May 2012 BC Team wins big at Nationals A dream becomes reality By Nicole Poirier I have a fridge magnet that states: Fais de ta vie un rêve Et de ton rêve Une réalité North Make of your life a dream American And of your dream A reality Champions Being realistic has its virtues. BC Team members Shaun Dhillon and Many commented early in the Jusleen Virk are the season that the BC Team was senior North going to be a weak one. American kumite champions. Comments were based on realistic and true observations Dhillon beat USA, like some of our best would not Mexico and then be present, some were injured the USA in the final and quite a few athletes were of the North new to the team. American Cup held This presented a nice challenge last month in Las to the coaching team. The facts Vegas. Virk beat were there and certainly word Mexico, the USA was getting around. and then Mexico. Toshi Uchiage retained his title as Canadian national Our reality was changed. The See page 10 senior kata champion, his 10th in 11 years. See story BC Team collected 12 Gold Medals, seven Silver Medals page 12— Dick Grant photo and 20 Bronze in individual events. In Team Events, we 2012 Provincials collected one of each — Gold, Thank you Volunteers Silver and Bronze. BCIT Burnaby Nov. 17 and 18 Please see pages 9 and 30 (Continued on page 4) KARATE BC • 225-3820 Cessna Drive • Richmond, B.C. V7B 0A2 Tel: 604-333-3610 • Fax: 604-333-3612 • e-mail: [email protected] • Web: www.karatebc.org Karate BC NEWS • May, 2012 225 ‐ 3820 Cessna Drive Richmond, BC V7B 0A2 t 604.333.3610 f 604.333.3612 e [email protected] www.karatebc.org EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE President: Charles La Vertu [email protected] 1st Vice‐President: Kurt Nordli [email protected] Karate BC president Charles La Vertu presented former KBC executive 2nd Vice‐President: director James Johnson with the Sport BC Presidents’ award March 8. Jason Farquharson [email protected] Johnson bestowed presidents’ award Secretary: Brendan Flower Former Karate BC executive director was vice-president of the Pan James Johnson has been awarded the American Karate Federation (1988- [email protected] Sport BC Presidents’ Award. 1994), a member of the Executive Committee World Karate Federation The award, presented March 8 at the Treasurer: Ken Corrigan (1996-2006) and Provincial Advisor River Rock Resort by Karate BC for Karate for the BC Winter Games [email protected] President Charles La Vertu, honoured (1988-2008). Johnson’s 35-years-plus contribution to karate. A member of the Technical Membership: Andreas Kuntze Committee of the Pan American The Texas-born Johnson was KBC [email protected] Karate Federation, he was named to executive director from 1984 to 2009 the National Karate Hall of Fame in and served as our president from 1980 1992 and the Burnaby Sports Hall of Directors‐At‐Large: to1982 and as National Karate Fame in 2006. Association (now Karate Canada) Rick Penner president from 1988 to1992. His latest assignment was as general [email protected] manager of the recent 2012 Karate The four-time national champion also Canada National Championships. Donna Gardecki [email protected] Karate BC Affiliations: Coaching Association of BC The Canadian Olympic Noreen Yeomans Karate Canada Association [email protected] Pan‐American Karate Federation BC Recreation and Parks World Karate Federation Association Newsletter editor: Sport BC Charles La Vertu Funded by the Ministry Canadian Sport Council of Community, Sport & Cultural Development 2 Karate BC NEWS • May, 2012 Kobudo Tournament Rules – Development meeting Kurt Nordli The seminar will be from 11:00 – Remember, the world is run by those First Vice‐President 4:00 with lunch from 1:00 – 2:00. who show up. So far there are only six Tournament Director Please send me your contact people who have responded and will Karate BC information so I can send you the be responsible for the rule [email protected] formal invitation with all the development. information. Instructors attending Karate BC will be holding a Kobudo should bring all their weapons and If you want a say in the development working discussion seminar May 27 be prepared to demonstrate kihon, of Kobudo in tournaments plan to be in the lower mainland. kata and explain the lineage of their there. Kobudo. Our goal at this seminar is the following: To set basic tournament rules for the Kobudo Divisions at Karate BC Sanctioned Tournaments; Determine accepted weapons for use at the tournament; Determine minimum and maximum weights for the various weapons; Develop an accepted Kata list; and D. Tsuruoka in Kelowna Develop the basic criteria for Sensei David Tsuruoka was in differentiating between good and Kelowna on April 20‐22 to give 50 bad technique in handling various members a seminar of a lifetime. weapons. Sensei