British Karate Championships - Edinburgh - 5th September 2009 (By Sarria Joseph)

Sorry everyone for this blog being so late, certain circumstances have occurred in my life which caused this delay. However, the lateness doesn’t take away, how great Kazien Central did in Edinburgh September 5th 2009.

We went out with 9 competitors, and came back with 11 medals due to the way the day panned out and me having to spend most of the day standing around on a mat, I didn’t see everyone, but from what I did see from glancing over from my mat in between fights was that everyone was on fire. I can’t fault anyone...

Whitney Rose 16-17 yrs +59kg and open weight won both categories, come on need I say anymore her amazing results speak for themselves...

Jordan Thomas 16-17yrs -68kg Gold, hardly surprising you know what he’s like...

Carla Burkitt 18yrs+ -55kg Gold, Definitely fought like a trooper...

Jake Langley 14yrs-15yrs -70kg Silver, He’s doing incredibly well – keep it up...
Michael Burke 16yrs-17yrs -76kg Bronze, Gave it his all, as usual...

Amy Thomason 18yrs+ -68kg Bronze, She was feeling under the weather, but still fought brilliantly considering...

Kerry Gunn 18yrs+ -61kg, and open weight Bronze, again with double medals fantastic fighting...

Women’s team 18+ Amy, Carla, Kerry Bronze – All fought well ...

All of us, competitors did great showing our class, and style, and letting Scotland know that Kaizen Central are the top dogs. But, we got to say a big thank you to the coaches as without them and all the hard work and time that they put in we would not be able to achieve and continue to achieve the great results we have this year. Keep up the good work guys.

RESULTS

Gold

Whitney Rose (2) 16-17yrs +59kg & Open

Carla Burkitt 18+ -55kg

Jordan Thomas 16-17yrs -68kg

Silver

Jake Langley 14-15yrs -70kg

Bronze

Sarria Joseph 14-15yrs Open

Amy Thomason 18+ -68kg

Kerry Gunn (2) 18+ -61kg & Open

Michael Burke 16-17yrs -76kg

Womens Team (Amy, Carla & Kerry)

Kaizen Central Gold medal winners BKF Championships

Whitney Rose (below), Junior (16 - 17yrs)
Heavy and Open-weight champion



Carla Burkitt (below), Senior (18yrs & over)
Light-weight Champion



Jordan Thomas (below), Junior (16 - 17yrs)
Light-middleweight Champion



In total Kaizen central gain 4 gold medals, 1 silver medal and 6 bronze medals. A full listing and details to follow.

Capital Open - 12th July 2009 (by Keanu Mayhew)

Kaizen Central had yet another good run in yet another competition in Clacton on the 12th of July. Once again everybody who went gave 100% and more, with a total of 22 medals (5 golds, 9 silvers & 8 bronzes), almost everyone came away with something, but those unlucky few such as Tommy, Spencer, Whitney and Laura who didn’t get anything this time but still gave their best performance. Well done everyone.

The day (as it usually does) started off with kata.
Me & Michael Burke were in the 15-17 yrs event where some good katas were shown but in the end I got a 3rd and Michael came out on top with 1st. Then a couple of minutes later we were both up again in the 16+, I improved (with thanks to Sensei John Anderson for on the spot coaching) and came away with a 2nd and then Michael (making kata look easy) came away with another well deserved 1st.

Whilst we were doing this Shaun Anderson played his part, even thou I didn’t see his katas I heard that they were very good which earned him a 1st place. Cameron Russell got 2nd & two Tigers kata team (one who had Cameron, Jak & Georgia in it, the other with Gabi & Katlin) won a 2nd in their categories.

After kata was done and dusted with it was time for us to move on to kumite.

Jake Langley, who I know always gives his best had some great fights in his category and came out with a 3rd. Cameron Russell again gave a brilliant show and clamed a 3rd to show it.

Moving on to the juniors now, Gabi Burrows and Azizah Fadare both fought brilliantly and both earned a 1st place in their categories. Malik Fadare also fought well and took a 2nd.

Once again me and Michael both fought in two separate categories. In both Michael took away a 3rd, I however did not have as much luck this time and didn’t win anything.

