Tournament Squad Update

Its been a busy month of June for the Taekwon-do-Wales Tournament Squad, with a total of five tournaments entered this month. Between the team, they have gathered a total of 17 Gold, 12 Silver and 10 bronze medals.

The classic GTI tournament kicked of the month, with hard to win pattern events and some intense sparring opportunities. The team held their own, and took numerous medals, some taking their first official punches to the face, shaking it off and getting on with it. The team also opted for team event patterns and sparring, with all taking golds, along with arguing over who will spar the black belt. Confidence was high!

Puma English Championships followed, with all competitors putting in another great performance to take home the heaviest medals achieved so far. A first for sparring for one team member, originally planned as an exhibition fight for experience gathering, quicky switched to a medal fight between the two competitors.  

One member was taken to the Welsh Open Championships, as a scouting mission to see if the tournament is suitable for TKD Wales next year. Patterns were of a very high standard, with large groups. Sparring however, on occasion was very good, on other occasions did not resemble taekwondo. A hard earned bronze was taken, but a we’ve decided not to return.

ITFU British Championships next, a small team entered this event, as a number of us missed the entry deadline. Again patterns of a high standard, plus large groups. Sparring was tough, and free flowing, minimal warnings or stoppages, not for the first timer. The team held their own and put on great performances; finals consisting of 2 rounds was a  new experience for all.    

Lastly, one team member entered the ITC UK Open, achieving silver in patterns, followed by double gold for speed kick and sparring, which included some stern words from the referee, fortunately the fight ended before a yellow card was presented. (note to competitors: don’t back chat the referee when he’s in a bad mood!)

The team will now take a hard earned summer rest, and the coaches will review performances and prepare for the next wave of tournaments starting in September.