dal (who later changed his name to Masutatsu Oyama), the  founder of Kyokushin Karate in Japan. Choi was born in South Korea  in 1923, immigrated to Japan in 1938, and founded the Kyokushin  Karate organization in 1953. Currently, Kyokushin Karate is  practiced by more than 12 million practicioners in over 120  countries around the world.