Stone, Lindsay in medal race

RICHARD Stone’s teammate, Akino Lindsay, might be the poster boy of the International Sports Kickboxing Association’s Amateur Members Association (ISKA AMA) World Championships.

However, Stone, the quiet giant of Jamaica’s combined martial arts team, has Lindsay glancing over his shoulders as they prepare to launch an assault on the 2025 championships in Brisbane, Australia.

Whereas Lindsay holds 11 ISKA AMA gold medals, including five consecutive double-gold and one triple, Stone reports for Brisbane as an in-form fighter with eight gold medals to his name and a 2024-2025 season worth dying for.

Though standing six-feet plus, Stone, a 32-year-old medical doctor, could be easily missed in any room until his quiet but authoritative voice is heard. However, in the ring, Stone’s trademark sidekicks from an enviable leg reach, have blazed a medal-laden path for the last two seasons.

Emerging from July’s International Sports Karate Association’s 2025 United States Open as the only Jamaican to win double-gold, clash and continuous sparring, in the men’s heavyweight, plus 185lb division, Stone’s form has been unstoppable.

Before clinching double-gold at the 2025 US Open, Stone had warmed up for that tournament by landing silver at the July 6 Taekwondo Grand Prix Devil’s Open in Argentina.

At the 2024 US Open, Stone became the first Jamaican to score back-to-back victories in the one-off Night of Champions International Taekwondo Federation (ITF) bout, a stunning upset of Irishman Leard Xheladini, who had beaten him in the first round at the ITF World Championships, September 2023, in Finland.

‘He knows I am on his tail’

Returning to the mats of the ISKA AMA World Championships, heavyweight Stone is determined to improve on points-sparring gold and continuous-sparring silver won in Vienna, Austria, 2024, allowing superheavyweight Lindsay to edge further away in their gold-medal medal race.

“We are in different weight divisions but he knows I am on his tail,” said Stone. “It’s a keen but friendly rivalry between teammates,” he added.

Coach Jason McKay, who was pleasantly surprised by Stone’s defeat of Xheladini at the 2024 US Open, said the sleek fighter’s improving technique makes him a dangerous opponent.

“Stone’s technique is not about brute force, which surprises his opponents. He can be quite technical for a big, strong fella, which makes for a dangerous combination in any ring,” McKay added, pointing out that he expects Stone to complete the ISKA AMA double in Brisbane, as he had done in Munich, Germany, 2023.