Double World Bronze for Carnalea students
27 October 2010by Carnalea Wado Kai
The listing was posted by Mizukara
Craig Brashaw from Newtownards and Aimee McAllister from Bangor have just returned from the WKC World Karate Championships in Caorle, Venice with bronze medals. The event was held over three days and numbered some 1700 competitors, including 43 in the Ireland squad.
Craig claimed bronze in the Wado-Ryu Kata section. Following on from his British title last year he really hoped to get amongst the medals. Following a superb display of Pinan Nidan, he then followed up in the final with a great performance of Pinan Shodan guaranteeing him the bronze medal.
The delight for the Carnalea based karate students was then doubled, when Aimee McAllister (a green belt) came away with a bronze in her kumite (sparring) event, taking points of an American black belt in her semi-final, but in the end losing out by just one point for a place in the final.
Other local students, Chloe Mackenzie from Antrim and Sam Stevenson from Bangor were also in action at the huge event. Chloe narrowly missed out on a medal in her kata event and like Aimee was narrowly beaten in her kumite quarter final. Sam, at his first major, gave one hundred percent in his kumite, pushing his opponent all the way to the bell to be narrowly defeated in his quarter final.
Former senior world champion and coach David Brashaw added. 'We could not have asked for better performances from our students. They were superb! This event is massive. It is the karate equivalent of the Olympics. A few scores either way, and we may have even got another couple of medals. We are very proud of everyone and over the moon with the two medals.'