Hunter Valley Tournament Seminar 2012

Hunter Valley Tournament Seminar 2012.

As you are all aware the Hunter Valley tournament was cancelled for 2012 due to such low numbers. As always with the positive approach from the ITF Australia senior members, we devised a contingency plan for this kind of occasion.

The introduction of a tournament seminar became a reality with us seizing this opportunity, bringing all the knowledge required that goes into building a tournament, running it and judging it confidently and efficiently.

The day was no different to any other tournament day. The setup of the venue was rapidly attended to by the Aberdeen club students, creating a tournament feel was evident of what we had installed for the members. For those that had already committed to travel plans we did not want to let them down and with great credit to all making the day a success.

A quick run-down on what is involved in the lead up to the day was done. The tournament program that we use was explained, how information is put into the system and how the draw is built. The importance of support from members is what makes these tournaments a success.

ITF Australia is very lucky to have such committed senior members such as Mr Gerard Kelly, Mr Charlie Van Beelen and Mr Frans Christensen, through their efforts they put on a great show. Mr Kelly for me was a big standout, getting involved in every topic, bringing his many years of knowledge to the lucky members that attended. Master Daher was able to bring more insight into successful competing on the mats, with focus on movement around the floor.

A big thank you to Rick Scholes and Trent Hayden for showing their remarkable ability and experience in competition. They are a credit to the organisation and an inspiration to many.

I personally felt the day was a success and a lot was learnt by all. Be sure to ask those that attended the event how they felt and what they got out of it.

If you ever get the opportunity to attend such an event like this again, I’m sure you would be more than happy with the outcome.

Thank you

John Abdallah

Manager ITF Australia Pty. Ltd

25 July, 2012/by Shawn Sutton

Tournament Seminar

News, Past Events

Tournament Seminar

Report by Gerard Kelly IV dan Umpiring Director IL Shim

Saturday 21^st of July saw myself and Mr. Vanbeelen drive down to the Hunter Valley to help run a seminar focused purely on all of the events in a tournament.

With a decent amount of competitors we endeavored to give all participants a thorough understanding of what judges look at in all events and even got to do some of the judging themselves! Mr. Abdullah gave the competitors a rare insight into the sheer amount of work that goes into running a tournament which I think shocked the kids!!!!

Everyone got into the spirit of doing some patterns to be judged and then doing some judging straight after; giving reasons why they thought the other competitor should have won. I believe this gave everyone a really great understanding into why decisions are made!

Mr. Christenson gave the guys and girls some sparring drills and special techniques to practice whilst I gave them the protocols to be observed in competition.

Mr. Vanbeelen and I then did a seminar on power breaking which had even the smallest martial artist doing some great breaks!!!!

Master Daher had everyone moving their feet big time with his footwork drills and everyone loved these!!!!

All in all I think this was invaluable for everyone so that they could understand ALL aspects of tournaments, not just the competing side of things!!!!

Taekwon

Gerard Kelly IV Dan Umpiring Director IL Shim

23 July, 2012/by Shawn Sutton

ITF Australia Sparring Seminar 2012

Past Events

ITF Australia Sparring Seminar 2012

From Sunday the 24^th June – 1^st July ITF Australia ran a series of sparring seminars along the East coast of Australia from as far North as Agnes Waters and as far down South as Melbourne. These seminars were held in 3 locations with clubs travelling to each to attend and believe me they were not disappointed. The first of the seminars were held in Melbourne and then the following Bundaberg then Gold Coast. I feel by the time that Master Daher made his way to the Gold Coast he had what he wanted to teach the students down perfectly. I have been getting quite a lot of feedback on the success of these seminars and that all would be very happy to have more.

I can only talk from my experience with the Gold Coast seminar and that is to see Master Daher doing what he does best and passing on all those years of experience and trying to fit it all into one short seminar of 4hrs. After the first 30mins one student Sebastian de Viana made a comment when passing for a drink break “OMG still 3 ½ hours to go” and believe me it takes some beating for him to have to say that. Nevertheless the 35 students with true TKD spirit persevered and showed Master Daher the respect that he deserves.

I have had the pleasure of knowing Master Daher for over 22 years and training with him for 12 of them, I have never felt the passion and power of any seminar such as this one. He has been working very hard with his own training ever since grading for his 8^th Degree. Since breaking his hand which was very unfortunate, this set back took a considerable toll. With the lead up to his grading he was in probably the best physical and mental condition that I have ever seen. My wife Donna would comment every time that he saw him, when he visited us on the Gold Coast, just how good he looked and the confidence he had. Well he is back on track after just getting over a very bad dose of the flu and now more so committed to teaching and passing on what he can for as long as he can.

