Taekwondo Club’s Success in Liverpool

Manx Tigers Taekwondo Club has competed in its second development competition of the year.

The team travelled to Liverpool with  three coaches (Richard Halsall, Sarah Halsall and Dave Sykes) with 13 fighters aged between 9 and 18 competing.

Gold medals were won by a number of the club’s fighters. First time fighters Julia Mitchell (13), Aiden Leslie (10), Oliver Hrachovec (11) and Peter Hornyak (12) all impressed, fighting strongly to win bouts in 2 straight rounds. Kassie Sykes (13), in only her second competition, controlled her opponent well, again taking a win in 2 rounds.

Erin Halsall (14) had a phenomenal contest against a fast, aggressive opponent, with fighters trading head and body shots throughout three close rounds, with Erin securing victory in the final round. Given that Erin had not competed for a number of years, this was an excellent performance. Juan Halsall (11) showed good control and maturity throughout what was an extremely close match, also winning 2 rounds to 1.

Whilst the other fighters were unsuccessful in winning this time, everyone demonstrated great grit and determination, with a number of players facing more experienced opponents. Black belt Heather Spiers (18) lost to a very tough opponent whilst making her debut fight in the senior category. Like other black belts, including Tammy Mitchell (15), she had lost a lot of training time to exams this summer and it was impressive that they still competed. Our youngest competitor, 9-year-old Graihagh Halsall, couldn’t repeat her debut success from Yorkshire in February, but gave her opponent a good bout. Eva Hornyak (16) displayed good composure in her debut bout, but couldn’t overcome her opponent. Harrison Williams (11) bravely lost to a higher belt in only his second competition.

Lead Coach Richard Halsall commented: ‘Seeing kids overcome their fears and anxieties to step on the mat and compete in this tough Olympic combat sport is emotional and rewarding for both parents and coaches. At one stage we had fights on three rings at the same time. Some exceptional performances from first time fighters and those returning to the ring after a few years off. We are proud of them all. 7 out of 13 of our team won bouts which is an excellent result.’

Manx Tigers is a part of World Taekwondo member the Isle of Man Taekwondo Association. For more information/contacts see Manx Tigers Taekwondo on Facebook; @iomtkd on twitter.