Karate Instructors Lead Students to Victory in Tournament
By Zachary Bearnson
As the semester comes to an end and the sports teams of Southern Virginia finish their seasons, a smaller group of athletes celebrate their success after a championship win.
Two members of the Intermediate Karate class, Jason Newman, Biochemistry ‘20, and Aurora Kvamme, English ’19, traveled to Asheville, NC, to participate in the Asheville Karate Championships. Both Newman and Kvamme both hold the rank of yellow belt and took first and second respectively in fighting and forms.
Commenting on their success, their instructor Kyoshi Steve Garrett said, “They really worked hard, and these victories of theirs have really come from the heart for them.” Garrett said that Newman and Kvamme had been training for the tournament specifically for well over a month, not only practicing their forms and their fighting techniques but “how to properly present themselves to the judges and enter and exit the ring correctly.”
Overall, one hundred and eleven participants entered the tournament according to Garrett. He was told by several coaches who were in attendance that the tournament was well run and well officiated.
Kvamme and Newman traveled to the tournament themselves and emphasized a major point of their success was the emphasis that Garrett put on proper presentation. Newman said, “We’re both very grateful that our instructors taught us well.”