As a student to Taekwon-Do I can’t express the importance of attending these such tournaments, especially those that want to be the best they can. As we all know we are not young for ever and even though Master Daher may not nor does he act his age, there will come a time where we all become slower and our ability decreases. I would say that if there was a time you thought you should take your training seriously then now is that time. As you all know Master Daher and I talk some times 2-3 times a week discussing ideas on how we can better each and every time we put on an event for our members. The thing that makes us proud is seeing our members and close friends do well, even though they maybe from another organization, they still have the same morals and integrity. I like to thank the support of Natalie Astwood and Gavin Moyal from the Yin Yang club for their friendship and support of our events, it is always a pleasure having you guys and your students to any of our events.

Summing up the seminar it was very well conducted and covered all the main points required to compete at tournaments and give the confidence required to give it a go. I hope you all enjoyed it and hope to see you all again at our next event.

John Abdallah

Manager

ITF Australia Pty Ltd

IL Shim Taekwon-Do

10 July, 2012/0 Comments/by Shawn Sutton

Sparring Seminar – Melbourne, June 2012

Past Events

Il Shim Taekwon-do Sparring Seminar

It was a freezing morning in Melbourne but Master Daher ensured that no-one was left cold after participating in his Sparring Seminar. The key learning of the day was footwork and body movement and how to use it to your advantage. Everyone from white belt to black belt was able to grasp the concepts being taught, but as Master Daher explained, it is no good having the learning stop once they leave the session. The students had to commit to following through with their training so that the next time they attend a Master session the learning would be a continuation from where they left off, instead of having to refresh and relearn what has already been taught.

All participants found the morning to be very beneficial. Here are some of their comments:

“I found the sparring masterclass with Master Daher was very interesting and lots of fun. I learnt that sparring is not just about getting points its about moving around and understanding your opponent.” – Edward Collins, 4th kup

“On Saturday (23/6/12), Master Daher made his way to Melbourne to facilitate a Master Class in Sparring for the students at Il Shim in Victoria. This session consisted of many aspects, the main of which were learning to relax our body and mind during sparring and the fundamentals of footwork. I found this session very useful. I found that using the correct footwork during sparring and relaxing the body did not tire me out as much, which meant that I could give 100% for longer. When I relaxed and cleared my mind I was able to anticipate the opponent’s attacks and was more prepared to respond. Learning to move with walking rather than shuffling side to side has helped me improve the speed of my attacks. Overall a fantastic day, I just wish I had the physical conditioning to make it through the whole session!” – Michelle Sliwinski, 1st Dan

“I enjoyed the the class with Master Daher! For the short time I was the there I was still able to take a lot out of it in the way to move my feet more and to be on the move at all times!” – Scott Hamill, 10th kup

“On the 23^rd of June, three of us travelled to Melbourne from Stawell to attend the Sparring Seminar to be run by Master Daher. The seminar started a little late but we overcame some transport issues and kicked the seminar off with a quick warmup. We got down to business. The focus of the seminar was footwork and continual motion when sparring. We moved through some sparring drills, some of which I had seen before but the most important aspect I learnt from the day was learning how to relax, move and maintain body momentum. A moving target is much harder to hit than a stationary one! Thanks very much Master Daher.” – Steve Harper, 2nd Dan

“Attending the sparring seminar by Master Daher is a really worthwhile experience, the concepts we learn are simple in nature and they can make a real difference. Looking forward to the next one so we can extend what all we learned.” – Mitchell Sammut, 1st Dan

1 July, 2012/0 Comments/by Shawn Sutton

Sparring Seminar report by Gerard Kelly

Past Events

Sparring Seminar report by Gerard Kelly IV Dan Sunshine Coast

Master Daher’s exact words were, ” if you are not sore after this seminar then i have not done my job” Well i am indeed sore, in the legs and gut even more so now that i have finished stretching and doing some more situps tonight!

There were so many aspects to this seminar that i can’t possibly talk about all of them in this report, but i will touch on some of the things that really stood out for me!

The footwork drills in and around the targets on the floor were like a lightbulb going off above my head. Brightly burning for all to see! The way that two people can move with each other so that not just one person is benefiting from the drill was just fantastic and this one drill alone has set a fire in my belly to improve both myself and my students ability to move around!

There were many other aspects to this seminar but so much was focused on MOVEMENT and not on techniques which i just loved!

There was a definate sense of improvement with the students today and it was a pleasure to see Master Daher get the most out of all of us. The fitness test showed a lot of the younger students that they really need to work harder in class and outside of class if they want the results that they are searching for.

All in all i am so very grateful for Master Daher imparting this knowledge to us as it has really opened my eyes to how to move so much better in my own sparring as well!!!

Taekwon

Gerard Kelly IV Dan IL Shim Sunshine Coast

Umpiring Director

1 July, 2012/0 Comments/by Shawn Sutton