Portlaoise fighters do themselves and the country proud at major European Karate tournament

THE 47th BKK British Open-inc International Federation of Karate 15th Cup of Europe took place in Crawley on earlier this month. This is one of the biggest karate kyokushin tournaments in Europe.

And what a day it turned out to be for Portlaoise Kenkyo Dojo.

Ireland was represented by 19 competitors, with 15 fighters from Kenkyo Dojo Portlaoise taking part.

This year, for the first time ever, the tournament was open to international participants from age 12 and above, bringing some of the top professional athletes from across Europe and beyond.

This year, 324 competitors from 33 countries took part in the event.

After more than three months of hard work, The Irish team delivered an excellent performance.

The Irish Team took third place in the general classification, which is an unbelievable achievement.

All our students, who trained hard and put in tremendous effort in their preparations, deserve to be commended . And all their hard work paid off with fantastic results at the tournament.

All othe competitors showed great determination and fighting spirit.

Not everyone won a medal, but each of them displayed courage, the will to win, and the true spirit of Kyokushin.

Some of them may have been just a little short of luck and precision, but everyone takes away valuable experiences and lessons for the future.

Kenkyo Dojo Portlaoise represented by Senpai Muhammad, Senpai Maryam, Khadijah Khan, Sophie Cahill, Ben Ging, Kacper Orlik, Tomasz Calka, Ibrahim Khan, Justyna Wilk, Kasper Wilk, Samuel Schoenstaedt, Antoni Kucma, Luna Cardoso, Nelly Jakimczyk and Olivier Ilski.

RESULTS:

Tomasz Calka – 1st place U/16 +70kg Luna Cardoso – 2nd place U/12 +40kg Sophie Cahill – 2nd place U/16 -55kg Khadijah Khan – 2nd place U/16 -50kg Olivier Ilski – 2nd place U/12 -45kg Ibrahim Khan – 2nd place U/16 -65kg Samuel Schoenstaedt - 3rd place U/12 -35kg Antoni Kucma – 3rd place U/12 -45kg Commenting after the event Domo Arigato said: “As coaches, Senpai Patrycja and I are extremely proud of our competitors. We can see clear progress and growing confidence in each of you. We are truly happy and grateful to be able to train alongside you.

“We would also like to express our heartfelt thanks to all the parents, those who were present at the tournament, and those who supported us from home. Without you, training and travelling to competitions would not be possible. We are very thankful for your support, commitment, and the trust you place in us.

“Special thanks also go to the national coaches and everyone who helped during the event.

“It was truly a great performance from our dojo, you all showed the spirit of Kyokushin and strong team unity, supporting and cheering for one another throughout the day.

“Congratulations as well to the other IKK competitors, who also represented themselves brilliantly at the tournament: Rachel Dunleavy (1st Place), Saorla Keeling (3rd Place), Aidan Keeling, and Dimitar Stoyanov.

“Also big thank you to the British Karate Kyokushin organisers for hosting such a great event.”