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From his humble
beginnings in the small town of Longano, Italy on Nov.
2, 1947, through his youth and early adult years in
Buenos Aires, Argentina, to raising a family in
Philadelphia Sa yon nim Mario worked hard and always
strived to be the best at whatever he attempted. After
short stints with boxing and wrestling, which he found
unfulfilling, Sa yon nim Mario became intrigued by the
mental and physical attributes of the martial arts,
particularly Taekwon-do.
Raised in Argentina since the age of two, Sa yon nim Mario grew up in one of the poorest and roughest neighborhoods in Buenos Aires. Early on he learned to survive as fighting was the preferred manner to settle disputes. Sa yon nim Mario was often called upon as a youth and even into his early 20's to handle most of the altercations for his group of friends. His reputation as a street fighter brought with it many new challengers. Having to defend himself often, he began to look for ways to improve his fighting skills. His search led him to the martial arts. Not only would this teach him valuable self defense, but more importantly, it would show him a way to resolve situations without aggression. However, it was not until the 70's that he began to look into formal martial arts instruction. At that time, films by Chuck Norris and the late Bruce Lee had infiltrated movie theatres in Argentina and popularized the martial arts. At this point in his life, his training consisted of nothing more than informal sessions with acquaintances with limited martial arts experience. I
n 1966, he met Monica Viscomi and three years later the
couple wed. Immediately thereafter, Mario and Monica
began the arduous task of obtaining a visa to travel to
the United States to provide a better life for their
family. Unbeknownst to them their dream would come
through in 1972, two weeks after the birth of their
first child, a son, Marcello. The family immigrated to
the United States and settled in Philadelphia. The
following year, their second child, a daughter, Veronica
was born.
In 1979, Sabumnim Mario continued his martial arts training under the instruction of Master Bong Pil Yang. Under his tutelage Sabumnim embraced the oriental philosophy and martial arts training that was strongly emphasized under Master Yang. This philosophy became embedded in the teachings of the USTC and is apparent in the do-jangs today.
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