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On Wednesday the 10th of November, Aberdeen had their first Master Class. I can easily say it was a complete success. Almost all of our members were able to attend, some with a bit of apprehension about what to expect, as this was for most of them their first Seminar with Master Daher.

We started the seminar with self defence technique. We learned about techniques to release from an attacker if grabbed by the wrist, elbow and shoulder.  After a bit of confusion, and with practice we slowly got through this. It really is something that we will need to practise many times so that it becomes a subconscious “reaction” movement. I know everybody really enjoyed this part of the seminar.

We then moved onto reviewing some of the kicks and it was back to basics. We all needed to practice this as over time the correct technique can easily be lost. So we worked on side- piercing kick, turning kick and back kick “movement by movement”. I know this was really important and it encouraged everyone in the class to really think about what they were doing, how to do it correctly and why it is important to do it that way, rather than just throwing the kick out there.

Master Daher was a very good and patient instructor. I know everyone came away feeling very good about what they did and will be looking forward to the next Master Class.

Thankyou Master Daher.

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The IL Shim International Taekwon-Do Bundaberg Cup will re-emerge this weekend after a 9 year absence. The Bundaberg club under the guidance of Senior Instructor Michael McGaw will be hosting the 2010 Bundaberg Cup at St Patricks Primary School, (Powers Street Entrance) this Saturday.

Senior Instructor McGaw commented, “It has been a long time in waiting…but now it’s back and will be a regular occurrence on the ITF Australia Calender.” The tournament will be conducted under the guidance of 8th Degree Black Belt Master Michael Bou Daher. “The organisation is very privileged” McGaw said, “He is the only 8th Degree Master in the Asian Pacific Region who actually gets on the floor with his students, and to have him travel from Sydney to direct the tournament is very encouraging.”

 

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Master Daher Taking Mr McGaw through technical training.

The last time the Rum City hosted the tournament was back in 2001 where it was combined with the 2001 Bundaberg Rum Queensland Championships which saw in excess of one hundred competitors vie for placings.

“Numbers are down on previous tournaments,” Master Daher said,” But Mr McGaw has been doing a great job up here. The Bundaberg Club had seen a decline in students, but he has managed to put the club into a rebuilding phase with great progress.”

The tournament will play host to clubs from the Sunshine Coast, Gold Coast and Miriam Vale and Agnes Water with the gauntlet already being thrown down warning the Cup will leave the Rum City.  “Regardless of the final outcome on the day, I am sure every one will walk away proud of the effort they put in and with a pledge of returning next year, and not only the competitors but spectators as well.” McGaw said.

To help celebrate the re-emerging of the tournament, IL Shim International Taekwon-Do Bundaberg extends an open invitation for spectators to take in the action free of charge. Weigh in begins at 9am sharp with the tournament due to commence at 9.30. with a canteen running for lunch

For further queries in regards to the tournament or training times Senior Instructor Michael McGaw can be contacted on 0407 145 574.

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We arrived in Vienna after a very long 30hrs of travelling via Bangkok and Dubai. The weather was very cold and perfect for waiting around for hours in the airport for a bus. So that’s what we did. When we finally arrived in Bratislava, Slovakia we checked in at the hotel and crashed for several days!!!! (not really). The next day we met up with the other Australians from USMA and caught a taxi to the city centre for some sight seeing. Mum was not very happy when she found out that I forgot to bring the camera. (Oh well, too bad, you should have been there!!!!!). When we got back to our hotel we did some light training in the local park.

The following day we had the weigh-ins and then we did some more training in the park. Later on Mr Christensen also had to attend the coaches meeting. By now I was slowly starting to get over the jet lag. The hotel we stayed at was nice and the food was pretty good. The water was not so special, as it had a bit of an aftertaste. There were lots of other teams staying at our hotel and we were definitely starting to feel the buzz as the competition approached.

Competition Day 1: The next morning we got up early for the first day of competition. I was scheduled to do three events on the first day.

Special technique was first up, with “Flying overhead Kick”. There were 36 competitors in this event with the target at 2.4mtrs. At the end of the first round it was down to 7 competitors with the target at 2.5mtrs. I just touched the target in the second round but did not score so was eliminated. Only three people hit the target at this height. Next it was “Flying high side kick” with 39 competitors. Ha ha, I bombed out in this one, as I dragged my back leg across the tape in the first round. 

