           Click on button above to go straight to article .2007 News Archives 2004 2005 2006 click picture to see photos for the night. | Awards Night Thursday 13th - Electricity Club, Cardiff. | Thank you to everyone (must have been over 60) who attended this years Awards which saw quite a bit of success for the school with 5 Grand Prix winners, 2 Masters Shield winners and of course the two students of the year announced. | Grand Prix u13 3rd - Lewis Brooks | Master's Shield 13-17 Lanny James | | Grand Prix 13-17 1st - Sarah Jones | Master's Shield +18 - Cassie Lund | | Grand Prix 13-17 2nd - Amy Jones | | | Grand Prix 13-17 3rd - Ryan Davis | Junior Student - Ethan Davis | | Grand Prix +18 1st - Daniel Neale | Senior Students - Daniel Neale |
|  | Last class of 2007 | | Here are a few pictures from the last class of 2007 with a bit of fun to wind down the year. | | Colour belt grading 12th December |  | Ethan Davis promoted to 2nd Kup |  |  | Jamie Dare, Leighton Prosser and Daniel Neale promoted to 4th Kup |  |  | Daniel Jenkins, Thomas Jenkins, Sarah Jones and Amy Jones promoted to 5th Kup | |  | Jake Ward promoted to 8th Kup |  |  | Phil Davis, Kyle Jones, Brandon Brooks, Hannah Donovan and Adam Donovan promoted to 9th Kup | |
| 
return to top | RITA National Open Saturday 8th December, Tallaght Leisure Centre | | The competition started with the adults and first up were Tom and Victoria in the adult combined I & II dan pattern group. Round 1 saw Victoria drawn against one of the local National team members and after two close rounds between them which to us seemed to favour Victoria the decision went to the local lad and unfortunately she was out. Tom Harris fared much better putting in some very solid sharp performances and won through to the final again Tom performed very well and both patterns were better than before but again the decision went against him and he had to settle for silver. The competition then moved straight into adult sparring, once again first up was Victoria who faced a local opponent who may have been as much as double her weight, fighting two fast and heavy rounds she moved well and tried to overcome her opponents weight, height and reach advantage but was unable to do so but picked up a bronze to go with her dead leg. Next up was Tom Harris in the light weight male sparring - taking an attacking stance Tom took the fight to his opponents in the semi and finals - both opponents cam at him fast and furiously but Tom moved and picked shots well controlling both fights, the second round of the final stepped up a level as his opponent chased points, but Tom stayed in control and won the final taking our first gold. Following this Victoria attempted the power eliminator but was unable to make it through the first round. The morning finished off with the adult special technique event, not being something our competitors usually try it didn't stop them enjoying themselves and having a go - no one made it past the eliminator round though. In the afternoon the only competitors was Lanny James I, first up in the 13-17 combined patterns she had a bye through the quarter final, in the semi final she performed solidly to win the round, in the final she upped her game and won gold for the hard work. Straight into sparring after that she faced an opponent who was heavy eight in the combined weight female sparring, also giving away height and weight advantage she moved and scored well but had a momentary lapse as she lost her temper with an opponent who had been allowed to grab and pull her by her dobok, calming down in the break he went back out more determined and focused, then finally after having her hair yanked back and being punching to the back of the head something was done - the opponent dropped in tempo now and Lan easily scored enough point to win. Her last event was special technique - again a combined male female group meant shorty James being towered over by the boys wasn't going to win but she gave it a go for the fun of it - out first round was the result. There was then a nice detour round Dublin centre looking for the port and somewhere to park before we all headed off for a lovely Chinese to line our stomachs for the ferry trip home, getting into Wales at around midnight there was then a long trip home to Cardiff but everyone was glad they made it having had a great weekend. | | return to top | UK Open, Saturday 24th November - UWIC Cardiff | | The first competitors up were our black belt Veterans Neville Thompson II and Dave Lund I who both performed well to make it to the semi finals, unfortunately Neville had to bow out here and pick a bronze whilst Dave went on to win gold for patterns. The vets then moved straight into sparring so they could then officiate, here both got a little shock as they were told the light weight category would be -89kg and the heavies +89kg, despite some hard fought rounds both went out early before the semi finals. Next up in the u13 green belts we saw no less eight Ely students up against each other, with Lewis Brooks, Demi Brooks, Joe Powell, Jamie Dare, Daniel Jenkins and Jade Cronick all going out in the