Hello, HAITO Heroes and Friends!
We are very excited to announce that in 3 days, our HAITO Karate Club Team members will compete in the 1st BKG Open Kyokushin Karate Knockdown Tournament. This is a high-level international event organized by the British Karate Guild, where Kyokushin Karate fighters from the UK and other different countries will showcase their skills and spirit.
Our Competitors
We will have 6 HAITO students who will compete in different categories according to age, weight and gender. The youngest ones are Ethan Roy, Nína Sól Helgadottír, Milana Tanavina, Calvin Schelts and Maya Martins and they will compete in the age group 12 – 14 years old (juniors category). Sania Shaji will compete in the cadet’s category (16 – 18 years old) where they will follow full contact knockdown rules.
The Rules
Full-contact knockdown rules are a format of karate where competitors spar full-contact and allow a knockout as a winning criterion. They wear no gloves, padding or body protection other than groin guards, and they can use punches, kicks, knees and elbows to the body and limbs, as well as sweeps and throws. However, punches to the face, groin and joints are prohibited. The scoring depends entirely on the effect of the hits, not on the formal or stylistic appearance of the techniques. This style of sport fighting was developed and pioneered in the late 1960s by the Kyokushin karate organization in Japan, founded by Masutatsu Oyama.
According to the new rules from the British Karate Guild, the juniors category will follow the same full contact knockdown rules as the cadets, except that they will wear protective headgear, shin pads and body/chest protector. The headgear must be approved by the tournament officials and must not obstruct the vision or hearing of the competitors. The shin pads must be made of soft material and must not cover the instep or the ankle. The body/chest protector must be made of foam or similar material and must not restrict the movement or breathing of the competitors.
Our Pride
HAITO Karate has existed for just a bit longer than a year as a club and it will be the first tournament where the HAITO Karate Team will compete. It makes me very proud Sensei to have these students representing the club and themselves in such a high-level international tournament. Even if we do not belong to any martial arts organisation and HAITO Karate remains an independent martial arts club, I am proud to say that we follow Kyokushin Karate teachings, training methods and sparring (Kumite) rules.
We will share a lot of moments on social media channels (Instagram and Facebook stories/posts) during the day. I believe we will have a fantastic day no matter the results. I want to use this moment and tell everyone that you are already champions for being brave, strong and determined to go to this tournament – now you just have to prove it on Tatami on Saturday! Good luck, HAITO TEAM!
Osu!
Sensei Gabi