Also bad luck to Tommy and Spencer who both fought brilliantly in their fights but was unlucky not to win anything (keep up the good work boys)

Finally the Girls were up. In one category we had Amy Thomason, Carla Burkitt, Whitney Rose, Laura Wheeler & Kerry Gunn all fighting at their usual high standard and determination with some good displays of fighting as well. With the girls having to fight each other (Whitney against Amy, with Amy winning & Carla against Kerry, with Carla winning) Whitney unfortunately was knocked out leaving Kerry and Amy to take joint 3rd and Carla to win 2nd.

I missed Sarria Joseph & Georgia Burrows fights, but they both obviously did well as both of them had a 2nd place to show for it and Sarria also had a 3rd from a previous category.

Thank you to all the coaches for their help on the day and to the parents for getting us to all the competitions and a big well done to everyone who attended.

Results

Gold
Michael Burke (2) - Kata (15-17yrs) & Kata (Senior 16+)
Shaun Anderson - Kata
Azizah Fadare - Kumite
Gabi Burrows - Kumite

Silver
Malik Fadare (2) - Kata & Kumite
Keanu Mayhew - Kata (Senior 16+)
Sarria Joseph - Kumite (15yrs & under)
Carla Burkitt - Kumite (Senior 16+)
Cameron Russell - Kata
Georgia Burrows - Kumite
Tigers Team Kata (Cameron, Jak & Georgia)
Tigers Team Kata (Gabi & Katlin)

Bronze
Keanu Mayhew - Kata (15-17yrs)
Sarria Joseph - Kumite (15-18yrs)
Michael Burke (2) - Kumite (15-18yrs) & Kumite (Senior 16+)
Jake Langley - Kumite (15yrs & under)
Amy Thomason - Kumite (Senior 16+)
Kerry Gunn - Kumite (Senior 16+)
Cameron Russell - Kumite

English Open Karate Championships - 17th May 2009 (by Kerry Gunn)

Another good competition for Kaizen Central. We took a squad of 18 and came out of it with 8 golds, 2 silvers and 7 bronzes. Firstly I would like to say well done to everyone. I know that even though some people didn’t get the results they wanted you all gave 100% like Jake. He unfortunately went out in the first round but definitely didn’t deserve to. Even though things didn’t go Jake’s way this time it still doesn’t change the fact that he is one to watch in the future.

I would like to give a special mention to our junior squad. They may be the most inexperienced members of the squad but every single one of them did the whole squad proud this weekend.

The first medal of the day came from our kata team which consists of Michaela, Aaliyah and Azizah. They were competing against teams that were a lot more experienced and older than them and still they got a 3rd place.

Michaela unfortunately didn’t get a medal in her individual kata but still performed a very good kata. Michaela was upset about not winning a medal but I think she should be proud of herself as she is improving with every competition she does.

Azizah, the youngest member of the squad, did very well in her kata group, she went against her older sister and won which earned her a gold medal. Aaliyah wasn’t very happy with coming 2nd to her sister in the kata but soon made up for it in her kumite event. She fought a lot better than she did the week before, in fact she looked like a completely different person, and won her group.

Malik did brilliantly at this competition. It was only his 2nd competition and he came away with a 2nd place in kata and a 3rd place in kumite.

Kamran is another member of the squad that hasn’t done many competitions and even though he didn’t get a medal he still fought very well.

Last but not least I want to say well done to Tommy, who recently came out of his very short retirement, to receive a bronze medal. Tommy, who always fights with lots of spirit, fought better than I have seen him fight before (maybe that had something to do with Amy coaching him).

I would like to say something about everyone but it would take too long. Well done again to everyone and I know that we as a squad are going to get better and stronger with every competition we do.

Results

Gold
Azizah Fadare (kata)
Aaliyah Fadare (kumite)
Whitney Rose (kumite)
Amy Thomason (kumite)
14/15yr women’s kumite team (Monique Etienne & Sarria Joseph)
Women’s kumite team (Amy Thomason, Carla Burkitt & Kerry Gunn)
16/17yrs men’s kumite team (Jordan Thomas, Keanu Mayhew & Michael Burke)
Men’s kumite team (John Anderson, Jordan Thomas, Michael Burke & Tunde Fadare)

Silver
Malik Fadare (kata)
Aaliyah Fadare (kata)

Bronze
Michael Burke (kata & kumite)
Malik Fadare (kumite)
Keanu Mayhew (kumite)
Tommy Langley (kumite)
Carla Burkitt (kumite)
Kata team (Aaliyah Fadare, Azizah Fadare & Michael Kemp)

SENIOR EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS (BY AMY THOMASON)

Well after a week’s pre-training in Birmingham, I headed off to Zagreb, Croatia for the European Championships. I competed in the individual -68kg kumite on Friday and in the Women’s team kumite on the Sunday.