Next up was “Patterns”. This was a huge division with 72 competitors in the first round. In an unusual draw the original 72 was cut to 64 in the second round with many people getting a Bye in the first round (me included). Then I was against Poland in the first round and I got the result and moved through to the round of 32. My next bout was against Russia and I lost in this round. I felt good about my patterns and was beaten by a very good opponent. The Russian competitors were very strong in this division and went on to take all three medals. At the end of the day I had really had a great time and was definitely ready for sparring action the next day.  

Competition Day 2: Boy this was a long day. I was scheduled to do sparring today but as the day wore on it became apparent that my division was likely to be postponed. So I spent the day watching, as most of the sparring events were completed. I saw some amazing action throughout the day and I was blown away by some of what I saw. These Europeans are soooo fast. Boy have we got some work to do! There was also a lot of quite heavy contact at this competition and I saw at least ten Knock Outs. I think we need to start training for this level of contact as it can be very intimidating if you are not used to it. At the end of the day it was confirmed that my division would be postponed until the morning. I was glad they postponed my fight as I was mentally quite tired from sitting around all day waiting.  

During the evening, they ran a “Finals Night” with selected divisions fighting their finals on the centre stage. It was an awesome atmosphere. One day I want to be up there!!

 Competition Day 3: I couldn’t figure it out! I am sitting at breakfast and can’t hold my spoon still. I am shaking like a leaf. I had better put my dark brown undies on and take a couple of extra pairs. (I was packing it!!). We arrived at the stadium and found out that I would be on around mid morning. My division consisted of 21 competitors including members of a number of national teams and the current European Champion. I was fortunate to get a bye in the first round. My first fight was against Czech Republic. This was a hard hitting affair but by the end of it my nerves had settled and I was feeling OK. My next fight was against one of the biggest fighters in the division, a huge kid from Hungary. I spent most of the fight trying not to get hit but landed enough points in between running around to score the win. By the end of it I was struggling with my fitness. One three minute round is quite exhausting if you are going at it for the whole time. Down to the last 4! My next fight was against Poland. Obviously he was just as wary of me as I was of him, because we were both stalking each other for most of the fight. It was very much a cat and mouse affair with us both receiving warnings for not engaging, but neither wanting to be the first to make a mistake and leave an opening. In the end, he was the one who became impatient and tried to rush in. I was able to score a couple of shots on him and it was over. Now it was the final! Mr Christensen had not told me that I was through to the medal rounds and I wasn’t aware of it at the time (probably a good thing). The final fight was against Norway. This fighter was smaller in size, but very fast and I was on the defensive for most of the fight. He was also a very aggressive puncher which I don’t come across too often in Australia, and by the end of the fight we were both receiving warnings and minus points for contact. I was aware that I was ahead on points because of the electronic scoreboard which can be very off-putting and which I found can affect the way you fight (not necessarily in a good way). The time ticks down, three, two, one, my arms are raised in the air, winner!!! Yes!!! I am excited. Mr Christensen comes rushing onto the matt and lifts me into the air. This is definitely the biggest tournament win that I have ever had. THE REST IS A BLUR of phone calls and celebration. 

 

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Trent Hayden

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The 5 girls; Lisa Mundy, Cassandra Dowling, Miranda Young, Lydia Wolke and Agata Kahan, enlisted the help of a local Martial Arts Club and through a search of the web they came across us. Once making contact they presented me with what they wanted to achieve and we were more than happy to help out. Our involvement would be to hopefully encourage the school students to take up Taekwon-Do as a good source for reaching their goals.

I approached 16 year old Justin Cernoy as he is one of our senior belts (red / black tip) to help out with the presentation, he eagerly accepted the challenge. Once we arrived and met with the girls they were all very keen to get things started. We were then presented with the group of students that had no idea of what they were in for. The School Teacher sat the group down and gave them a stern warning to pay attention and show us the respect that we deserve and that they did. The girls began their presentation by talking about the importance of exercise and eating healthy, once they had finished they threw to Justin and I to do our bit. The only thing going through my head at that stage was to command the audience and gain their respect, which was successfully achieved. Wasting no time I put together a small wrestling contest, pairing each of them up equally until elimination and only one winner. Next we followed up with a circuit style class which included a workout of punching and kicking onto small targets, to raise their heart rates. 15 mins of that was just about enough for most of them including our hosts and before they knew it they were actually exercising. For some this was a new experience and a stepping stone towards a healthier lifestyle.

Justin and I finished off with a display of patterns and board breaking to give it a bit of wow factor.

I would like to thank, the girls from Griffith University and Musgrave Hill Primary for allowing us to bring our techniques, also Justin Cernoy for his contribution to the event.

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