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Welsh Open 18th November 2007
The usual "Rainham Three" set off for Wales on Sunday morning. Just under three hours later and two hundred miles they
arrived at Sophia Gardens for the Welsh Open.
Due to the location and the fact that kata entries would have
meant an overnight stop or a 0400 start from home, the trio only competed in kumite.
For a change Luke was up
first and with a bye in the first round it was about half an hour before he had to compete. Lukes opponent was smaller than
him for a change. An early warning, against Luke, seemed to set the tone for the mat. Despite his opponent catching
Lukes leg in his stomach with no points awarded and despite the other competitor holding onto the leg for far longer
than 3 seconds no warnings were given. Luke then dropped to 0-2 and despite executing two jodan mawashi kicks that
were flagged the referee deemed they were not, in his view, sufficient and the points were not awarded. Luke was
understandably disappointed but these things happen.
James was up next and with two sheets of names he was waiting
for over two hours to fight. Four fights later, James made the final against an equally experienced fighter. At 2-5
down and with a second to go, James let fly with his trade mark back leg jodan mawashi. Again it's flagged but the
referee decides it is after time and James takes a well deserved silver.
Last up is Sophie who has a bye
straight into the semi-final which she wins comfortably 8 -0, opening with a jodan mawashi. In the final she is up against
an opponent who walked through her last fights all 8 - 0 against some credible contestants. After a punch to Sophie's
arm and a kick in the bottom, both scored, Sophie is 6 - 0 down. She brings it back to 6-3 and takes a well deserved silver.
Again
Sophie provided the coaching on the day. All three students performed well again and the medal tally could have been better
had a few refereeing decisions gone our way. Live and learn!!!
OVERALL 2 SILVERS
Squad James, Luke and Sophie.
Ishinryu Championships 4th November 2007
GRO sent a squad of eighteen students to today’s Ishinryu Championships held
at Harrow Lodge Sports Centre in Hornchurch. As usual the event was organised by Upminster Ishinryu and Sensei Barber was
the chief referee with Sensei’s Young and Le Breuilly amongst the refereeing “team”.
For some of the students it
was their first taste of kata and/or kumite competition and there were some nervous faces from the students, and some parents,
as the events started.
The lower grade kata categories were decided on a point’s basis with the students
performing one kata only.
In the girl’s beginner to 7th kyu kata, Nicole Boran and Victoria
Rice who train with Sensei Young at Ockendon made their competitive debuts. Both performed Taikyoko-sono ichi but did not
manage to finish in the top three.
Next we had five competitors in the boys 6th to 4th kyu kata
– James Frewin, Ryan Jones, Ryan Harkins, Emeka Abazie and Daniel Boran. James, the two Ryans and Emeka performed Pinan
Ichi whilst Daniel chose Kette Taikyoko Sono – Ni. Unfortunately the standard was very high and none of the five could
force their way into the medal positions.
Hannah Tidy, Chioma Abazie and Holly Freeman then took part in the girl’s 6th
to 4th kyu kata, all performing Pinan- Ichi. Chioma and Hannah’s performance was good but Holly’s was
better and won our first trophy of the day by scoring 21.5 for bronze.
Harry Richardson, Luke Frewin and Carl Tidy were entered in the boy’s 3rd
to 2nd kyu kata. At this level, flags decide the categories with the winner progressing through the rounds. Carl
performed Jion but did not progress. Luke performed Empi and Jion to reach the final. Meanwhile Harry performed Jion and Empi
but a mistake during the second kata mean that we did not get an all GRO final and he had to settle for third. In the final
Luke performed Pinan Gor but his opponents kata was stronger and he took Silver.
Our final individual kata competitor was Jamie Brown in the boys 1st kyu
and above category. He secured a place in the semi final with Empi but his Gankyaku was not as strong as his opponents and
another bronze was ours.
This year we had no senior individual kata competitors so the next, and only, team
category involving GRO was the mixed team kata for 4th kyu and below. In this event we had three teams – GRO1 (Nicole,
Victoria and Daniel), GRO2 (James, Holly and Emeka) and GRO3 (Chioma and both Ryans). Unfortunately a couple of mistakes and
a strong set of opponents meant that we did not medal but the practice put in by GRO1 showed as the walk out and kata was
the best of the three.
