What. A. Day.
On Saturday, 2nd May 2026, HAITO KARATE hosted what turned out to be our biggest event yet — the Novice Kyokushin Karate full contact knockdown tournament. And what a tournament it was!
We welcomed a record-breaking 64 competitors from 10 different clubs, all coming together to embody the true spirit of Kyokushin. To put that into perspective: just two years ago, we started this journey with fewer than 30 participants from only 3 nearby clubs. Today, we’ve more than doubled in size — a milestone that means the world to everyone here at HAITO.
The energy, respect, and fighting spirit on display was everything Kyokushin stands for. From our youngest U8 fighters stepping onto the tatami for the first time, right up to our U16 competitors, every single fighter showed courage, heart, and discipline.
Tournament Results
Huge congratulations to every fighter who competed. Here are the full results across all categories:
Boys U8
Lighter weight category
- 🥇 Amias Hall-Jolly — SBKR Birmingham
- 🥈 Harley Tomlinson — SBKR Birmingham
Heavier weight category
- 🥇 Joshua Freer — SBKR Birmingham
- 🥈 Sanjay Bibin Kaimal — HAITO Karate
- 🥉 Leo Campbell — SBKR Birmingham
Girls U8 — Single weight category
- 🥇 Olusabomi Olaore — HAITO Karate
- 🥈 Shanvi Nila Selvinraj — HAITO Karate
- 🥉 Everly Freer — SBKR Birmingham
Boys U10
Lighter weight category
- 🥇 George Kubatov — Kadas Dojo
- 🥈 Stanley Smith — RONIN IKKU
- 🥉 Robert Babciuc — SBKR Birmingham
- 🏅 Lukas Vaivadas — IKK
Heavier weight category
- 🥇 Jacob Batker — HAITO Karate
- 🥈 Shawn Suriyan Selvinraj — HAITO Karate
- 🥉 Dawid Staron — HAITO Karate
- 🏅 Mursel Falstrom — HAITO Karate
- 🏅 Myles Hokyomes — IKK
Girls U10
Lighter weight category
- 🥇 Bridgette Cuthbert — IKK
- 🥈 Leonor Sofia Malheiro Da Silva — HAITO Karate
- 🥉 Beatrice Petkova — Kadas Dojo
- 🏅 Eliza Hollingsworth — RONIN IKKU
Heavier weight category
- 🥇 Helena Petromarkov — Kadas Dojo
- 🥈 Dana Hretu — SBKR Birmingham (award accepted by her friend)
- 🥉 Aurellia Richards — RONIN IKKU
Boys U12
Lighter weight category
- 🥇 Benedikt Burba — Burton Kyokushin
- 🥈 Jason Obor — SBKR Birmingham
- 🥉 Oluwatimilehin Adelabu — HAITO Karate
- 🏅 Mithran Chandramohan — HAITO Karate
Heavier weight category
- 🥇 Robert Cristian Buzatu — HAITO Karate
- 🥈 Anthony Geers — IKK
- 🥉 Arnas Gelcys — SBKR Birmingham
Girls U12 — Single weight category
- 🥇 Frankie Brown — IKK
- 🥈 Summer Karkash — HAITO Karate
- 🥉 Peggy Bryan — RONIN IKKU
Boys U14
Light weight category
- 🥇 Dimitri Petromarkov — Kadas Dojo
- 🥈 William Fisher — HAITO Karate
- 🥉 Freddie Smith — RONIN IKKU
Mid weight category
- 🥇 Darius Junevic — HAITO Karate
- 🥈 Dominic Dziedzic — HAITO Karate
- 🥉 Kai Chapman Fox — RONIN IKKU
- 🏅 Fateh Singh Boparai — SBKR Birmingham
- 🏅 Harry Harmsworth — Kojin-Kai
Heavy weight category
- 🥇 Adam Pilarski — HAITO Karate
- 🥈 Martynas Barzdaitis — HAITO Karate
- 🥉 Simas Jucevicius — HAITO Karate
- 🏅 Amitoj Singh-Majhail — SBKR Birmingham
Girls U14
Lighter weight category
- 🥇 Ajit Kaur Boparai — SBKR Birmingham
- 🥈 Poppy Jenkins — Seishin Kyokushin Karate
- 🥉 Gabriela Menike — Chelmsford Kyokushinkai
Heavier weight category
- 🥇 Emilija Menike — Chelmsford Kyokushinkai
- 🥈 Kylie Ho — Seishin Kyokushin Karate
- 🥉 Rebeka Pulina — HAITO Karate
- 🏅 Sreya Bibin — HAITO Karate
- 🏅 Cerys Holyomes — IKK
Boys U16
Lighter weight category
- 🥇 Harison Wright — Chelmsford Kyokushinkai
- 🥈 David Alexandru Buzatu — HAITO Karate
- 🥉 Ryan Wood — IKK
- 🏅 Ethan Hanna — Leicester Kyokushin Karate
Heavier weight category
- 🥇 Tymon Steckiewicz — Seishin Kyokushin Karate
- 🥈 Oscar Davies — Burton Kyokushin
- 🥉 Mateusz Wawro — SBKR Birmingham
Special Awards
Beyond the medals, three fighters were recognised for embodying the very heart of Kyokushin:
- 🏆 Bravest Fighter — Beatrice Petkova (Kadas Dojo)
- 🏆 Most Spirited Fighter — Mithran Chandramohan (HAITO Karate)
- 🏆 Most Technical Fighter — Joshua Freer (SBKR Birmingham)
Thank You
An event of this scale is only possible because of the people who give their time, energy, and passion to make it happen. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you to:
- All referees, judges, and officials who kept the tournament running smoothly and fairly
- Every volunteer and helper who showed up early, stayed late, and gave everything in between
- All the instructors, fighters, and supportive parents who travelled from across the country and stayed the full day
A huge thanks also to all the visiting clubs who made the journey to be part of this — SBKR Birmingham, IKK Canterbury, RONIN IKKU, Kadas Dojo, Burton Kyokushin, Seishin Kyokushin Karate, Chelmsford Kyokushinkai, Leicester Kyokushin Karate, and Kojin-Kai. Your presence is what makes this community what it is.
To every fighter who stepped onto the tatami: win, lose, or draw — you showed up, you fought hard, and you represented your dojo with pride. That’s what Kyokushin is all about.
We’re already looking forward to the next one.
OSU! 🥋