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WELCOME TO
:
THE 8th
ANNUAL
FSKA WORLD
CHAMPIONSHIP
Las Vegas,
Nevada, U.S.A.
October 20th
- 22nd, 2006
Shihan
Kenneth Funakoshi, 9th Dan, (FSKA)
Chief
Instructor, Funakoshi Shotokan Karate Association
Stephen,
Carolyn, and Sempai Uwe
pose with
me on the steps of the Pavilion
Another
gathering of FSKA karate-ka from around the world
Once again
the Funakoshi Shotokan Karate Association held its Annual
FSKA World Championship Tournament in Las Vegas, Nevada
and for the last time the 40,000 square foot Pavilion at
the Stardust Hotel, located on the famous Las Vegas
strip, played host to the event. Instructors, students,
family members, and friends, as usual came from a great
many countries around the world including, the U.S.A.,
Canada, France, England, Germany, South Africa, Ukraine,
Czech Republic, Macedonia, and Puerto Rico, just to name
a few. As always this event is a great opportunity for
all of us to renew old friendships, to make new ones, and
to promote the art of Shotokan Karate.
This the
tournament had the distinction of being the last event
ever to take place in Pavilion as the Stardust Hotel is
being demolished to make room for a new facility which
will probably take several years to complete. As a
result, the 9th Annual FSKA World Championship Tournament
will be taking place in town where the very first FSKA
World Championship Tournament was held, Crawley, England.
The tournament is scheduled for the Fall of 2007 so
please watch the official FSKA web site for future
details.
Friday
On the afternoon of October
21st prior to the official start of the tournament many
students took the opportunity to join Shihan Funakoshi,
Sensei Kevin Funakoshi, and Sensei Kyle Funakoshi, for a
series of seminars covering kihon and kata.
Black belts
training the kata Unsu with Sensei Kyle
Black belts
training kihon with Shihan Funakoshi
These courses are always
heavily attended by senior students and senseis alike as
it is an excellent opportunity to get first hand
knowledge from the very best instructors that the FSKA
has to offer.
Thank you
Shihan Funakoshi and Sensei Kyle
There is no
better place to learn the art of karate than on the dojo
floor, or at a quality seminar. Videos, books, magazines,
and other source material simply cannot take the place of
firsthand experience under the watchful eye of a master,
as Sempai Amy, Carolyn, and her father, Stephen, found
out this year. I would like to take this opportunity to
once again thank Shihan Funakoshi for his time, and his
knowledge, which he so willingly passes on to all of his
students.
A light
moment between events
One of the things I always
look forward to at any FSKA event is renewing friendships.
Sensei Omar Vera of Puerto Rico is an excellent karate-ka
and I have greatly enjoyed the time I have spent in his
company over the past five years.
Saturday -
Kata
- The Parade
of Nations
- Saturday
morning saw a great many countries once again represented
at this annual event. With the lineup extending the
length of the competition floor you just knew that the
day promised to be an eventful one. As usual Saturday was
devoted entirely to kata.
-
- Jessie
takes our first medal
- For the
second year in a row Jessie came home with a medal, this
time it was a silver in kata while the gold medal and the
bronze medal were awarded to two young students from
South Africa.
-
-
- Judges and
the juniors
- Each ring
had a Chief Judge as well as four supporting judges. In
ring three this year I was joined by Sensei Roger St.
Pierre, (Yondan) Sensei Gary Cross, (Shichidan) and
Sensei Canace Monteil, (Rokudan). Throughout the course
of the day we were kept very busy with a steady stream of
competitors, in a wide variety of age categories and
divisions, all of whom I must say were a credit to their
respective dojos.
-
- Women's
Black Belt Division
- As always
the level of competition in the women's black belt
division is excellent and this year's event was no
exception. In the Chair as Chief Judge I found that
timing, kime, and attention to detail were displayed by
all of the students and I am sure that their performance
was enjoyed by all who watched them compete.
-
-
- Reviewing
the kata
- Shihan
Funakoshi and his son's Sensei Kyle and Sensei Kevin
review the results. Both of his son's joined Shihan
Funakoshi on his recent trip to Japan for Sensei Tesukio
Asai's funeral which was held in September.
-
-
- Team Kata
- Team South Africa always
performs well in kata and this year we saw another strong
performance from their squad which allowed them to medal
in this category. I expect that in the not too distant
future South Africa will play host to the Annual FSKA World
Championship Tournament.
