Katsu Challenge 2009

Today was the 2009 Katsu Challenge, hosted by our dojo. Sadly, this is our last Katsu tournament. There were many firsts though, for both Elijah and me. This was the first time I was a judge, which was tons of fun (except I was freezing the whole time, and it took me 3 hours to defrost). This was also the first time E sparred in a tournament. Here’s a video of the action. First up is E in the 6-7 beginner kata division. He won the first round, and lost this second. I think he also went up again for bronze and lost. However, he did his kata very well! Next is my kata. I went up twice, not sure which round is on the video. I also lost, but I did have a great time doing it.



Next up is E in his 3 rounds of kumite. Now, for those of you new to tournament sparring, here’s the deal: When the ref yells “yame”, the kids stop, go back to the line, and the ref assigns points, penalties, or he waves off the judge’s signals and gets them going again. We don’t always see the ref on the video, so I listed off what I think I hear him say. Also, there is a 30-second warning buzzer. The kids are just supposed to keep sparring; no stopping unless the ref yells “yame”. I am so proud of Elijah, and not necessarily because he won. He has come such a long way in the last 6 months! Last September, he broke into tears at the mere mention of sparring at a tournament. This time around, he was excited about it! He did what he was taught: throwing mostly center punches and covering up. It was hard for the other kids to score on their center punches (they have to hit and pull out clean, doesn’t count if it hits the gloves, arms, etc….and has to be with the right power, timing, distance, and a bunch of other things I won’t bore you with but had to memorize). Watching him today you’d never know he was ever scared to spar. Soooo proud!



Round 1 – Elijah in red. Blue scores first with a center punch. E scores with a center punch. Blue stops at the 30 minute warning buzzer (rookie mistake) and E goes in for a center punch just like he was told :-) Kid in blue gets a contact penalty for kicking E in the leg. E wins the match 2-1.

Round 2 – Elijah in red. Blue gets a penalty (I think for running away). E gets a contact penalty (can’t see why, but he told me later it was head contact, which isn’t allowed with punch at his age). Time runs out, match tied at 0-0. Goes into sudden death overtime ( first to score wins). E charges in like a man on a mission…E scores and wins.

Round 3 – Elijah in red. E scores first, center punch. E scores again, center punch (really nice form on that one). 30s buzzer, ref stops match (maybe a judge called something, but he didn’t award any points). E scores with a center punch. E wins the match 3-0.

E gets his gold medal :-)