The WORLD ASSOCIATION of KICKBOXING ORGANISATIONS (NZ) held the first NEW ZEALAND NATIONAL SEMI-CONTACT/FORMS CHAMPIONSHIPS on 28th May at Te Awamutu, Nr Hamilton.
The day was a huge success with clubs from all over the country attending and different styles competing against each other. Goju-Ryu, Kyokushin, Kotaga Ryu, Kung Fu, Tae Kwon Do and Kickboxing all competing for the coveted title of National Champion.
Tysin Langridge of MODKA (Taupo) took the double, by winning both the Junior Forms and under 1.6meters Titles, although his fight for the semi-contact title was a hard one against Damien Kinealy of Putaruru Phantoms in the final.. Young Max Dobson (9yrs old) of Te Awamutu Phantoms had hard fights but retained his unbeaten record in the final against stable mate Zhan Cunningham who desperately wanted the Title but was pipped at the post by Max's experience. Elers Karate Academy showed their strength in the Adult forms, with Chief Coach Steve Elers taking the male Adult Fomrs title and two of his female members taking first and second in the female Adult forms division (Jamie Grant 1st, Phoebe Dibble 2nd) Tuari Dawson of Hamilton Shin-Jokai stunned the crowd and competitors with a fantastic Musical Form using the Katana, and although losing one full point for going over the 1.30mins time limit, was so far in front of his nearest competitor still very easily took the National title. Aaron Harper of the newly formed Ngaruawahia Phantoms won the +1.60mts Colts Title. Ronja Holz won the Girls Colts -1.45Mts against Stable mate Jamie ward in the final, and a hard battle was fought between Anna Johnson of Tauranga and Melissa from MODKA Taupo for the female Colts -1.55Mts Title. Newcomer Vicky Harbottle shook the experienced Phantom fighters off in the female Colts +1.55Mts to take the Winners trophy back to Huntly Kickboxing, and Shaye Brooks of the same club won the Junior (16-18yrs) -63Kgs. Jamie Bishop of Waikato Freestyle Martial Arts had an easy win for the female -75Kg Junior Title. The Huntly Kickboxing club were out in force, with 1st, 2nd and 3rd in the Junior -69kg with Zyrus Rihari the victor. The Junior -74Kg had Huntly Kickboxing's name all over it again, with James Harbottle winning, and Brother Blake 2nd. Toa Fighting systems of Auckland landed a few big prizes with Kurt Donaldson -79Kgs, Laura Wison-Sims -70Kgs, and Tessa Gyde -75Kgs all taking the 1st place hardware back to Auckland, but team mate Dafydd Sanders hard a hard time convincing the judges of his scoring techniques. Shelley Loveday of Waikato Freestyle Martial Arts took the female Adult -50Kgs, Trish Young of MODKA the -55Kgs, Shelley Francis of Te Awamutu Phantoms the -60Kgs and Donna watchman of Tauranga Phantoms the -65Kgs. Khong Keopraseth of GMA, Hamilton gained the -63Kgs Adult male title, Jamie Rodgers of Cambridge the -69Kgs, Wiki Tutaki met up with his arch rival in the final of the -74Kgs, Jess Carney of Te Aroha Karate for a closely fought match. Waikeria Hawks Clint King had some amazing fights to clinch the -84Kgs title, and Joe Howells of team Phantom took the title for male -89Kgs. The Phantom menace himself, Bad Boy Brad Johanson struggled with his own techniques throughout his fights but made the grade beating his stable mate Clint Rowe in the final. The big boys division of +94Kgs was won convincingly by Steve Milroy of Putaruru.
The winners of the Juniors and Adult Fighting divisions were invited to the WAKO World Championships to be held in Hungary in December, any vacant places will be filled by either the 2nd place competitor or if unfilled, by a fighter selected by the National President Rick Dobson.
The next WAKO (NZ) Semi-Contact & Forms competition will be held in Te Awamutu on September the 3rd. Any fighting art is eligible to enter the WAKO Competitions further details can be gained through contacting Rick Dobson on 0800 542 548, or E-mail [email protected] or write to WAKO (NZ) PO Box 397 Te Awamutu 2400.