first two round's Sam Walsh losing in the quarter final and Thomas Jenkins picking up a bronze it wasn't the best of results (maybe some more pattern work for next year) but all of them went on to more than make up for it in the sparring where they dominated. In the u13 blue belts Ethan Davis and Kieron Barry both performed very well Ethan making the quarter final and dark horse Kieron getting to the final and picking up a silver. In the 13-17 division first up cousins Sarah and Amy Jones were up against each other in the green belt patterns and both worked hard and made it through the rounds to the final where Sarah pipped Amy to the gold medal. In the red belts Ryan Davis worked solidly through the early rounds but wasn't just sharp enough in the semi to go further, picking up a bronze. In the black belts Gareth Francis made it through to the 2nd round, Conah Prosser picked up a bronze and Lanny James made it to the quarter finals. Up in the 18+ division Daniel Neale Worked well and after yet again eliminating poor Dave Sharp from Cardiff Uni he went on to pick up gold. In Male I dan patterns. The last colour belt was a nervous Leighton Prosser in his first ever competition - but keeping his calm he made his way through all the early rounds dispatching a couple of red belts and a blue belt to to make the final and then with a great display of stances he picked up a well deserved gold - a great start to his competitive career. Tom Harris faced a pretty tough group and won a silver in the end. Cassie Lund totally dominated the I dan female patterns and won a gold. Finally Victoria Phillips competed in female II dan patterns for the first time and was unfortunate to go out in the quarter final. In the afternoon sparring started and after a good patterns round things got even better for Ely. In u13 green belts-135 Demi Brooks and Daniel Jenkins both fought very well, unfortunately though drawing each other in the quarter where Daniel won and continued his way through to the final where after a little admin hiccup he fought and won gold. In the -145 Jamie Dare, Thomas Jenkins, Sam Walsh, Lewis Brooks and Jade Cronick all fought hard and made it through to the quarter final, this obviously meant one had to lose out on the semi and this time it was Jamie facing Thomas who lost on a very tight fight, with all the others winning their bouts it made an all Ely semi final. First up Thomas beat Lewis and then Sam beat Jade and in the final Thomas found some reserves to go through and pick up a gold, but with the silver and both bronzes all being Ely it was a great group finish. Finally in the +145 Joe Powell fought what was undoubtedly the best he has ever done in the semi taking the fight to his opponent and working him hard, he lost out narrowly but can be very proud of his hard work. In the blue belts Kieron Barry and Ethan Davis both fought well and dispatched their opponents but were unlucky enough to draw each other in the semi final where Ethan's experience gave him the edge and he then went on to take gold as well. In the 13-17 division Sarah and Amy were both in the green belt female sparring Amy taking a bronze against a much taller awkward opponent who went on to face Sarah in the final and also cause too much trouble for her so she picked up a silver. In male red belts Ryan Davis ruled the roost in his group showing some great movement and skillful shots going in to work through the rounds and pick up gold. Male black belt -57kg Saw Conah Prosser competed well to get to the final but was unable to overcome his opposite number then so had to settle for a silver. In the -63k Gareth Francis was unable to pick up enough points to move passed the first round. In the female -51kg sparring Lanny James dominated her semi and final and picked up a well deserved gold. In the 18+ division first up we saw Daniel Neale fight hard and win his way through the rounds in the male green belts (yet again putting Dave Sharp out in the quarter final) His hard work was rewarded with a gold medal. In the male -57kg black belts. Finally for the colour belts was our very first veteran Leighton Presser who fought against some big vets and did well to get to the final picking up a silver to add to his gold on his first ever outing as a competitor. Tom Harris was his usual solid self and won gold in his sparring, Joe Hinsley coming back into competitive sparring after a long break did well to make it to the final - losing out on a close decision but picking up a silver medal. Our final sparrers were Victoria Phillips and Cassie Lund both of whom had hard fought semi finals and lost out on points but picked up two more bronze medals. In special technique we saw a lot of the u13's and even some of the 13-17 compete as all did flying side kick, well done to all who attempted the event as it is harder than it looks but special mention to Ethan Davis who won the -135 colour belt group and picked up gold. Final event of the day was Daniel Neale attempting power for the first time - I think he said "flippin ouch" afterwards but good on you for trying. A great day out for all and everyone worked hard and showed