In the individual category, I won my first round 3-1, the one point given away from my contact warnings. I got all my points from counters and was feeling really good and in form. My next round was against Greece, whom I lost to 1-0. I was obviously gutted to not go through especially when feeling like I could do something pretty good. The Greek girl lost to France in the semi so I missed out on repercharge although she did end up 3rd, but of no help to me.

In the teams with Natalie Williams, Katie Hurry and Gemma Marwood, we were all feeling confident after Natalie and Katie had medalled in their individual events. We had Serbia first round, which we won. Personally, I fought second and drew 1-1 although I was up 1-0 for the majority of the match so was disappointed to let my opponent get it back. In the second round, we had the Swiss, whom we lost to unfortunately. Katie drew first, before Natalie lost on penalties so it was up to me to chase down the final win – which I couldn’t do, losing 2-0. I was obviously gutted, especially feeling like I had let the team down.

Overall though, I wasn’t overly disappointed with the competition, as I had fought well and have come away with more belief and confidence in knowing that I could potentially medal at one of the top comps in the World.

Just want to say though, thanks to everyone for the texts and everything whilst I was away especially with messages of support. It really meant a lot. Cheers.

MEOPHAM OPEN SUNDAY 10TH MAY 2009 (BY TREVOR JUSTIN)

On Sunday 10th May 2009 the Kaizen Central Squad continued on their journey in the second week of a trilogy of competitions, this time taking 12 competitors to compete in the Meopham Open championships in Kent.

Over the last couple of years Kaizen Central have seen so many of its fighters take part in this grass-roots competition and progress into National and International Champions. This was no different. It was pleasing to see from my point of view and was shared from the other Coaches the mix of the inexperienced and seasoned competitors all competing under one roof giving no less than 100% effort which was greatly rewarded in many aspects.

The start of the day as always was the kata events where Azizah Fadare, Aaliyah Fadare, Michaela Kemp and Malik Fadare all took part in their first open competition outside the association and did extremely well and gave a good account of themselves not looking out of place and was all very unlucky not to progress passed the first stage of the events.

Shaun Anderson who has been out injured for over a year gave himself a good stepping stone to recovery to compete in this competition and was unlucky not to medal this time but gave himself good preparation for the forth-coming British Championships in September.

Cheryl Anderson took part in the Cadets (16-17) category, every time I’ve watched Cheryl’s kata’s, she gets better and better. In her event she done extremely well by getting what I would call a modest Bronze, many of us thought she was very unfortunate not to get the Gold medal. Well done Cheryl!

For the first time in a couple years it was pleasing to the eye to see Kaizen Central put out a Kata Team (Azizah, Aaliyah and Michaela) and done themselves proud by coming 4th in this event. Well done girls keep it up you only can get better.

Next on were the kumite events.
Tommy Langley, Reuben Williams and Shaun Anderson all gave a good account for themselves and fought with a lot of spirit and was very unlucky not to get a medal this time around but you can see that these three boys are improving all the time. Well done guys.
In the Girls 4’2-4’8 category was very unfortunate that the two sisters Azizah and Aaliyah Fadare had to fight each other in the semi-finals in a close fought contest, Azizah narrowly came out on top earning Aaliyah a Bronze medal and in the final Azizah done very well and received a well deserved Silver coming up against a more experienced fighter. Well done Azizah and Aaliyah in your first competition.
Malik Fadare took part in the Boys over 5’2 event in his first competition and battled against a much heavier boy rather than the height and needed more protection from the referees’ which wasn’t given in my opinion and was unlucky to lose his fight but had done enough to warrant a well deserved bruising Bronze medal. Well done Malik welcome to the world of Kumite.

In the Boys Cadets (16-17) event Dean Gunn who hasn’t fought for a while, blew the dust off his mitts to get stuck into this competition, Dean got a bye in the first round and in his quarter-finals fought extremely well against a tough opponent and won 4-2 to take him into the semi-finals. Unfortunately Dean had to pull out of his Semi-final fight due to a re-occurring shoulder injury, but the pain was not all in vain, Dean had secured a Bronze medal. Well done Dean!

Well what can I say about the next three people that hasn’t been said before, Jake Langley, Sarria Joseph and Whitney Rose were all on blistering form, the more experienced members of our junior squad, their commitment and dedication to their training and attitude is a shining example to the up and coming members of our squad.

