Springs-Best karate club in Hapton hosts national junior tournament

Club members aged 5-17 competed and won 13 gold, 15 silver and 26 bronze medals for the home team.

The karate club, which is based at the BEST Centre in Hapton, hosted a national junior development seminar on the 3rd of September, followed by a development tournament on the 4th. Over 70 competitors from Burnley and clubs in Bristol, Luton and Scotland took part in the event.

The seminar was led by Saiko Shihan Malcolm Dorfman Japan graded 9th Dan and Deputy Grand Master of the KWF, who had travelled from South Africa where he is based to deliver the couching. He put participants through their paces on core karate technique.

The tournament saw youngsters competing in kata and kumite events, as seen in the most recent Tokyo Olympic Games.

Sensei Warren de Vries from Spring-BEST karate club said “The seminar and tournament were an important opportunity for club members to be taught by Sensei Malcolm and to compete against youngsters from other clubs, which helps develop their skills and confidence.

"We were honoured to welcome Sensei Malcolm and the other karate clubs to Burnley. I’m extremely proud of how all of the Springs-BEST members competed, particularly as it was the first time taking part in a tournament for many of them, due to the pandemic.”

Club member William Dunderdale (10) said: “The karate tournament was a good experience for all of us, I especially enjoyed watching the older students fight. The development day with Sensei Malcom taught me how to perfect my moves. I’m glad I was able to take part.”

Samuel Brown (17) said: “This was a development competition and if definitely helped my development, by just being in competition with so many black belts setting high standards.”

The club has more than 45 junior members who were taking part in the first junior development competition since 2018.

The Springs-BEST karate club is open to new junior members of any age. Details and how to contact the club can be found on their Facebook page.