why Ely is a such a great success currently as the support for each other and from the families is fantastic. Well done for being UK Champions and for being the first winners of the UKTA School of the Year, on top of wining the Welsh and English and coming 2nd in the London and 4th in the Scottish this has been a terrific year for you all. |  return to top | Grand Prix V stage III, Sunday 4th November - Eastern Leisure Centre | | With fifteen students in the last Grand PRix of the year and most being in the under 13 groups it was a busy time for us to keep up with them all especially as they did so well pulling in 12 gold, 8silver and 5 bronze between them. Staring in the u13 white belts we saw Hannah Donovan in her first competition do well enough to pick up a bronze in the female white belts, and in the male white belts Kyle Jones won gold, Brandon Brooks took silver and Adam Donovan made ti to the 1/4 final - a great start for the new comers. In yellow/green Demi Brooks competed well and took a silver in her patterns, in the male yellow/green Thomas Jenkins won gold, Daniel Jenkins bronze, Lewis Brooks made it to the 1/4 final and Sam Walsh was unfortunate to go out first round to the silver medalist. Finally in the u13 blue/red group Ethan Davis took silver for his hard work and Kieron Barry lost out to a one of the semi finalists in the first round. In the 13-17 division we Saw cousins Amy and Sarah Jones both make it to the final and once again Sarah's performance was that much sharper and gave her gold in the final. In the blue/red group Ryan Davis made easy work of his two rounds to pick up a good gold for his work. The last competitor up for Ely was in the 18+ male yellow/green with Daniel Neale gliding through his rounds to pick up his fifth gold of the series. - a great patterns round for everyone I am sure you will all agree. In sparring we started again with the u13 division, in male white -125 both Brandon Brooks and cousin Adam Donovan were competing, Adam losing out narrowly in the semi final but getting a bronze in his first competition was very pleased. Brandon went on to pick up gold fighting a very entertaining final. In the white +140 Kyle Jones took the fight to his opponent and did enough to pick up a clear win and take gold. In the females the white/yellow/green were combined and Demi brooks fought well to make the final where she then faced her cousin Hannah Donovan and experience showed through as she scored the points to take gold and leave Hannah with silver. In the yellow/green males Lewis Brooks made it a family triple gold as he won his sparring division, with brothers Daniel and Thomas Jenkins picking up silver and bronze respectively, once again Sam Walsh was unfortunate to go up against TKD Wales' Levi Philips and narrowly lose out in the 1/4 final. In the blue/red group Ethan Davis and Kieron Barry both fought well, with Ethan having a slight edge and moving into the final Kieron settling for a bronze in the semi final. In the final Ethan once again faced up to Fairwaters Kane Collins and was closely out scored by him but added another silver to his tally. In the 13-17 division female yellow/green Amy and Sarah Jones once again made it to the final and this time true to form Amy dominated and took gold leaving Sarah to pick up silver. In male blue/red Ryan Davis picked up his second gold of the day with a fantastic display of sparring. Finally we all watched as Daniel Neale fought well scoring points and moving out to pick up his second gold of the day and then become the only person to have won all six gold in a Grand PRix in one year. Well done again to everyone who competed and we look forward to seeing you all at the awards night in December to see who has won the overalls. |  | XXII Senior & XIII Junior European's 19-21 October - Tallinn, Estonia | | Ely school was delighted to hear that seven school members had been selected for the Euro's this year and after a lot of hard work from everyone they were rewarded with two bronze. The two members of the junior team (the first one to ever compete for Wales) picked up a bronze for team patterns and Lanny James won bronze in individual female I dan patterns. With the best competitors throughout Europe there and very strong Eastern European nations it was a great achievement by the juniors - |  | Four Nations, Saturday 6th October - Exeter     | | Neville Thompson II, Wayne Brooks I and Tom Harris i were all part of the Welsh Four Nations team to compete this weekend and they all performed well and earned Wales the silver as they came runners up on the night. With a lot of vocal support down there from Wales they excelled din the sparring and won the event easily. A great night was had by all and more than a few sore heads were being felt on Sunday morning - for full details click on this link. ITFWales Pictures or UKTA Pictures |  return to top | English Open, Saturday 29th September - K2 Crawley | | The English saw 13 Ely students competing this year and rue to form all performed well and upheld the good reputation of the school. Starting off in under 13's the green belt patterns saw Lewis