In Girls Over 5’2 Category Sarria breezed through the rounds to get into the semi-finals against one of her rivals, a few debateable points went against Sarria depriving her a place in the finals, earning Sarria a Bronze medal. Well done Sarria!
The Girls Cadets (16-17) Whitney only had four people in her category 3 out of the 4 are on the England squad so they had to encounter a round-robin. Whitney lost 2 of her 3 fights to some dubious decisions that went against her, that on another day the outcome would have been totally different, so Whitney had to settle for the Bronze medal, but what I will say is that the technique of the day for me was when Whitney delivered a ferocious ushiro-geri (back-kick) to her opponent so well executed I wished that could be shown again in slow motion, Jordan Thomas would have been proud of.

The Boys Over 5’2 event saw Jake looking to pick himself up after a disappointing fight in the WKU competition the week before, and he done just what the doctor ordered. Jake cruised into the finals where he met a very good fighter. Jake took an early lead going into the fight and was looking comfortable, once again a couple of dodgy points went against him and before we knew it the fighters were back on level terms, then Jake showed his classed and stepped up the pace to eventually take the Gold medal with ease to erase the memories of the previous week. Well done Jake!

RESULTS

1. GOLD – JAKE LANGLEY

1. SILVER – AZIZAH FADARE

6. BRONZE – CHERYL ANDERSON (KATA), AALIYAH FADARE, MALIK FADARE, DEAN GUNN, WHITNEY ROSE, SARRIA JOSEPH

I would like to thank the parents and supporters for your support also to Kaizen Central senior coaches Sensei’s’ John Anderson Snr, Glen Middleton and junior coach Kerry Gunn for excellent coaching and guidance. Thank you to Julie Gunn for collecting all the individual results as they came in, as well as organising the competition entries.

Roll on the final part of our trilogy of competitions on the Sunday 17th May 09 in Surrey.

Sensei Trevor Justin – Kaizen Central senior coach
3rd Dan

WKU Karate Championships - 3rd May 2009 (By Jordan Thomas)

The WKU championship has turned out to be another successful competition for Kaizen Central once again. Starting off the day with a two hour trip up to Bristol seemed to go really quickly for me as I slept the whole way there, I can't even remember getting on the motorway. As soon as we got inside the competition had started. From our squad there were only six of us who went down.

This event was the first time we could have a men’s team because it was 16+. This team was made up of me, little John and Michael Burke. This was the strongest team in the category. Not surprisingly the team had come away with a Gold Medal which all of us had to pull out some great performances to do this.

We also had a mixed team, which involved me, Kerry and little John. Again we were one of the favourite team to win again other than the WKU A team, which we had met in the final. But the team had pulled out another Gold Medal.

We had two competitors in the Kata, Michael and Keanu. Sadly Keanu didn’t come away with any medal in the kata but Michael once again took away the gold. Michael in my books is one of the best in England for his age in kata showing improvement every time he competes.

Jake Langley didn’t get a medal in this competition but he has shown great improvement winning earlier on in the year in the English championships. Keep it going Jake!

The 16 – 17 year old boys had three Kaizen Central squad members in the category, which were Keanu, Michael and I. I had to fight Keanu in the semi – final which is always awkward when fighting your team mate this time I had came out on top and got into the final. Then I found out who I had to fight in the final, another team mate. At around 5 seconds on clock Michael had hit me with a beautiful spinning kick what slap me round the face. It was nice! So I look at the clock three seconds to go knowing I cant let him get away with that. So I come of the line and gave him one back just to let him know that it’s my kick. Great fight! Kaizen had done the one two and three, first second and third.

Kerry Gunn had got to the final but then she had came up against Sarah who she had to fight in the mixed team were she narrowly lost to her 3 – 2. This time she couldn’t pull out the win and had to settle for the second. She had already had Gold in the team, which another Silver added on sums up a good day for her.

Little John had work up to the final which he had he lost 2 – 0. Through out the day little John had performed well get two Gold’s in the team and Silver in his own category.

As for me I feel like that I had performed brilliantly in this competition as I picked up 43 points and only 4 points against me winning three Gold Medals. I am working on getting to the world championships later this year and I think I am on the right track.

I have to say many thanks to Sensei John who was running mat-to-mat to coach us all.
This prove how strong our squad if we only brought 6 people to the competition and came away with 8 medals. The coaches must be doing something right.

