Among several VKK fighters, Keegan Wong was first to compete in the 13-15 non-contact division. In the first minute of the fight, Keegan controlled the distance very well by moving around a much taller opponent. But when the opponent charged harder in the last 30 seconds, Keegan stopped the footwork and began throwing short range punches. The opponent took advantage of the close distance and used more high kicks to push Keegan back. The kicks looked very effective and the judges came to a decision in favor of the opponent. Keegan lost the match but a fighter always learns more from a loss than a win. Taking this as a challenge, he will keep training hard and come back as a better fighter.

Alyssa Leung showed great spirit by fighting toe to toe against a bigger opponent in the girls 15-16 knockdown division. She was forced to back up as her opponent delivered very powerful punches in the first half of the bout. But Alyssa slowly came back from behind, frequently throwing a flurry of quick punches. As the fight proceeded, it became more apparent that Alyssa got a slight edge over her opponent in terms of stamina. Alyssa kept on going until the end and earned very valuable Gold Medal.

Tomomi looked a little nervous before her fight but determined to capture her earnest goal, the first victory in a Kyokushin tournament. Tomomi was once again the smallest fighter in the women's colored belt lightweights. Her opponent tried hard to charge the Japanese but did not look too successful since Tomomi's lateral footwork functioned very well. Tomomi also stung the opponent's stomach with sharp body cuts as she moved close.

Pasha again exchanged the fists with Gerald of the Coquitlam dojo in the boys 15-16 year old division. The rivalry between the two teenagers goes back for years. This time, Pasha effectively used low kicks to distract the opponent's attention. He used to have a tendency to rely on middle kick too much. So, we worked on his low kick at dojo to switch a focal spot back and forth between the body and the leg. The strategy let him clearly land the middle kick on Gerald's body and earned Pasha Gold Medal. Well done, Pasha.

Sats was up next in the men's open lightweights. He looked very sharp and controlled, maybe too controlled. It was very clear that Stas's low kicks were very effective as Trevor, his opponent from Victoria, began limping a little at the halfway into the bout. But Stas suddenly stopped kicking and waited for no reason. That brought Trevor enough time to recover and come back. Stas gave the opponent good damage but lacked aggressiveness. It was a fair decision that the judges called an extension. There, Stas finally ignited his engine and cornered his opponent with more low kicks. He was victorious but fought the extension round that he shouldn't have. The lack of aggressiveness cost him in the final match because his opponent had a bye in the first round and was totally fresh while Stas got only a minute to rest after the tough match against Trevor. In the final, Stas looked already tired but tried his best to attack back. The judges again declared an extension and Stas had little left in his gas tank. But he didn't give in. The 19-year-old brown belt mostly focused on defense and retaliated with body blows. However, the opponent looked more lively and aggressive. Stas lost the match but leaned a very good lesson. Each time he comes back to a tournament his techniques get sharpened and become more sophisticated. We already look forward to his next fight.

All in all, the tournament was a great success and we would like to thank Sensei Tom and his organizing team of the Newton Dojo. A local tournament such as this one is very necessary to give our students an opportunity to test their abilities. Osu.

Sempai Alex brought a big team to the tournament. He opened the Vancouver Marpole Dojo about five years ago. The club is getting very strong with more active students joining. Aside from Sempai Alex, Sempai Johnny opened a new dojo in last October while Sempai Tony began running his own dojo last November. It is very encouraging to see more instructors from our club branch out, take more responsibility and promote Kyokushin in a positive way.

Congratulations to Sempai Alex and his students for their very first tournament experience. Osu.

Official Results will be soon posted on kyokushin.ca