Brooks, Thomas Jenkins and Daniel Jenkins among the 38 young green belts in the group - Daniel and Lewis made it to the 1/4 finals where a momentary lapse of concentration put Lewis out and Daniel was beaten on a very narrow decision. Thomas did well and moved into the semi final but again one little slip of concentration was enough to give his opponent the edge and Thomas had to settle for a well earned bronze. In the blue belts Ethan Davis stayed cool as a cucumber moving through his rounds and in the final raised his pattern one final time to pick up a very well and surprisingly his first ever patterns gold. In the 13-17 division Sarah Jones started off well in the green belt patterns working her way through to the final with some solid displays, unfortunately she was unable to find that little extra sharpness to clinch victory but was happy with her silver place. In the red belts Ryan Davis took no prisoners in an effort to emulate his younger brother and won 5-0 through every round and then repeated the performance in the final to pick up another gold for the Davis family. In the male I dan patterns both Conah Prosser and Gareth Francis put in strong shows but with the group being big and standard high it was always going to be difficult, Gareth bowing out in the 1/4 final and Conah losing on a very close call in the semi to take bronze. Female I dan saw our newest black belt do her best to show no nerves and keep up this years tradition of new black belts not only competing within three weeks of promotion but winning silverware, defeating two of the England team members in the first two rounds she performed a very good final round but was unfortunate to have the decision go against her but a very good first black belt outing. In the 18+ section first up was Daniel Neale in the green belt category, becoming a regular at the bigger events now it was still a nervous time for Daniel and it just wasn't to be his day as he was unable to get into a comfortable rhythm and went out first round. Male I dan patterns saw Tom Harris perform a very good first patterns but again a lapse of concentration gifted the second round to his option and he had to bow out first round. In female I dan we saw the Cassie Lund of old return and she powered through the early rounds 5-0 to get into the final and here raised the tempo slightly to pick up a very well deserved gold. Finally Victoria Phillips in the II dan group (yet again only passing three weeks ago - definitely tradition now surely!) overcoming nerves and concentrating hard to remember all the patterns she performed well and although losing in the semi final took a well earned bronze to complete the patterns events for Ely. With the u13 groups being so big there were some long waits for the juniors but all worth it in the end as in u13 yellow -135 we saw Lewis Brooks and Daniel Jenkins work through the rounds and finally face each other in the final which was a close fought thing with Daniel edging Lewis out to take gold. In the green -146 Thomas Jenkins worked hard and made his way to the final and was rewarded with gold as he put in one more good round of sparring. In u13 blue/red -135 Ethan Davis fought well and made it to the final but was taken aback to receive yellow card and this knocked his flow which his opponent capitalised on so Ethan had to settle for silver. In the 13-17 Sarah Jones fought well in her semifinal female yellow/green but was unable to repeat the performance in the final and had to settles for silver. In the male blue/red group Ryan Davis glided through the early rounds but soon came up against stiffer opposition but did enough to raise hi s level and work his way through to a very tough final which he won - but he knew he had been in a fight with some of the shots he chose to stop with his head! In the male black bet sparring Wales had 5 entries in total with ours, Fairwater and TKD Wales but fortunately they were spread through the groups. For us Conah Prosser in -51kg fought a fast semi final and won it easily, having more of a fight in his final he did enough to build up a lead and then held it to pick up his gold. Gareth Francis -63kg struggled with the height of his Irish Opponent and although moving an d countering couldn't manage to break down his legs and get through to score points so had to settle for a bronze on the day. Lanny James in the female -51kg only had a final to contest but took the opportunity to show what she can do taking on an older heavier and higher grade opponent and totally dominating her rounds and won a deserved gold. In the 18+ Daniel Neale fought solidly even making it hard for himself at times and appeared to score enough points to move through to the next round but the decision went the other way and he had to bow out first round. In male I dan -51kg Tom Harris had a fast and furious firs round but stayed calm and built up his points to win his way through to the final. Here he faced a similar build opponent who was very fast and physical and he tempo raised as both fighters gave it their all, unfortunately Tom wasn't able to counter his opponent enough and had to settles for