The kata events finished, the kumite events began.
In the boys up to 3rd kyu – under 4’ 6” category we had
Ryan Harkins and James Frewin. Ryan showed great spirit in coming forward but
his lack of experience showed and he did not beat his opponent. James, meanwhile had a slow start but won his first fight
and stormed through his next one 8-0. In a tight semi-final, James was unable to get past his opponent and lost by a single
point, securing bronze.
Next up were the boys up to 3rd kyu – under 4’ 9” and
we had another two competitors, Ryan Jones and Emeka Abazie. Emeka put up a solid show but lost his fight by the odd point
in five. Ryan won his first fight despite taking a blow to the thumb, but came
up against a bigger opponent in round two and the size ultimately made the difference.
There were only two competitors in the boys 2nd kyu and above – under
4’ 9” category and Luke was one of them. A jodan mawash from his opponent meant that Luke was always chasing the
fight and he could not claw back the early deficit – however he took silver as a result.
We had two young ladies competing in the girl’s kumite, both for the first time.
Holly was in the girls up to 3rd kyu – under 4’ 6” category and Chioma was in the girls up to
3rd kyu – under 5’ 1” event. Chioma started with a bye straight into the semi-final where she
met a more experienced competitor. She showed spirit in returning to the mat after receiving two blows to the face and secured
bronze for her efforts.
Holly started her fighting with a bye and a comprehensive 9-0 win, 8 points coming
from chudan mawash kicks round her opponents back. This put her in the final where she, too, came up against a more experienced
junior. Despite this she scored points but these were not enough to win the fight. Silver,
we thought, but an error meant that Holly had to fight again to secure the second place and she did so, winning 5-4.
Our final junior was Jamie, who was up next in the boys 2nd kyu and above
–over 5’ 1” category. He also started with a bye and won his semi-final even after taking a blow to the
face that which knocked him to the ground. In the final he also took the silver medal.
Once the juniors completed their events, our senior students entered the competition,
all competing in kumite only. Roger Pearson and Mike Frewin were both in the 4th to 2nd kyu men’s
kumite category. Mike started the category against possibly the tallest competitor
of the day and despite delivering a shuddering mawash to his opponent’s stomach, he could not match his speed (and youth!).
Roger then stepped up and won his two fights to reach the final, receiving a split
lip on the way. In the final he met Mikes victor and also could not match his speed but finished with second place and silver.
Male cadet kumite for 2nd kyu and above saw Karl Barber competing. His opponent’s
speed also was a key factor and Karl could not match him.
Our final competitor was Sophie Richardson in the cadet open grades category who decided
to fight despite not feeling very well. She started with a bye and then won her semi-final convincingly to reach the final.
This was a close defensive fight that saw Sophie win by a single point to claim our only gold of the day.
A big well done to all those who competed and especially to those who made their competitive
debuts today. Hopefully you will want to repeat the experience and train harder. Also well done to Sarah, Kerry, Dean, Charley
and the parents for coming down to support the club, for Mike for the photos and for Jayden, the clubs prospective youngest
member, for providing the thorough warm up for the juniors.
.
Results
|
Name |
Kata |
Kumite |
|
Holly Freeman |
Bronze |
Silver |
|
Luke Frewin |
Silver |
Silver |
|
Jamie Brown |
Bronze |
Silver |
|
James Frewin |
|
Bronze |
|
Harry Richardson |
Bronze |
|
|
Chioma Abazie |
|
Bronze |
|
Roger Pearson |
|
Silver |
|
Sophie Richardson |
|
Gold |
OVERALL ONE GOLD, FIVE SILVERS,
FIVE BRONZE
Squad – Nicole Boran,
Daniel Boran, Victoria Rice, Ryan Harkins, Ryan Jones, Chioma Abazie, Emeka Abazie, Luke Frewin, James Frewin, Carl Tidy,
Hannah Tidy, Harry Richardson, Holly Freeman, Jamie Brown, Roger Pearson, Mike Frewin, Karl Barber and Sophie Richardson.