-
-
- Carolyn won
Bronze
- In her first international
tournament Carolyn Simonis took the bronze medal in her
kata division. As a regular participant in the adult
classes at our dojo Carolyn has developed a good work
ethic over the years and I am sure she will continue to
do well in future events.
-
-
- A true
gentleman
- In past years Sensei Kyle
Funakoshi has generously taken the time to visit our dojo
to conduct seminars, and officiate at our annual Dan
grading that is the highlight of each year's summer camp.
He is a gentleman in the truest sense of the word and it
is always a pleasure to see him at the tournaments or at
the FSKA Honbu dojo in California.
-
-
- Another win
for Canada
- In addition to his duties
as time keeper and score keeper Sempai Uwe once again
took the opportunity to compete in kata. In this his
fourth FSKA World Championship Sempai Uwe once again came
away with a medal, bronze in men's kata.
-
-
-
- Silver for
Canada
- Sempai Cathy Quinn (San Dan)
from Victoria took silver in kata at this year's event
while the gold went to the U.S.A. Sempai Cathy performed
one of her favourite katas, Nijushiho, here she is seen
here with the judges who are from left to right, Sensei
Chet Kawashige, (Rokudan) Sensei Ernest Lopez, (Godan)
Chief Judge Sensei Andre Dulce, (Rokudan) Sensei Anatoliy
Naumenko, (Godan) and Sensei Canace Monteil, (Rokudan).
-
-
-
- Senior
Men's Black Belt Kata
- No strangers to the podium
once again are, Sempai David Else, (Sandan) who won the
bronze medal this year, while Sensei John Boloson, (Godan)
won the gold medal, and I won the silver. Both men are
excellent competitors and it is always a pleasure to be
in their company.
-
-
- Sunday -
Kumite
-
- Two of
FSKA's senior instructors
- Prior to the start of the
kumite competition on Sunday morning Sensei Gary Cross (7th
Dan) and Sensei Andre Dulce (6th Dan) enjoyed a quiet
moment. Both instructors have been with Shihan
Funakoshi's organization for more than thirty-five years.
-
- Senior
Men's Black Belt Kumite
- Every ring on Sunday was
kept busy once again with competitors from more than
twenty countries looking for a place on the podium. In
the men's over forty division medalists included Sensei
Steve Roberts (Godan) England, Sensei Kenny Takada, (Yondan)
U.S.A and Sensei Antonio Melo (Yondan) of Portugal, with
fourth place going to Sensei Rigo Carrillo (Sandan) U.S.A.
-
-
- Women's
Black Belt Kumite
- A hard fought division with
Sempai Amy Barnes earning a bronze medal for her efforts.
-
-
- A spirited
competitor
- Sempai Thomas Balka loves
to compete and this year as a member of the five man U.S.A.
team he played a role the team securing the victory over
the International Team in the Men's Team Kumite gold
medal final.
-
-
- Team kumite
final
- Sensei Kyle Funakoshi (6th
Dan) awards a point to the International Team. The trophy
at the left is awarded each year to the wining team in
this event and without a doubt this has to be the
highlight of the tournament. This year Team U.S.A. won
the event in a very memorable match up.
-
- The end of
the tournament for another year
- Sempai Thomas Balka, on the
right, holds the U.S. flag while posing with members from
Poland and the Ukraine. Shihan Funakoshi make annual
visits to both countries and his seminars are always well
attended. In past years as many as 700 students have
turned out to one of his three day seminars.
-
- To one and
all
- Our dojo is
proud to be affiliated with the Funakoshi Shotokan Karate
Association, and to support the 8th Annual Funakoshi
Shotokan Karate Association's World Championship
Tournament. On
behalf of all of the students from Westshore Karate Inc.
who took part in this year's FSKA World Championship, I
would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere
appreciation to Shihan Kenneth Funakoshi, his son's,
Sensei Kevin Funakoshi, and Sensei Kyle Funakoshi, as
well as all of the other FSKA instructors, judges, time
keepers, score keepers, volunteers, and supporters, who
helped to make this year's tournament another truly
excellent event.
-
- We look forward to seeing
all of you next year in Crawley, England in the Fall of
2007, until then, good training.
- Part the clouds - see the
way.
-
- "The
objective of karate-do is to contribute to the evolution
- of the
human spirit through physical and mental training."
- Sensei
Peter Lindsay
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