silver. In the female black belt -51kg Cassie Lund semi final was a heavy affair from both sides as both women tried to stamp their authority on the bout but over the two rounds Cassie upped the tempo and took the decision moving into the final where again she worked hard and thought she had done enough to win but it was not to be as the decision went the other way and she had to settles for silver. In Special technique Ethan Davis took another gold in the -135 colour belts, Conah Prosser and Lanny James attempting but not going past the first round (keep trying though). Finally all that there was to do was await the final overalls, It was fantastic to hear Ethan Davis announced overall u13 winner (giving the Davis boys 4 gold a silver and the overall between them on the day) - then to top it al Ely were declared 2007 English Champions!. A fantastic if long day out but again everyone of you showed what great standards and great team work there is within the school. WE would finally like to say well done to Aberystwyth who won a bronze, to Fairwater who picked up 4 gold, 2 silver and 2 bronze and TKD Wales who took another silver and bronze - Wales did very well with all of you competing so hard. | 
| Black belt promotion - Congratulations |  | Miss Victoria Phillips & Mr Neville Thompson |  |  | Miss Lanny James | |
| 
return to top | London Open, Sunday 15th July - Guildford Spectrum | | Eleven Ely students traveled to Guildford this year to compete in the London Open. starting in patterns u13 - green belts saw brothers Thomas and Danial Jenkins go up against each other in patterns and sparring, both boys performing well with Thomas getting a bronze in patterns and Danial making the quarter final, In sparring they surpassed this by making the final against each other with Thomas narrowly wining the match to take gold as Danial received silver. 13-17 - green belts saw Sarah Jones go out in the first round of patterns against the eventual gold medallist but in sparring she upped the tempo to make it to the final and lost out to a more determined opponent but was happy to pick up silver. In the red belts we saw Lanny James, Ryan Davis and Ben Hull all up against each other in patterns, with Ryan and Ben unfortunate to meet in the quarter final Ryan's sharper pattern moved him through - with Lanny easily taking her rounds those two eventually met in the final where Lanny was able to up the level just a little more to edge out Ryan 3-2 on the vote and take gold leaving Ryan with silver. In sparring Ben lost his semi final on a very close decision in a very frenetic bout and had to settle for bronze. Ryan made easy work of his group dominating every round and picking up a well deserved gold. In the female blue/red sparring Lanny emulated Ryan's feat and picked up her second gold of the day. In the black belt group we saw Gareth Francis and Conah Prosser compete in the same group. With a large group both boys were in for some hard work, Gareth unfortunately went out first round, leaving Conah to progress which he did well right through to the final, here we saw two very good competitors put on very good displays but the final decision went against him and Conah had to settle for silver but it was no small effort to win that. In sparring Conah lost his semi final in the -51kg and got bronze, and Gareth fighting in the -63kg for the first time had his hands full with a very good and experienced opponent and can be happy with the bronze he won although losing the semi final. 18+ In the green belts Daniel Neale performed well through he early rounds of patterns but was unable to pick it up a notch in the semi final so ended up with a bronze. In his sparring he did well again in the early rounds and made it through to final, a very hard fought final ended with a draw and the fighters having to come back up - unfortunately for Dan his opponent was able to dig that little bit deeper and do enough in the extra time to win the gold - but a well earned silver by Danial. Last up were the black belts in the male section Tom Harris performed well through early rounds, in patterns he reached the semi final and was narrowly beaten but in sparring he made it to the final and found himself up against not only and older and much more experienced opponent but someone who used to instruct him when we was a young green belt - over coming his nerves he fought very well and took the fight to a 2-1 decision - although losing he was delighted with his performance. Finally in the female section Cassie Lund went out in the quarter final of patterns, in sparring Cassie made her way to the final this time, with a very physical bout and losing her focus Cassie was unable to get back the points she gave away to her opponent and had to settle for silver and a lovely shiner to boot. At the end of a very long day everyone could be very pleased with themselves as they had performed well and won quite a bit too, with more than 300 competitors from 60 schools it was a big event, Ely School with 4 gold, 7 silver, 6 bronze and Lanny James winning the 13-17 colour belt overall, finished on 32 points and 2nd overall. A very well done to everyone who competed. | |
