Inexperience did not hurt Moose Jaw’s young karate competitors at a recent tournament in Alberta.
Fifteen students travelled to the Satewin Friendship Tournament from last weekend In Edmonton, when they came back they had 19 medals more than they came with.
The Five Hills Chito Ryu Karate Club sent 12 athletes to the annual competition, half for whom it was it was their first event. Head instructor Colin Rosnes said his crew of rookies learned quickly.
“Quite a few of them learned how to come out of their shell, if you will. For a lot of them it was a challenge. They did their first set of forms, they were nervous. By the second time they started to come into it and a lot of them ended up prevailing, especially in the fighting area,” explained Rosnes.
Athletes could compete in kumite (sparring), or kata (forms). Competitors from the Chito Ryu club earned 15 medals, but Rosnes said that is not what the competition is about in his eyes.
“To help them overcome some of these fears, and overcome some of this nervousness, to me that’s the main objective to all of this. It’s not about winning the medals, it’s going out and doing the best you can.”
There were also some Moose Jaw medalists from the other local club, the Global Karate Dojo. Vanessa Neufeld, Cole Gavelin and Tia Gavelin, all newcomers to the sport, grabbed bronze medals in kumite at the competition. Neufeld had another bronze in kata.
Head coach Perry Harris said he was thrilled with his students’ performance.
“The kids, it was their first tournament. I’ve very happy, they did very well,” he said.
Both clubs will start up again in September.
