St.Paul/Bonnyville - On the weekend of Feb. 21, 27 students from St. Paul Karate-Do and seven from the Bonnyville Karate-Do participated in the Shito-Ryu Genbu-Kai 2021 International Goodwill Championships Virtual Tournament.
St. Paul students competed in events including kata, kobudo kata, batto-do, team kata and kumite. While Bonnyville students stepped onto the mat to participate in kata, sword, karate kata, and weapons.
In Kata, competitors do a prearranged sequence of karate techniques including block, punches, kicks, and other strikes.
Kobudo is a sequence of techniques performed with a traditional Okinawan weapon such as the bo staff, oar, tonfa, nanchaku or sai. Batto-do consists of a sequence of movements performed with a sword. Team kata is a group of three students performing a kata together.
Each of the events are judged on speed, precision, correctness of technique, focus and spirit. Kumite is usually a person against person competition where points are scored for punches, kicks and other strikes. Because this tournament was virtual, competitors demonstrated their fighting ability against a target rather than a live opponent.
Students entered the competition by submitting videos of their performance.
Competitors entered from around the world, including Spain, Poland, Australia, Chile, Panama, England, USA and Canada.
Cal Leckie, Berthe Pelchat, Leah Page, Gemma Page and Deanna Michaels were local judges at the event. As well as competition, 13 St. Paul students took part in seminars in sword, weapons, kata and kumite taught by high level Karate instructors from southern California and from Japan.
St. Paul students have continued training in Karate during the COVID-19 pandemic by taking part in online classes taught by St. Paul Karate Head Instructor Cal Leckie.
St. Paul students came away with 33 virtual medals. Winners from St. Paul were:
Leah Page – 1st in kumite, 3rd in short weapons
Ehlam Iftikar – 1st in long weapons, 2nd in kata, 3rd in kumite
Berthe Pelchat – 2nd in kumite
Ehab Bajwa – 3rd in kata, 3rd in kumite
Fatima Iftikar – 2nd in kata
Kelli deMoissac – 3rd in kumite
Kurt Poulin – 1st in kumite, 2nd in kata
Ryan Morey – 2nd in kumite
Anton Bezpalchuk – 1st in kumite
tapwe sakihiwewin Heavenfire – 2nd in kumite
Sara Morey – 3rd in kumite
Sara Iftikhar – 3rd in kumite
Lincoln Jurak – 3rd in kumite, 3 rd in kata
David Morin – 3rd in kumite
Keagan Ference – 2nd in kumite, 3 rd in kata
Colby Havener – 1st in kata
Gemma Page – 3rd in kata
Amil Shapka – 1st in kata
Melanie Ference – 2nd in kata
Tannis Shapka – 3rd in kata
Cal Leckie – 1st in kumite, 1st in long weapons, 3rd in short weapons
Leah Page, Gemma Page, Deanna Michaels – 1st in team kata
The seven Bonnyville participants finished in the top three in 13 events:
Larry Dublenko – 2nd short weapons
Irene Welecki – 2nd individual kata and 3rd in sword
Roxanne Cabay – 2nd and 3rd swords
Sylvia Hedges – 1st and 3rd in sword
Tira McArter – 3rd in karate kata and 2nd in short weapons
Sylvia Slowski – 2nd in short weapons