David Tsuruoka (8th Dan) is I understand that there are many the son of Karate Canada (NKA) different styles of Kobudo and many founder O‐Sensei Masami Tsuruoka different ways of handling the various (10th Dan) and comes yearly to weapons. Kelowna to host an outstanding I only ask that we come together to try weekend of training. David Tsuruoka to work out some basic criteria as a Sensei David pulls from his lifetime Techniques and ideas from Karate, beginning in our development of of experiences training with world Aikido, Kung Fu, Kendo, and Jiu Jitsu Kobudo in tournaments. leaders such as Master Nishiyama were all utilized in a jam‐packed and Sensei Tabata to name a few. I am asking for all Kobudo instructors weekend. who wish to be part of this seminar to Throughout the weekend members The yearly seminar is an opportunity email me with their names and of the Kelowna Tsuruoka Karate for all styles of karate to get together contact information. Club, Jushinkan Martial Arts, Way and learn off each other in an ego‐free of Life Martial Arts, Rodney Hobson The formal invitation will only be environment. Karate Academy and more all got going out to instructors who send me together to train in harmony and The seminar is open to all members, their information, not to the general explore the technical prowess of the and we encourage everyone to attend membership of KBC. great instructor. next year and join in on the fun. 3 Karate BC NEWS • May, 2012 A dream (Continued from page 1) Who made the difference? BC junior athletes aged 16 and 17. Out of 11 divisions, BC won five individual Gold and one team kata Gold. They were the ones that not only won half of BC’s medals, they were also the leading group in Canada ahead of Quebec and Ontario Junior athletes. BC U21 athletes placed second behind Quebec collecting two Gold and three Silver medals. BC Cadets athletes collected one Gold, one Silver and five Bronze medals. Considering that this was for many cadets their first year at Nationals, their performance was Jusleen Virk bops one to Jade Storm Bartley — Dick Grant photo noticed. BC Senior athletes collected four BC Medal Count: Shaun Dhillon, Senior +84kg Gold, two Silver and five Bronze Gold (13) medals. Isabel Chan, Cadet ‐47kg TEAM KATA U17 MALE It should also be noted that gold medals won in the senior divisions Claire Boothe, Junior ‐48kg Terrence Chan came from athletes that were Victoria Barusic, Junior ‐53kg Paulo Santillian National Junior Champions a few Tan Nguyen, Junior ‐55kg John Sawall years ago. Derek Chan, Junior ‐61kg In retrospect, our results surpassed Cedomir Vasic, Junior +76kg the general expectation. In fact, due Silver (8) Victoria Barusic, U21 ‐53kg to injuries or other commitments, we Aya Kitaoka, Cadet +54kg were missing some of our best Derek Chan, U21 ‐61kg Thien Nguyen, Junior Kata athletes that we strongly believe Toshi Uchiage, Senior Kata would have added additional Reid Lofstrom, Junior +59kg Jusleen Virk, Senior ‐50kg medals to our count. Rita Ngo, U21 Kata Cody Martin, Senior ‐60kg Thien Nguyen, U21 Kata Jusleen Virk, U21 ‐53kg Sumi Uchiage, Senior Kata TEAM KUMITE MEN Arash Beytoei Shaun Dhillon Chad Edberg Jason Kingra Brian Purves Dylan Riches Dylan Robinson Bronze (21) Trevor Kim, Cadet Kata Valerie Doyon, Cadet ‐54kg Terrence Chan, Cadet ‐57kg Coulson Boothe gets bopped — Dick Grant photo (Continued on page 5) 4 Karate BC NEWS • May, 2012 Dylan Robinson, U21 ‐78kg Big Team = Big Help A dream Jason Kingra, U21 +78kg A total of 101 athletes presented (Continued from page 4) Rita Ngo, Senior Kata themselves at the BC Team Selection in January 2012. Kenneth Lee, Senior Kata Jackson Tribe, Cadet ‐63kg Eric Mah, Senior ‐67kg Seventy athletes were selected to attend Nationals. Brendon Ly, Cadet +70kg Arash Beytoei, Senior Open Morgan Maher, Junior Kata This was by far one of the biggest teams that BC has ever had ‐‐ a large Tan Nguyen, Junior Kata TEAM KUMITE WOMEN team requiring support of all kinds. Paulo Santillian, Junior Kata Andrea Maikawa To boost the BC Team spirit: The Samantha Rowland, Junior ‐59kg Jusleen Virk High Performance and Executive Harpreet Sidhu, Junior +59kg Sumi Uchiage Committees approved and Avneet Matharu, Junior ‐61kg implemented the following: Victoria Barusic, U21 Kata Additional team trainings Emma Arksey, U21 Kata The coaching team is thankful for the athletes’ dedication and hard Additional expert resources and Seiya Takeuchi, U21 Kata work representing our province with services great sportsmanship and team spirit. Call out to all BC coaches and Congratulations to all of our athletes Trainers that competed at Nationals this year. Inauguration of the BC flag and BC badge on the karate‐gi The Team behind the Team Team Trainings Behind every successful athlete there The team had four trainings during is a team.