MARTIAL ARTS
Oban BJJ held an in- club competition for white belts on Friday February 3 to give those who want to compete properly a chance to see what competition is like in a less intimidating atmosphere and help with nerves and so on when they do compete.
Sixteen competitors battled it out in this submission- only event, with some great skill and determination shown by all. The eventual winner was Craig Cameron, whose final with Miguel Alvarez, from Oban’s brother club Fort BJJ, was a tough very close contest.
Third place went to Dean Cameron, who pulled a lovely arm bar off against Tomasz Kapusta, who had been an early favourite to win the event. The £290 raised from the event went to Soroba Young Families.
The first seminar of this year was an extremely busy one with 22 students learning the basics of the ‘De La Riva guard’ and sharpening up their skills on the mat.
If you are interested in trying out BJJ, then Friday’s beginners- only classes teach the basic fundamentals at an easy-going, friendly pace, and everyone is most welcome.
Oban BJJ club is run by Iain (Coogie) Potter who trains under Marcos Nardini. For club information, contact coogiepots@gmail.com.
Kyokushinkai Karate
The Kyokushin classes are in full swing with students training towards various events. The Oban junior class will be taking on new members for the next couple of weeks, then will be concentrating on work towards the next grading test in June.
Club coach Iain Rodger is just back from the Scottish Open Knockdown tournament and full results will be posted in the next column.
Anyone interested in learning Kyokushin karate should contact Iain Rodger on 07584 166542 or iain@ikku.co.uk.
Shukokai Karate
The Argyll martial arts clubs are continuing as normal with instructors Kenny Gray, Flo McBurnie, Andy Buchanan and Andrew Lawson putting the students through their paces.
Beginners are always welcome at the Argyll martial arts classes and if you are interested
Kickboxing
Everyone at Senshi Do Kickboxing would like to wish Andrzej Dariusz Pytka the best of luck this Saturday as he competes in the IKKU Scottish Open under Kyokushin bare knuckle knockdown rules. This tournament has grown year on year and is now one of the premier full contact tournaments in the UK, attracting world class competitors from all over the UK, Eire and Europe.
The tournament was started and is still organised by Shihan Iain Rodger, chief instructor of Caledonia Kyokushin, who we’d like to thank for organising a truly open tournament that welcomes all associations and styles.
In other news, some of the juniors are training hard to take part in the Kyokushin Cup that falls on April 8. This again is a full contact tournament and the youngsters show a lot of courage and determination to take part.
In the photo below, Sara MacIntyre and Cody McCulloch take part in some hard sparring to get themselves in top shape physically and mentally.
Classes continue as usual and beginners are always welcome. Contact Shihan Wullie Rodger on 07588 513618 or visit the Facebook page Senshi Do Kickboxing. please contact Kenny Gray on 07884 183905 or 01838 200419 or Flo McBurnie on 07765 931902.