This month started with the first National Training Camp of the year at the North Shore YMCA in Auckland. The first major regional tournaments kick off next month with with the Shito-kai Open in Whangarei on 7 March and the Hamilton Open on 28 March (entry forms on the events section). Next month also sees the first major open seminar opportunity with renowned Shotokan exponent Sensei Hitoshi Kasuya (click on item in Karate Events section for full details).
2010 promises to be a very busy year for Karate New Zealand (see Events section) as we build on the major successes of last year, namely:
Letitia Carr's Silver medal at the World Games
Michael Lynch's Gold medal at the Deaf Olympics
Kerry Titcombes's Bronze medal at the Deaf Olympics
Letitia Carr's Bronze medal at the WKF Under 21 World Cup
Chris Rahardja's Silver medal at the Junior World Championships
Marina Monk's 5th placing at the Cadet world Championships
Last November, Chris Rahardja (pictured) of Auckland became New Zealand's first Kata medallist at WKF level. It could and should have been a Gold medal but the experience will no doubt serve Chris well for the future. Together with Wellington's Letitia Carr, Chris will spearhead Karate New Zealand's quest for medal success at the World Universities Championships in Montenegro in July, the Oceania Championships in Tahiti in September and the Senior World Championships in Belgrade in October. With the return from injury of Canterbury's Sophie Savill and the return of Wellington's Krissie Paige after "maternity leave", competition for places in the National Women's kumite team will be intense. Competiton for places in the National Men's team will also receive a boost with the return of Chris Bennett from England and Travis Butler returning to competition after a short break.
On the traditional front, there are a number of open seminar opportunities in the wind for Karate New Zealand members. Keep an eye on the Events section for early warning of upcoming seminars.
Karate continues to be a popular activity for New Zealanders of all ages. Karate New Zealand is grateful for the continued support of SPARC in our Sport Development programmes for sport, traditional and recreational Karate. As the general public become more discerning about the variable quality of martial arts providers, the value of the Karate New Zealand brand as a hallmark of competent and trusted instruction is undoubted. The Board of Karate New Zealand and its technical councils continue to strive to provide opportunities for all New Zealanders to have access to Karate instruction of the highest quality.
|