Results
John Anderson – Individual kumite Silver Men’s Team Gold Mixed Teams Gold
Kerry Gunn – Individual kumite Silver Mixed Team Gold
Keanu Mayhew – Individual kumite Bronze
Michael Burke – Kata Gold Men’s Team Gold Individual Kumite Silver
Jordan Thomas – Individual kumite Gold Men’s Team Gold Mixed Team Gold

Well done all!

EKF MIDLAND REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS – SUNDAY 19 APRIL (BY AMY THOMASON)

Another weekend, another trip to Birmingham for a competition. That was the case for me, Jordan, Mervyn and Monique who went to the EKF Midland Regional Championships on Sunday.

It was an early start and via a few back streets thanks to a seemingly dodgy Sat Nav, we eventually arrived at the Crystal Leisure Centre in Stourbridge. The day seemed to go quickly, for me anyway, and before we knew it Jordan’s category was up. With only four in the group, Jordan was odds on to win. He took apart his first opponent easily and was doing the same in the final. However, a very dodgy decision meant Jordan was disqualified leaving him with a silver medal. Obviously, it was good to medal but not what he wanted or deserved. He was definitely the best competitor in that division.

Soon after, my weight category (-68kg) was up. It was definitely the largest weight category for the senior females on the day. After beating an AMA competitor very easily in the first round, my semi final was then against Natalie Williams, who had moved up from her normal weight category. Unfortunately for me, I couldn’t pull off the win so was then left with only one more round for a bronze medal, which I finished off comfortably.

Later on, the senior female open rolled around. I had a bye first round, before coming up against Loren Cook from EKKA. A 3-0 win meant again I went through to the semi-finals, and coincidentally I was again placed against Natalie Williams. In a case of what seemed like déjà-vu unfortunately, although the score line was closer, she came off better again. Once again I finished off my final round for the bronze medal quickly in 30 seconds.

I’d like to thank Mervyn for taking us up there and coaching us. As well, thanks to Monique who didn’t fight but supported both Jordan and I right throughout the day.

Krokoyama Cup 18/04/09 Koblenz, Germany. (By Michael Burke)

On Friday the 17th of April 7 competitors of the Kaizen Central squad woke up early and made their way to the airport where they were meeting up along with our 20 strong group of supporters, coaches and referees.

We arrived in Koblenz after a plane and coach trip at 10.00am. We had this first day to allow the competitors to relax and prepare and gather supplies for the competition, while our 20 strong coaches, referees and supporters enjoyed themselves relaxing at the water front. That night the majority of the squad went down the road for dinner which every one enjoyed and then got back for an early night as every one needed to be up and ready by 7.30am to walk to the sports centre.

18/04/09 The Day of The Tournament.
The tournament began with an opening ceremony which took place at 8.15 and then the first events which were Kata began at 8.30am, with the first Kumite events starting at 11.00am.

The standard of the competition was high as it was attended by many competitors form national teams, and not one member of our squad looked out of place competing at this level. Out of the 7 competitors competing we brought home two medals in the Kumite:

Carla Burkitt won gold in her weight category.

Michael Burke won a bronze medal in his weight category.

Although we only brought back two medals every competitor should be proud of themselves, whether they won or lost, because every one went out their and held their own. Most importantly you could see everyone, not only the competitors but every one in our squad of 27, were enjoying themselves.

People that really stood out for me were:

Spencer Wheeler: I saw a big improvement in Spencer’s fighting at the weekend he went out there with an aggression and determination I hadn’t seen in him before. As well as looking very sharp on the day. He was very unfortunate to pick up a knee injury during his fight, which forced a trip to the hospital and ending his chance to regain the lead and get through the first round.

Carla Burkitt: Was very sharp and her movement and use of the mat was very affective all helping her to win that gold medal which she deserved after a very comprehensive performance.

Whitney Rose: Also performed well making it through 3 rounds before being knocked out in the fourth round of her weight category in a well contested fight.

I would like to say a big thank you to all the supporters that came over and created such a good atmosphere and the coaches John Anderson, Glen Middleton, John Anderson Jnr and Trevor Justin for giving up their spare time to travel to Germany and coach us competitors. Also a big thanks to Julie Gunn for organising the trip and last but not least thank you to our officials Paul Gunn, Tommy Beaton and John Colpus for coming over and representing Kaizen on that side of things.

