Dagenham Students Fly at the Nationals!

Members of the Kaizen Ryu club in Dagenham competed at the TKF National Championships on Sunday 30th October 2011 at Crystal Palace National Sports Centre. The team picked up an unprecedented 24 medals, including 10 gold, 6 silver and 8 bronze. The most impressive part of the result is that the team scored wins in a quarter of all the divisions available; something that has never happened in the competitions history!

In kata, the prearranged forms section of the competition, James Duran (10) showed his skill by getting bronze. James, a brown belt, is training for his junior black belt in a couple of years’ time and successes like these really show how far he is progressing. Winning a podium at such a high level at such a young age is particularly note worthy; are we looking at a star for the future? Luke Joslin (17) proved a strong contender by picking up a well deserved bronze. His efforts were actually noted by the referee’s who see real potential in his karate. Joslin also plays hockey at county level and has to fit both karate and hockey commitments into a packed teenager’s schedule. The discipline he has developed through sport is clearly evident as he manages to do it week in, week out. Fellow students who train at the Dagenham club, husband and wife Marie and Indran Tanabalan, became National Champions by winning the both the women’s and the men’s divisions. The pair met through karate and, with some 30 plus years of training between them; including visiting Japan annually for training, dominated the rounds beating the best contenders from around the country. Marie also won the women’s team kata competition with her training partners Vicky Phillips and Emmie Brown (both 23). The trio have been training together for over 2 years for this competition and their preparation paid off in the most spectacular way as they emerged victorious with their display of superior technique.

Kumite, point fighting, followed and the team found another level as they went on to gain more podiums. James went one better and beat boys in his division to earn silver in the end making it a nice weekend’s haul for the young lad. His classmate Marcio Sa Peixoto (13) put in his best performance to date by also getting silver in his division. In previous competitions, especially his first few, Marcio was used to coming back home without anything. Instead of giving up he just became more determined to do better and now he can proudly say that he is one of the best for his age in the country. Teejay Forde (9) shocked the establishment by beating everyone in his division despite the fact that he has been training for less than a year. Some of the boys he emerged victorious over were junior brown belts and it makes for quite an underdog story. Standing on the top step of the podium, the youngster couldn’t help himself from showing his delight by throwing a few poses. Gina Boot (14), stormed through her division to get gold. Her tall frame and quick reflexes makes her a daunting opponent who has picked up many trophies for her fighting in the past. Marie got through the opening rounds and into the final in the women’s lightweight division only to lose out by only a single point in overtime. The feeling is that she could have beaten her opponent if she wasn’t still feeling the fatigue of getting gold in the World Championships only last weekend in Turin, Italy. She, however, was absolutely overjoyed to get silver as it secured her place in the Great Britain Team for next year’s World’s in Tokyo, Japan. Indran picked up his second gold of the day in the men’s middleweight division. The final was also decided in overtime and both fighters went for the same move after the restart, a thrusting jab to the head. The East Londoner’s got through first and the top step of the podium was decided in a fraction of a second! He then followed his captain, Tony Knight (who fought in the KUGB England squad) to victory in the men’s team event.

Gold and silver medal winners from the Nationals, which saw around 400 competitors attend from all regions around the country, earn a spot on the Great Britain Team that will now train together toward the World Championships in Japan next year. We should all be proud that students who train in these humble clubs in the East End have made the grade to represent their country at the highest level on the sport. If you would to follow the team you can check the club’s website www.kaizenryu.com or follow the GB Team through www.tkfnationals.wordpress.com