3rd South West Open 28th October 2007
Sunday morning, the early morning sun streaming through the windows, the sound of birds singing on the wing, a competition
just five minutes up the road and the clocks going back giving us an extra hour in bed is what would have occurred had
we attended the TKA International at Dagenham...........Instead we rose at 0400 due to a power cut that set off the Frewin's
alarm and woke everyone else up and drove 190 miles to Somerset for the 3rd South West Open held in Weston Super Mare!!!!
This is the 3rd South West Open but it's the first we have attended. It is a very well organised and attended event
with the organisers giving every competitor a goody bag and each category winner receiving a gi. The event started on time
and the venue was well laid out.
James was once again up first in kata and after an initial bye performed Pinan Ich. On this occasion he did not progress
and his opponent went on to win the event. However there was no repecharge and no chance of a medal.
Luke and Harry, yes Harry, were in the same kata category and both had byes and then performed Empi against their respective
next round opponents. Harry went out at this stage and Luke went on to perform Jion in the next round but also went out
before the medals were decided.
Finally Sophie competed in the ladies kata and was beaten on a split flag decision after also performing Empi.
The afternoon saw the kumite events - James competed in the under 10 years category that had a no contact
rule much to James' dismay. He won his first fight easily but then came up against his next opponent who took an early lead.
Despite James' best efforts he could not make up the ground.
Luke then competed in the boys under 30kg category against opponents whom he should have tested. Unfortunately on this
occasion, he could not find his rythm and was defeated in his first fight.
Sophie entered two kumite categories - the cadets and senior ladies. In the cadet category she scored 24 points against
4 conceded to reach the final where she met the categories largest competitor. In a close fight, she held her own only conceding
the deciding point in the last seconds to gain silver.
The Ladies categories were merged to form an open weight event and Sophie carried on where she left off in the Cadets
to reach the final without conceding a point. Once again another close fight saw the scores level and the bout went to extra
time. Unfortunately Sophie was penalised for a punch to the face which appeared to be short of the mark but her opponents
reaction swayed the referee and Sophie had to settle for another silver and a sore jaw. Despite her disappointment, her fighting
was excellent today and she should be proud of her performances.
OVERALL - 2 Silvers
Squad - Harry Richardson, James Frewin, Luke Frewin, Sophie Richardson
EKF Southern Regional 30th September 2007
It's been a long time between competitions but James, Luke, Sophie and Jamie competed at Goresbrook, Dagenham today
in the first EKF Southern Regional Championships. All came home with medals in their respective categories.
James produced an assured Pinan Ichi but was unable to overcome his opponent in round one. Luke started with Empi and
Jion to see him into the semi-final where he performed Pinan Gor and secured a bronze medal. Meanwhile Jamie performed
Empi and Kanku-Dai to reach his semi final. His performance of Gojoshioshu also secured a bronze medal.
The kumite saw James up first and after an initial bye he was through his first proper fight when leading 4-2 and after
his opponent was disqualified for a late hit. He then won his next fight 3-0 to reach the final and after an excellent
performance was unlucky to miss out on gold when the fight went to extra time.
Luke also put up a good performance but missed out narrowly in his event.
Finally Sophie fought in the ladies under 53kg category and claimed bronze before also competing in the cadet section
where she missed out.
Sensei Barber was chief referee at the event and Sensei Le Breuilly refereed and judged.
OVERALL - one silver, three bronze
Squad - Jamie Brown, Luke Frewin, James Frewin, Sophie Richardson
TKA Essex Open 15th July 2007
A short drive up the A13 to the Goresbrook Leisure Centre for three club members makes a change from the early starts
we normally have for competitions.
This event forms part of the TKAs annual series of events and draws enough competitors to make each category a challenge.
First up was kata, scored on the points system. James performed Pinan Ich, Luke Empi and Sophie Bassai Dai (all in different
categories). On this occasion, there were no medals but some learning points were gained.
In the kumite, Luke and James were in the same category. Luke was up first and won convincingly 9-1 with three excellently
executed jodan mawashis, the first one straight off the line. James had a bye in round one so Luke was back out on the mat
and after suffering a dead leg was eliminated from the competition.
James finally made it on to the mat but did not fight as well as we have seen him in the past and also went out.