A comment from Chief Instructor Willie Thomas

Firstly, I would like to acknowledge the support, referees and coaching staff that attended Koblenz, Germany and the Midlands Regional Championships this weekend. Not only for attendance this weekend but for your support, effort, coaching and training to date.

Well done to all that competed at the weekend and as normal flying the Kaizen Central flag with honour.

Michael Burke, well done on another medal to add to your recent run of form.

Amy Thomason, you have put in another consistent performance with 2 x bronze medals at the Midlands regional competition and showed that persistence pays off having been awarded your England place at the senior Europeans.

Jordan Thomas, Back to form with a silver medal to add his English title. Love him or hate him, one things for sure......................... you will watch him!!!

Carla Burkitt is proving herself to be a premier performer at the highest levels. European bronze medal, English Champion and now another gold to add to her tally. Great attitude, commitment, loyalty and a pleasure to watch.

Scottish International Open

A small squad of 5 competitors (John Anderson Jnr, Kerry Gunn, Amy Thomason, Michael Burke and Jake Langley), 1 coach (John Anderson) and 2 referees (Paul Gunn and Geoff Marks) went to Edinburgh on the weekend of 3rd/4th April for the Scottish Open Karate Championships in which there were 10 different countries competiting. We came away with 1 gold and 2 bronze medals.

Saturday 4th April

The day started with Michael competing in the Senior Male Kata 16+ event. He did extremely well getting through to the quarter-finals. Then Michael fought in the 16-17yrs +70kg category but as this was straight after his kata he ran out of energy due to all the effort in his kata.

Next up was Kerry in the Womens -60kg category. Kerry started well with a 3 point lead but when her opponent scored a kick she forgot her game plan and started chasing points.

Then came Amy in the Womens +60kg category, Amy won her first fight and then narrowly lost to Katie Hurry, but as Katie made it to the final, Amy came back in the repecharge and won 3rd place quite easily.

John was on at the same time as Amy so coach John was running between the 2 mats. John fought well getting through to the quarter-finals and losing to a Danish National Squad Member.

Last event of the day was the Womens Team event, Amy and Kerry enlisted the help of Rio Smith to give them a full team. In the first round they beat one of the Scottish Teams which meant they met the BIKO team of Natalie Williams, Katie Hurry and Gemma Marwood in the semi-finals. After an exciting match the girls won. In the final they had a rematch of the English Team final and faced the Links team, this time they were victorious and became Scottish Open Champions making coach John Anderson Jnr a very happy man.

This just left Jake to compete on Sunday.

Sunday 5th April

After a very long wait and new flights and a hotel room being booked Jake eventually got to fight in the 14-15yrs Boys -70kg event. Jake won his first fight and narrowly missed out in the semi-finals, this put Jake into the repecharge which he won convincingly to gain a 3rd place medal.

Well done to all the squad who all did very well over the weekend and helped each other out when needed.

Kaizen Kids

On Sunday 29th March we again held the Kaizen Kids competition at the Honbu in Hackney. This competition is only open to inexperienced students that have only competed in a maximum of 2 competitions. The competition was a great success with entries from the Kaizen Central clubs of Mornington, Sharks, Haringey and Tigers along with the clubs of Terry Daly and Kuda Adams from Uechi Ryu. This competition gave all the students both the experience and a taste for competitions along with some of the senior squad members who had a taster for judging and being table officials. All competitors received a medal for either 1st, 2nd, 3rd or joint 4th place and there were some future champions in the making.

EKF Kaizen Central Results

Head Coach: William Thomas
Association Coaches: John Anderson, Glen Middleton, Trevor Justin

Gold

Jake Langley - Boys Cadet Kumite 14-15yrs -70kg

Jordan Thomas - Male Jnr Kumite 16-17yrs -68kg

Whitney Rose - Female Jnr Kumite 16-17yrs +59kg

Carla Burkitt - Female Kumite 18-20yrs -53kg

Silver

Monique Etienne - Girls Cadet Kumite 14-15yrs +54kg

Michael Burke - Male Jnr Kumite 16-17yrs -76kg

Amy Thomason - Female Kumite 18-20yrs +60kg

Kerry Gunn - Female Snr Kumite 18yrs+ -61kg

Laura Wheeler, Monique Etienne & Sarria Joseph - Girls Cadet 14-15yrs Kumite Team

