Cardiff Uni TKD Ranked 2nd
On the weekend of the highly anticipated England vs Wales Six Nations match, another thrilling Anglo-Welsh encounter was unfolding that proved to be equally as close. Cardiff Uni TKD travelled to Leeds to compete in the National Universities Competition, where 9 universities were represented. Swansea were one of the larger teams competing, providing a great opportunity to weigh up their strengths before Varsity.
Cardiff fought well, with the 8 members on the team picking up 20 medals between them and therefore scoring 45 points. Throughout the day it was a 2 horse race, with Cardiff taking the early lead but Leeds’ bigger squad quickly overtaking when the sparring started. In the closing rounds both teams were eagerly calculating the permutations to determine how close the finish would be. Unfortunately, Leeds finished the day on 47 points leaving the smaller Cardiff team to lick their wounds and receive the runners up trophy. Nevertheless, this was a massive achievement in itself. Leicester came in at 3rd with 27 points, with Swansea somewhat lower down the rankings, a good indication to another successful Varsity year for TKD.
Over the day, Cardiff’s high level of coaching shone through. The technical discipline of patterns was dominated by Cardiff students with Sarah Nethercott, Oli Mather and Michael Perks all winning gold medals. Crystal Yang and Jonathan Lewis came home with silvers behind their clubmates, showing the strength in depth of the Cardiff club. Jon Beer also won bronze in what was a tough black belt division.
There were many highlights of the sparring events, where Cardiff saw equal success. Lewis Hill, fighting in his first competition scored a head kick that left his helmet wearing opponent needing an ice pack for the rest of the day. Michael Perks won double gold medals showing the form that recently won him a silver medal in the British Open. Sarah Nethercott and Jon Beer both won gold in impressive style showing clinical finishing and the controlled aggression needed to score crucial points. A notable mention must also go out to Tom Harris who won silver despite having to fight in a higher weight category with fighters that were over 10kg heavier and quite simply dwarfed him.
To end the day the destruction rounds took place, where the competitor attempts to break boards with a given technique. Jon Beer won two golds, one for a flying kick over a 3 metre distance to smash through 3 boards. Oli Mather also won gold for an accurate back kick that none of the other competitors could match.
After what was a long but brilliant weekend, the atmosphere on the bus was buzzing. A lot of banter was directed in the direction of captain Oli Mather and Michael Perks for a ‘somewhat’ illegal shot to the groin that lifted his opponent a good 30cm off of the ground, and for winding up the referee to the point that she looked like an angry mother. With two more competitions scheduled before Varsity, there is plenty of chance to get battle hardened before the big event.
Cardiff fought well, with the 8 members on the team picking up 20 medals between them and therefore scoring 45 points. Throughout the day it was a 2 horse race, with Cardiff taking the early lead but Leeds’ bigger squad quickly overtaking when the sparring started. In the closing rounds both teams were eagerly calculating the permutations to determine how close the finish would be. Unfortunately, Leeds finished the day on 47 points leaving the smaller Cardiff team to lick their wounds and receive the runners up trophy. Nevertheless, this was a massive achievement in itself. Leicester came in at 3rd with 27 points, with Swansea somewhat lower down the rankings, a good indication to another successful Varsity year for TKD.
Over the day, Cardiff’s high level of coaching shone through. The technical discipline of patterns was dominated by Cardiff students with Sarah Nethercott, Oli Mather and Michael Perks all winning gold medals. Crystal Yang and Jonathan Lewis came home with silvers behind their clubmates, showing the strength in depth of the Cardiff club. Jon Beer also won bronze in what was a tough black belt division.
There were many highlights of the sparring events, where Cardiff saw equal success. Lewis Hill, fighting in his first competition scored a head kick that left his helmet wearing opponent needing an ice pack for the rest of the day. Michael Perks won double gold medals showing the form that recently won him a silver medal in the British Open. Sarah Nethercott and Jon Beer both won gold in impressive style showing clinical finishing and the controlled aggression needed to score crucial points. A notable mention must also go out to Tom Harris who won silver despite having to fight in a higher weight category with fighters that were over 10kg heavier and quite simply dwarfed him.
To end the day the destruction rounds took place, where the competitor attempts to break boards with a given technique. Jon Beer won two golds, one for a flying kick over a 3 metre distance to smash through 3 boards. Oli Mather also won gold for an accurate back kick that none of the other competitors could match.
After what was a long but brilliant weekend, the atmosphere on the bus was buzzing. A lot of banter was directed in the direction of captain Oli Mather and Michael Perks for a ‘somewhat’ illegal shot to the groin that lifted his opponent a good 30cm off of the ground, and for winding up the referee to the point that she looked like an angry mother. With two more competitions scheduled before Varsity, there is plenty of chance to get battle hardened before the big event.
Posted on 03/03/2012
UK Open
Congratulations to the following students who won medals at the uk open
Adam Gaunt GOLD Sparring GOLD Patterns OVERALL CHAMPION
Michael Perks GOLD Patterns silver sparring
Oliver Mather silver patterns
Assane Sow sliver patterns
Crystal Yang bronze sparring.
Adam Gaunt GOLD Sparring GOLD Patterns OVERALL CHAMPION
Michael Perks GOLD Patterns silver sparring
Oliver Mather silver patterns
Assane Sow sliver patterns
Crystal Yang bronze sparring.
Posted on 10/01/2012
Varsity 2011
This year's Varsity included TaeKwon-Do for the first time in it's history. Cardiff Uni TKD took on their arch rivals Swansea Uni. We managed to secure a solid win that helped the university win the overall Varsity shield and therefore bragging rights for the upcoming year.