As Sophie is now 16, we had to wait until the end of the day for her categories. She was first up in the cadet kumite
and in a close fight lost by a single point to a bigger opponent. She then went on to fight in the Ladies category and had
a bye straight into the semi-finals meeting another competitor who was much bigger than her. Despite a couple of hefty blows
she managed to get to within one point of her opponent having been 5-0 down but could not overcome her. This left her
with our solitary trophy of the day, a bronze.
Squad - Sophie Richardson, Luke Frewin, James Frewin
Summer Course 2007
Rain,........rain,......and more rain until the final bow when the sun came out on Friday afternoon, shortly followed
by rain. But, there were plenty of shining lights during the week during what was the first summer course to be held
entirely indoors for many, many years.
Despite the weather, the training was hard and probably more intense than it would have been had it been outside. Sensei
Donovan, together with Sensei's Hazard, Barber, Suarez, Francis, Francis, Condon, Gillespie, Smith and Mottram taught almost
continuously in the night club area splitting up the grades to accomodate the students, some of whom were looking to grade
at the end of the week.
The first competitive test was on Tuesday when a break in the weather allowed the fun (!) run to take place. Rob
Clark took the junior boys gold with Jamie Brown coming in third.
On Wednesday the kata competition took place and Harry, Luke and James were in the same category. Harry went first
and performed a strong Pinan Gor to take an early lead. James then performed a very good Pinan Ich but this was not enough
to get him into the medal positions. Luke then peformed Empi to put him in first place but he was pipped at the post by the
final competitor leaving him with a silver and Harry with a bronze.
Jamie then competed in the junior boys 2nd & 1st kyu category kata and continued his medal streak by taking first
place, performing Gojoshiho-sho.
Karl was unsuccessful in his attempt in the senior mens category despite a valiant effort.
Finally Sophie and Sarah competed in the senior ladies kata both losing out to Sam Cannon, Sophie in the semi final and
Sarah in the final but adding another silver and bronze to our medal haul.
Wednesday evening was fancy dress and the fun continued as the dance floor was filled with an inordinate amount of hospital
staff, pirates and oversized poultry!!!! However the best costume (in many's opinion) was Jamie's self made pedal bin
dalek outfit.
On Thursday, the junior kumite took place and saw some courageous performances from our younger club members. James won
a 2nd place in his category with the majority of his points scored with mawashis to the head of his opponent and he was unlucky
not to take gold.
Luke was the next fighter and even though he was in the small boys category, he was the youngest and smallest fighter
(by a large margin) in a category which also contained more experienced fighters. However, size did not matter as
Luke launched himself across the mat without fear and showed what a big heart he has by getting up from a serious knock down
and continuing with the bout. As a result he took the bronze.
Jamie and Rob fought in the same category - Jamie showed courage after taking a blow to the head (from the floor) in
continuing his bout to the end, but lost on this occasion. Rob, however, stormed through the category taking gold in a one
sided final.
The final kumite events were held on Friday for the seniors, Karl, Mike, Sophie and Sarah - this being Sophie's first
senior event.
Karl fought hard in his fight but was unable to break down his opponents guard leaving our final male competitor Mike
Frewin to compete in his category. Despite an assured performance and an early lead, Mike was penalised two points for
contact to his opponents face but left the mat with a well deserved silver medal.
Sophie fought in the 16-20 category first and came up against the biggest competitor, Pilbi from Finland. This proved
to be a tough fight as Sophie received several hefty blows including a bang on the head when she was swept - as a result
competition on the wooden dancefloor was abandoned and moved to the carpeted area. This was probably Sophie's best performance
as she came from behind to win to get to the final. However, she could not break down her opponent and took silver.
Sophie and Sarah fought in the Ladies 1st kyu and black belt category. Sophie won her first fight but came up against
Pilbi again in the semi and this time it was the girl from Finland who won leaving Sophie with bronze. In the final Pilbi
came up against Sarah who had won her first two fights. The difference in height and size was considerable (about 2 foot in
height) and Sarah was unable to overcome her opponent leaving her with silver. Both ladies received some heavy blows
during their bouts but continued on regardless.
On Friday the gradings took place and everyone who graded achieved their next belt - James and Mike were both awarded
ther 4th kyu, Luke and Harry were both awarded their 2nd kyu, Danielle was awarded her 1st kyu but the biggest cheer was for
Jamie who attained 1st Dan status.