Amy Thomason, Carla Burkitt & Kerry Gunn - Female Snr 18+ Kumite Team

Bronze

Sarria Joseph - Girls Cadet Kumite 14-15yrs +54kg

Whitney Rose - Female Jnr Kumite 16-17yrs Open

Amy Thomason - Female Snr Kumite 18yrs+ +68kg

Amy Thomason - Female Snr Kumite 18yrs+ Open

Carla Burkitt - Female Snr Kumite 18yrs+ -55kg

EKF National Championships

By Jake Langley, age 15

After a really long drive on Friday we made it to Sheffield at about 8,30pm. We were up early the following morning to watch the under 13's and Kata squad compete. Sadly we came away with no medals, although the squad did really well and we had a few close decisions. The day ended late and we got back to our hotel at 8.30pm and had dinner there and went straight to sleep to get a good rest ready for the fighting the following day.

Then on Sunday we were up early again, ready for a new day at the competition. I was a bit nervous because I had just gone up ANOTHER weight category and I felt that wasn't the best competition to start at. however I came away with the gold and was really happy because I had only just started doing well in competions and now have the English. It made me feel that all the extra training I have been putting in is really starting to pay off.

The whole squad performed really well and must have been in the top 4 squads there because we came away with 16 medals, including 4 golds. These are the people that stood out the most to me:

Amy Thomason: Well all I need to say is that she brought home 4 medals, 2 x silver and 2 x bronze. I have been training with Amy for a while now and think that her 'no let up' in sparring has really helped me.

Michael Burke: Michael did well and was focused, he was very sharp on the day and it all helped to become a silver medal.

Both the girls teams fought really well and came away with a silver each.

The boys cadets had a few pretty 'out there' decisions but the fought really well.

Whitney Rose brought home 2 medals on her own which always says something, these were a gold and a bronze.

I would like to say thank you to everyone that has helped train me over the last few years because I would still be getting knocked out in the first round if it wasn't for you. I would also like to thank Paul Gunn for driving half the squad up there.

Jake Langley

Competiton Report by Whitney Rose (16)

I really looked forward to competing in Dudley on Sunday. Being the first competition of the year I was eager to get out on the mat, clear all the cob webs and fight well to boost my own self confidence whilst making a positive impression on those around me. To my dismay, I had a very small category which frustrated me at first, however a wise person informed me "you can only beat those who are standing in front of you" So when I concentrate on the things that were in my control for instance how I fought rather that things that were out of my control, I was pleased with my attempt to use a variety of techniques that I have been practising in the dojo. I look forward to participating next month in the English Championships.

Enough about moi, I’m very proud to be part of Kaizen Central. What I perceive to be an extremely hard working association, and more importantly an association that excels most when working in unison. I think everybody done very well on Sunday regardless of getting the medals or not! Those who particularly impressed me were:

Jake, who I have been training with quite often lately. I really feel he has come on leaps and bounds in the last 6 months, and I’m incredibly pleased for him. He is always enthusiastic, and deserves all his future glory.

Carla, who has always been one of the people I’m in awe of in my association. She had ridiculous speed and is a very clever fighter. Also becoming less hot headed in her old age! Lol. Joking aside, she’s forever working hard, and again deserves all her future glory.

Sarria, who hasn’t been training regularly due to injuries, however is definitely on the mend and managed impress all her peers with her sharp movements and continuous point scoring whilst fighting. Well done mate, you make us all proud!

Amy, who had challenging competitors, although she flew through the fights with what being a spectator looked with ease, well done Amy!

Jordan, who scored 18 points in one fight! That says it all really doesn’t it? Again another fighter I’ve always been in awe of, he is next in line for exciting....after little John of course!

I could go on and speak about everybody, but I’m knackered and it’s likely I’ll fall asleep. So before that happens, many thanks to all the coaches, you all deserve a huge pat on the back!
Whitney Rose x

UK Open Championships, Dudley

Since the turn of the new year, our kumite training schedule has been focused on improving fitness, stamina, speed and tenacity whilst maintaining the technical skills developed last year. A lot of emphasis has also been placed on advanced kicking techniques. I have been inspired by the work rate and attitude of the squad and was really pleased to see the hard work pay off in our first competition of 2009 at Dudley. For 12 competitors pick up 12 medals is an achievement in itself but it was the manner that this was done that pleased me the most. Every athlete looked a class above their opponents (even those who who unlucky enough not to win a medal) and it was great to see the techniques we has been working on put into practice.

