Hector Echavarria

Hector Echavarria
Héctor Echavarría in 2011
Born	Héctor E. Echavarría (1969-12-06) December 6, 1969 (age 47) Corrientes, Argentina
Rank	7th dan black belt in Shury-ryu Karate 7th dan black belt in Kenpo Karate 5th dan black belt in Taekwondo 2nd dan black belt in Jujitsu 2nd dan black belt in Judo
Occupation	Actor, film director, screenwriter, producer, martial artist

Héctor Echavarría (born December 6, 1969) is an Argentine actor, producer, filmmaker, activist, businessman, screenwriter, philanthropist, and a martial arts master.

Héctor Echavarría was born in Corrientes, the capital city of the northern province of Corrientes, in his native Argentina. Hector was a sickly child who suffered from severe asthma, and was encouraged by his parents to use martial arts to overcome his handicap. He began his training at the age of 4 by studying Tai Chi Chuan and Chinese boxing with a Shaolin Monk, Grand Master Tung Kuo Tsao. By the age of 13, Hector had learned Judo and Jiu Jitsu under Mayamoto of the Kodokan. As a young teenager he was learning Karate, and Tae Kwon Do, and at the time became the youngest kickboxer to enter the ring professionally.

Echavarria was inducted into the United States Martial Arts Hall of Fame in 2000. He was also named the "Full Contact Fighter of the Year" in 2000 and is the former Kickboxing Champion of the World. He has won World Champion status in both the United States Karate Association and the World Kung-Fu Association and remains undefeated Hector defended his belt in eleven world titles kickboxing bouts. He is a Kung-Fu Master and has reached the following levels: 7th dan Karate Shury-ryu, 7th dan Kenpo Karate, 5th dan Tae Kwon Do, 2nd dan Jujitsu, 2nd dan Judo.

When he went to the United States he trained and thrived under the guidance of Grand Master Robert Trias. Eventually, Ed Parker, who was Elvis Presley's bodyguard and the man who put Bruce Lee in movies, discovered Echavarria, who was known for having showmanship in the ring.