At 1730 on Friday the final bow took place and Sensei Donovan awarded Rob Clark the male student of the week trophy to
add to his collection.
It was the wettest summer course in recent memory but the students trained hard and special mention should go to Mike
and James for their efforts in their first summer course and to Jamie for his perseverance and tenacity.
If there was a prize for support, then the club would have won this again as the cheering and shouting was above everyone
else during the competing - well done us. There are photos......
Course attendees - Sarah Kemp, Mike Frewin, Sophie Richardson, Harry Richardson, Luke Frewin, James Frewin, Karl Barber,
Robert Clark, Jamie Brown, Danielle Giles with guest appearances from Kerry Barber, Dean Barber, Martyn Le Breuilly and Daniel
Clark.
London Youth Games 10th June 2007
The London Youth Games is a multi-sport event that takes place over several months at different venues. Todays karate
event was held at Crystal Palace where the swimming event was also taking place turning the open plan arena into a massive
sauna!
Havering had a strong team for both the boys and girls, the girls team having won the event for the last two
years to outshine their male counterparts. Our interest was in Sophie, and in Jamie who was competing for Bexley. A full
report on the Havering squad can be read on the Shuhari-Kai website (see link in Other Stuff).
Jamie was first up in the kata against some very strong competitors and was unable to progress. He then took part
in the kumite section and again could not get past his opponent who subsequently went out meaning that repecharge was not
an option.
Sophie progressed through three rounds to reach the final of the 50-55kg category for the second year running. The fight
finished 1-1 with Sophie scoring with one second left to take the fight to icki-wak. This ended scoreless and the judges
decided that Sophie's opponent deserved the gold for her efforts. This was Sophie's first competition for several months as
she has been studying for GCSEs but she put up good performances and her points contributed to Havering girls winning the
competition for the third year running. Not to be outdone, Havering boys combined points meant that they also took gold
for their efforts.
Full results below;
Girls Kata
Emma Lucraft 1st
Aimee Sell 2nd
Girls Kumite
Emma Lucraft 1st
Sophie Roberts 1st
Sophie Richardson 2nd
Francesca Gambleton 2nd
Jodie Miles 3rd
Hayley Bremner 3rd
Lucy Peppercorn - unplaced
Boys Kata
Alex Sell 1st
Mark Hansford 3rd
Boys Kumite
Alex Sell 1st
Mark Hansford 1st
Steven Karwacinski 2nd
George Hayter 2nd
Jordan Hodges 3rd
George Gambleton 3rd
Jack Hayter - unplaced
Chris Karwacinski - unplaced
Seni Open 20th May 2007
Just three students from the club attended what was a local affair at the Excel Centre in London's docklands. Many expected
a larger turnout and were surprised at how few karate-ka there were.
All three students competed in the kata section and whilst Luke and James performed strong katas, it was Jamie who a
well deserved silver.
Luke and James then competed in the kumite, both falling to the eventual finalists but showing some good form in assured
performances.
OVERALL 1 SILVER
Squad Jamie Brown, Luke Frewin, James Frewin
Havering Youth Games 28th April 2007
This is a small event used mainly to select the squad for Havering for the London Youth Games but it also gives some
inexperienced karate-ka the opportunity to experience competition. It is organised and well run by Sensei Richard Burridge
of Shuhari-kai who brings his own unique style to the event.
In the school year 6-9 kata category Mark and Luke were up against each other and took gold and silver respectively,
whilst in the year 10 and above kata category Sophie did not medal.
In the kumite Luke won silver in the under 35kg section, whilst Mark won gold in the under 45kg and Sophie took
the silver in the under 55kg.
A relaxing event, a shame that not more Havering karate-ka did not attend.
OVERALL 2 GOLDS, 3 SILVERS
Squad - Mark Hansford, Luke Frewin, Sophie Richardson
Scottish International Open 7th April 2007
Sophie travelled to Edinburgh today to compete in the Scottish International Open at the Meadowbank Sports Centre.
In a change from other competitions, all the childrens events were on one day without any cadet or senior categories. In addition
all the areas were colour coded to assist the competitors in knowing where they were supposed to be.
The kata event was up first and although Sophie went out in Round one, her opponent made the final, giving her another
chance. She performed Bassia Dai and Kanku Dai to take repecharge bronze.