The following athletes have worked particularly hard this year and I would like to recognise:-

Calra Burkitt - the movement and speed shown yesterday was amazing, a "maturing champion"
Amy Thomason - great consistency, tenacity and a well deserved gold medal in the toughest category
Kerry Gunn - great kicks rounded of with a superb ushiro maewashi geri, technique of the day
Jordan Thomas - 18 points in one fight says it all about his performance
Michael Burke - real consistency and sharpness backed by great kicking ability
Whitney Rose - speed and sharpness backed up with some great kicks
Jake Langeley - speed, sharpness and will get better and better moving forward


I chose to mention these people because they have consistently trained hard and attended nearly every if not all training sessions this year. From my point of view, it was plain to see the step up in pace that these athletes showed yesterday which can only stand them in good stead for the upcoming English Championships and Senior European selections. Well done to you all, I'm proud of you.


Glen Middleton 3rd Dan
Former England International
Kaizen Central Senior Coach

Today we had an excellent E.K.F regional Karate session focusing on the development of kicking skills with the main emphasis on disguising kicking techniques. Each athlete completed several rounds of partner work and pad work before moving on to more complexed drills.

The session was led by Willie Thomas (former World Champion) and assisted by Mervyn Etienne (former World Champion) and Glen Middleton (former England International). Paul Gunn, Kaizen Central chief referee was on hand to advise on the rules and that the quality of execution was point worthy.

Thank you to all and well done to athletes

Willie Thomas 6th Dan

Self Defence

Every Monday at our Luton dojo Sensei Willie Thomas 6th Dan Mike Paget 6th Dan instructs on Kyusho techniques and street self defence.

Carla - European Bronze

You have worked hard for years to achieve this and it is well deserved. I think you can go onto greater things in the future .

Merv

England Training 14th Feb

On Saturday we attended England training as a squad.
There were two parts to the session with a 45-minute break in between.
The first half was a basic session focused on technique and positive blocking. This was progressed gradually to working with partners.
After the break we went straight into fitness; this was based on endurance and being able to hold your form even when tired. The first drill consisted of shuttle runs and exercises such as; sit ups, press-ups, squats and burpees. We were then paired off with our previous partners and continued to work on the techniques from the first half but fast speed.

Overall I feel the session was rewarding, especially with our first Fitness testing taking place in a few weeks!

Carla Burkitt.

Kaizen Central Go England Squad Training

Well done to all that attended the England sqaud training at the weekend. John Anderson, Kerry Gunn, Carla Burkitt, Michael Burke, Whitney Rose, Laura Wheeler, Jake and Rainne.

Willie Thomas 6th Dan
Chief Instructer
2 x World Champion

News

Carla Burkitt,

(18) of Lewsey Farm, Luton and current England No1 under 21 light-weight wins a bronze medal at the Cadet, Junior and U21 European Championships held at the Coubertin Stadium, Paris France this weekend

On Sunday 1st February ‘09 Carla Burkitt won a bronze medal at the 36th Cadet, Junior and U21 European Championships held at the Coubertin Stadium, Paris France. Forty-five countries were represented with over 800 entries making it the biggest championships ever.

Carla has gone from strength to strength after winning a bronze medal last year’s Commonwealth Karate Championships in Scotland and is now establishing herself on the European circuit currently racked number three in Europe. Carla help England to a credible seventh place on the medal table over all being one of six medal winners on her European debut.
England coach Greg Francis stated “It was an excellent performance from Carla and she was a pleasure to coach”. Club coach Willie Thomas, himself a former World Champion says, “Carla has harnessed the very essence of commitment, hard work and loyalty. She has persevered through injury and disappointment, peaks and troughs’, encompassing all what it means to be an elite athlete. I’m very proud of her”.

Carla is a completely self-funded athlete and (although the World Karate Federation has been short listed, it awaits a decision for the inclusion to the Olympic Games in October 2009) she is not eligible for UK sport funding. Carla works extremely hard at the elite- performance academy at Oakland’s college both physically and academically and plans to attend Middlesex University in September to study ‘Sports Injury and rehabilitation’.

Now Carla has her sights firmly placed on the Commonwealth Karate Championships (Mumbai, India) and the World Karate Championships (Rabat, Morocco) later on this year where once again will be a medal hopeful for her Country. Anybody wishing to sponsor Carla in her endeavours can contact Willie Thomas now on 07590 513 003

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