Not knowing what to expect, both teams arrived at the venue in high spirits and confident of a win. Spectators also arrived in great numbers, about 50 in total to watch the one ring we had set up. The spectators decked in Swansea green were the most numerous and vocal but were quickly silenced by the initial Cardiff dominance when the patterns event started. Cardiff were able to secure a strong foothold in this event and led 10-1 as it drew to a close. Gareth Davies led the assault with 2 faultless performances.
Next up was the team patterns event, with 3 teams from each uni. Two teams performed lower grade patterns Chon Ji and Dan Gun whilst the senior grades performed Hwa Rang. The hours of practice put in by our teams clearly told as all 3 produced winning performances. So much so that not a single judge's decision went the way of Swansea.
Now with a lead of 19 points to 1, some quick maths showed that Cardiff had already secured overall victory without even putting on pads. However, keen to put the icing on the cake, team captain Oli Mather urged his troops on for further glory.
The spectators' volume increased twofold when the sparring began. The first two fights were point stop in an attempt to protect some of our newest female members. Katherine Jawed produced an incredible first competitive performance in a smart performance where she dominated her opponent 6-1 on points. Continuous free sparring was the format for the remaining fights. Due to numbers some members had to step up twice or were forced to fight higher grades. Every member of the team can be extremely proud of their performances. The experienced trio of Michael Perks, Adam Gaunt and Oli Mather bringing home 4 points for Cardiff between them from some strong performances. Jess Phillips (red tag) showed considerable heart and bravery when facing a blackbelt after only recently starting up TaeKwon-Do after a considerable break. In what was a very close fight, Jess was pipped to the post by her opposite number, but it couldn't have been closer. Proving what can be done if you believe in yourself and show indomitable spirit.
The sparring finished 7-7 so after an exhausting day Cardiff had gained an ecstatic victory of 26-8. Setting a strong marker for next year when we travel to Swansea. With spirits high the club left to watch the Varsity rugby match hosted in the Millennium stadium, only to observe a Cardiff loss. But in what was a highly enjoyable day, it was only scant consolation for the 'Green Machine' of Swansea.
Author: Oli Mather
Photography: James Demery
Not knowing what to expect, both teams arrived at the venue in high spirits and confident of a win. Spectators also arrived in great numbers, about 50 in total to watch the one ring we had set up. The spectators decked in Swansea green were the most numerous and vocal but were quickly silenced by the initial Cardiff dominance when the patterns event started. Cardiff were able to secure a strong foothold in this event and led 10-1 as it drew to a close. Gareth Davies led the assault with 2 faultless performances.
Next up was the team patterns event, with 3 teams from each uni. Two teams performed lower grade patterns Chon Ji and Dan Gun whilst the senior grades performed Hwa Rang. The hours of practice put in by our teams clearly told as all 3 produced winning performances. So much so that not a single judge's decision went the way of Swansea.
Now with a lead of 19 points to 1, some quick maths showed that Cardiff had already secured overall victory without even putting on pads. However, keen to put the icing on the cake, team captain Oli Mather urged his troops on for further glory.
The spectators' volume increased twofold when the sparring began. The first two fights were point stop in an attempt to protect some of our newest female members. Katherine Jawed produced an incredible first competitive performance in a smart performance where she dominated her opponent 6-1 on points. Continuous free sparring was the format for the remaining fights. Due to numbers some members had to step up twice or were forced to fight higher grades. Every member of the team can be extremely proud of their performances. The experienced trio of Michael Perks, Adam Gaunt and Oli Mather bringing home 4 points for Cardiff between them from some strong performances. Jess Phillips (red tag) showed considerable heart and bravery when facing a blackbelt after only recently starting up TaeKwon-Do after a considerable break. In what was a very close fight, Jess was pipped to the post by her opposite number, but it couldn't have been closer. Proving what can be done if you believe in yourself and show indomitable spirit.
The sparring finished 7-7 so after an exhausting day Cardiff had gained an ecstatic victory of 26-8. Setting a strong marker for next year when we travel to Swansea. With spirits high the club left to watch the Varsity rugby match hosted in the Millennium stadium, only to observe a Cardiff loss. But in what was a highly enjoyable day, it was only scant consolation for the 'Green Machine' of Swansea.
Author: Oli Mather
Photography: James Demery
Posted on 10/04/2011
UKTA English Open 2011
Congratulations to Michael Perks on his performance at the UKTA English Open 2011.
Michael managed to win silver for the 18+ Red belt patterns, narrowly missing out on the gold.
After a tough fight, Michael won a bronze medal for the 18+ Male Red belt -75kg sparring.
Michael managed to win silver for the 18+ Red belt patterns, narrowly missing out on the gold.
After a tough fight, Michael won a bronze medal for the 18+ Male Red belt -75kg sparring.
Posted on 19/03/2011
ITF Wales Grand Prix VIII, Stage I
Congratulations to the students that participated in the first stage of this year's ITF Wales Grand Prix, especially our beginner students who performed well at thier first competition.
The club won the following medals:
Patterns [Yellow and Green]
[Bronze] Yue Yang
Patterns [Blue and Red]
[Gold] Michael Perks
[Silver] Oliver Mather
[Bronze] Adam Gaunt
Sparring [Male Lightweight]
[Gold] Adam Gaunt
[Silver] Oliver Mather
[Bronze] Michael Perks
[Bronze] Assane Sow
Sparring [Female Yellow and Green]
[Bronze] Yue Yang
The club won the following medals:
Patterns [Yellow and Green]
[Bronze] Yue Yang
Patterns [Blue and Red]
[Gold] Michael Perks
[Silver] Oliver Mather
[Bronze] Adam Gaunt
Sparring [Male Lightweight]
[Gold] Adam Gaunt
[Silver] Oliver Mather
[Bronze] Michael Perks
[Bronze] Assane Sow
Sparring [Female Yellow and Green]
[Bronze] Yue Yang