Her next event was the under 59kg kumite category, the organisers allowing competitors to fight above their weight. Sophie
won her first fight 8-0 but then met a much larger Austrian competitor, the eventual winner of the event in the next
round, and lost narrowly. Once again, through repecharge, Sophie took bronze.
Finally, Sophie fought in the under 53kg category and as there were only three girls it was decided on a round
robin basis. After two fights each, all three girls had won one and lost one and the medal order was based on points scored.
This left Sophie with a silver.
A well organised event in a proper arena. A shame that not more competitors attended but it started and ran on time and
having all the competitors enter the arena to a pipe and drum band was a nice touch!
OVERALL ONE SILVER, TWO BRONZE
Squad - Sophie Richardson
Irish International Open 01st April 2007
A small squad travelled to Dublin this weekend to compete in the first Irish International Karate Open. Sophie, Mark,
Luke and Mitchell met up with fellow Ishinryu students Emma Lucraft, Samantha Cannon and Andreas Mead to compete over
two days at the AALSA sports club just outside Dublin Airport.
Sophie started the ball rolling on Saturday in kata with reaching the semi-finals but missing out on a medal
through repecharge. However Emma claimed gold in this event.
Next up, Mark took Gold in hs category performing Unshu in the final for the first time competitively.
Finally Mitchell won bronze after going out in his semi-final despite looking the more likely winner.
Sam Cannon took gold and bronze in the two kata events she entered.
Luke then was up the kumite but was unable to overcome his first opponent despite a determined effort, and even though
he didn't feel 100%.
Come Sunday and Mark sailed through the first round of his kumite category 8-0 before going out in the next round. This
left Sophie to fight and she went through two rounds before going out in the semi final to the eventual winner. However
in repecharge she scored first in icki-wak and took the bronze. Emma also took silver in her kumite category.
A good weekend, nice venue although Dublin is a bit pricey and good support from all the Ishinryu competitors whatever
club they belong to.
OVERALL ONE GOLD, TWO BRONZE
Squad - Luke Frewin, Mark Hansford, Sophie Richardson, Mitchel Scotcher
Meopham Open 25th March 2007
Luke, James, Mark and Jamie attended the Meopham Open today. Although it is a small event, there are still
enough competitors to make it a worthwhile test.
Luke, James and Mark all achieved a bronze medal place in their respective kata categories. Well done
guys.
OVERALL THREE BRONZE
Squad; Luke Frewin, James Frewin, Mark Hansford, Jamie Brown with Sophie coaching.
Malta Open 3rd March 2007
In
what was the club's first foreign trip for some time, three students left England on Friday afternoon to compete in the
Malta International Classic Open. Luke and James Frewin, and Sophie Richardson were the squad with Sophie also providing the
coaching.
We
arrived late on Friday evening and were up early again on Saturday to travel to the Don Bosco Sports Centre in Dingli where
400 competitors from 14 countries were assembled. Despite it being 1000 miles away the majority of the competitors were UK
based and a few familiar faces were there.
First
up in kata was James who performed Pinan Ich very strongly. There were few other competitors and James’ kata was head
and shoulders above anything else and he secured gold.
Luke
performed Empi and was unlucky not to medal finishing fourth in his category. Finally Sophie performed Bassai-dai and finished
equal third out of twenty-nine competitors. She was unlucky not to take the third place after performing Empi as her second
kata.
The
kumite saw the team compete in the same order. James managed a narrow 1-0 win in round one against a Maltese fighter and received
a bye in round two when his Cypriot opponent was disqualified after turning up wearing a sweatshirt instead of a gi! In the
semi-final James won 8-7 to put him in the final where he secured silver and a second trophy.
Luke
started his kumite against an opponent from Palestine and advanced to round two with a 3-0 win. Unfortunately he did not progress
past the second round but made a determined effort and showed good spirit despite some heavy blows.
Finally
Sophie was competing in the 14-15 girls category and the 16-19 cadet category where she was to meet the same opponent in each
from Cyprus. In the first category, Sophie was defeated in a high scoring fight by the Cypriot's “techniques”
which lead to a tense fight in the higher category. Unfortunately this also ended in defeat for Sophie.
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