Karate stars excel in Houston online event
Nine students from the Bermuda Karate Institute and Tabata-Ha Shotokan Karate-Do Bermuda took part in the Houston International Online Karate Championship on Saturday via Zoom.There were competitors from England, Ireland, various parts of the United States and, of course, Bermuda. There were seven divisions and Bermuda competed in the Krazy Athletic, Forms and Weapons. The other divisions included showmanship, adaptive showmanship, self-defence and creative open breaking. The forms and weapons categories were split into traditional, creative and musical.Over-16 Black Belt, maleAndrea Mckey: traditional weapons, 2nd; traditional kata, 3rdOver-16 Black Belt, femaleRakeysha Robinson: traditional weapons, 1st; traditional kata, 3rdOver-16 BeginnersZachery Simons: traditional weapons, 1st; traditional kata, 2nd10-15 BeginnersMassanda Vaughans: traditional weapons, 1st; traditional kata, 2nd Amiel Trott: traditional kata, 3rdDavid Sainsbury: traditional kata, 6th10-15 IntermediateShane Smith: Krazy Athletic, 2nd; traditional kata, 6thCallahj Simons: traditional kata, 1stUnder-9 IntermediateFancie Bowens-Tucker: Krazy Athletic, 1st; traditional kata, 3rd For the Krazy Athletic, the competitors had to perform jump tucks, burpees, push-ups, squat kicks and sit-ups. They had a minute for each one and had to see how many they could do in that minute. “In this time of uncertainty, it was truly an awesome experience,” a Bermuda Karate Institute spokesman said. “We did Bermuda proud and represented Bermuda to the high standard that we are known for. We have adapted our training to Zoom classes for our students and, although it is hard teaching online, our students are progressing well.”The next tournament, the Wild Wild West Online Championships, are on June 6. There are nine tournaments planned between now and October and the finals will be in November. The top five competitors from each division and age group will advance to the finals.