md Podcast: [A Black Belt Way of Life](https://stenobird.com/podcast/a-black-belt-way-of-life-7024093) Published: 2025-08-07T04:05:00+00:00 Episode link: https://black-belt-way-of-life.captivate.fm Audio file: https://episodes.captivate.fm/episode/5cca1fe5-5607-4798-8140-951c633441db.mp3 Processing state: not_requested JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/a-black-belt-way-of-life-7024093/episodes/medals-don-t-define-us-sensei-james-luk-and-the-shotojuku-karate-way Duration seconds: 2892 ## Resource Inspired by action movie stars like Jet Li and Jackie Chan, Sensei James Luk's mom knew Martial Arts was the perfect activity to keep a young kid safe and off the streets. Born into the projects of Woodside, Queens, learning how to defend yourself was a necessity. 15 minutes away the Shotojuko Dojo in Astoria, Queens was where his Martial Arts would begin. Under the tutelage of Sensei Kai Leung, James Luk would flourish into an accomplished Martial Artist on the mat and off the dojo tatami. A National Champion in Kata & Weapons, James Luk learned that "medals do not define us", becoming a true Martial Artist like his sensei was the correct path to live by. He has been blessed to be able to pass on the art to his children, especially his daughter who is now a high level competitor. This inspired James to jump back into the competition arena after an extended time away. What he found was immediate success. Success that has now turned into him leading the USA Masters Team Karate movement for the World Masters Games in Kansai Japan taking place in 2027. For everything A Black Belt Way of Life, click below -  YouTube -  http://www.youtube.com/@blackbeltwayoflife Spotify -  https://open.spotify.com/show/276fCOHsnHb8YcakObQqWP?si=694b07f440014ac9 Apple Podcasts -  https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/a-black-belt-way-of-life/id1769633501 Amazon Music -  https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/9d314fb1-51bb-4232-b3ab-60247520f343/a-black-belt-way-of-life BBWOL Show Producer - Press Record Studios -  https://pressrecordstudios.com Show Sponsor -  https://joseph-ferone.tmt.realty.com Official Apparel Company -  https://bestma.us Shotojuko Dojo information -  https://shotojuku.com/ Follow the Black Belt Way of Life podcast on: Facebook:… ## Actions - request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/a-black-belt-way-of-life-7024093/episodes/medals-don-t-define-us-sensei-james-luk-and-the-shotojuku-karate-way/transcription-requests` — Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode. - read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/a-black-belt-way-of-life-7024093/medals-don-t-define-us-sensei-james-luk-and-the-shotojuku-karate-way.md` — Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource. A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed. ## Transcript Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.