GUILDFORD ACADEMY OF MARTIAL ARTS

On Sunday the GBMAA held an interclub at Chessington Sports Centre which was attended by a number of students from the Guildford Academy. Interclubs are a fantastic opportunity of meeting fellow Martial Artists from different clubs and an ideal way to try competing in a friendly and controlled environment.

In the kids’ section we had Izzy Calvert, competing for her second time only and up against taller and much more experienced opponents. After a difficult first fight she turned it around and went on to take 3rd place, as did her younger brother Ben.

In the Juniors section we saw C.I.T. Vaibhav Pant displaying huge promise, with lightning fast reactions and showy jumping kicks that caught many of his opponents off guard. He won three out of five fights and we look forward to seeing his progress in future competitions.

Brendan Martin and Charlie Robinson both fought in the men’s under 75kg light continuous section against some challenging opponents and displayed fantastic tenacity and determination in this demanding style. They went on to take joint 3rd and certainly did the academy proud.

In the MMA section we had Rory Kennedy displaying some impressive kicks and grappling prowess. Although he narrowly lost his first two fights he went on to win his third fight and looked certain to win his fourth fight but was unfortunately forced to pull out as a result of a knee injury sustained during the fight.

Last but not least, competing for her first time in the Ladies Novice/Intermediate Points section we had Kiri Nowak. Although she was very nervous and faced with a huge section of ten ladies, many of whom have been competing for years, Kiri stormed in and won her first two fights with a combination of speedy attacks and perfectly timed counters. In her third fight she matched her opponent point for point and just lost by one point in the final split second. She won her fourth fight and in the fight off for the finals unluckily lost by just one point, going on to take joint third place – a fantastic first competition.

Well done to everyone who competed and came down to support our fighters. Special thanks go to Philip Calvert for his photography skills. We hope to see even more of our students attending at the next interclub!