return to top | Welsh Open - 2nd June, UWIC Cardiff | The patterns events started off with the Veterans division, Dave Lund I put in some good pattern work to get him through to the final but here he lost out to a IV dan opponent and had to settle for silver. Next up was the 18+ division and in the female I dan patterns were Victoria Phillips and Cassie Lund, both girls making their way into the semi finals but despite solid performances were defeated and finished with bronze medals. In the male I dan patterns Tom Harris won a bronze from his semi final. The final adult to compete was Daniel Neale in the green belts, unfortunately a momentary lapse of concentration saw him put out in the first round. In the 13-17 division I dan pattern we saw Gareth Francis and Conah Prosser, both boys working hard, with Conah raising his game each round he made his way through to the final, Gareth was unfortunate to draw the other finalist in the ¼ final and had to bow out before the medals. In the final Conah upped his performance once more and won a very well deserved gold. In the red belt group Ryan Davis, Ben Hull and Lanny James were all competing,, Ryan went out first round, Ben and Lanny both moved through the rounds to the semi finals, in the first one Ben was solid but unable to raise the level to advance further, receiving a bronze for his efforts, in the other semi Lanny lifted her game and moved to the final, here she found enough to sharpen her pattern and take gold. In the green belt section Amy Jones bowed out in the ¼ final and Sarah Jones moved through the rounds to the final where she performed well but had to settle for silver as her opponent edged her out. Finally in the u13 division first up was newcomer Shannon Jenkins in the yellow belts who unfortunately went out in the first round. In the green belt section Sam Walsh, Joe Powell, Ella Hatherill, Lewis Brooks, Jamie Dare and Thomas Jenkins were all up against each other in a group of 38 – with all them being relatively new green belts they did well some making it to the ¼ finals but only Thomas advanced further and picked up a bronze for all his hard work. Our final competitor was Ethan Davis in the blue belt section and he worked hard through the early rounds making the semi final where he lost out to the eventual gold medallist. In 18+ sparring the event started again with Dave Lund in the Veteran male sparring, facing heavier more experienced opposition Dave did well to advance to the final where he was edged out in a physical encounter and had to settle for silver. In the 18+ female black belts Victoria Phillips fought well and made the final but was narrowly beaten on points leaving her with silver. Cassie Lund dominated a fast fought final and won gold for her solid work. Tom Harris sparred well in his group and moved through to the final where he upped the ante and totally dominated his opponent to win gold. The final adult was Daniel Neale in the green belts who was put under a lot of pressure and was unable to formulate a plan to deal with it and went out first round. In 13-17 Conah Prosser and Gareth Francis both ended up facing and losing to the eventual gold medallist, Conah fought him in the ¼ final losing out on points and Gareth faced him in the semi final taking the bout to a draw and losing out in extra time. In male red belts Ryan Davis and Ben Hull both controlled their sparring groups as both moved through to their respective weight finals, both fought well with Ryan taking gold in his and Ben winning silver in his. In the female red belts Lanny James fought solidly through her rounds to the final and controlled the fight there to pick up her second gold of the day. In female yellow/green cousins Sarah and Amy Jones both made it to their respective semi finals, Amy lost out on a close call and received a bronze medal Sarah won here to move into the final – here though she was outscored by a more confident opponent but picked up her second silver of the day. In the u13’s Shannon Jenkins fought well in her first national competition, although losing on points in the final was pleased to win silver. In the green belts we again saw Sam Walsh, Joe Powell, Thomas Jenkins, Ella Hatherill, Jamie Dare and Lewis Brooks all in the same group – with almost all of them in the same height group it inevitably meant some would put each other out in the early rounds, Lewis did well to make it to the ¼ final as he was moved up in height category on the day facing much bigger opponents. Jamie made the semi final in his group and fought well, moving and countering but didn't pick up enough points to win the bout and received bronze. Final sparrer up was Ethan Davis in the blue/red category who fought well in his early rounds to make the final, in the final he worked hard but was edged out on counter points but picked up a deserved silver. In the special technique a number of students entered some making it through the initial round but only Ethan Davis had any success finishing with a bronze for the -135 flying side kick. This left the school with 6 gold, 8 silver and 10 bronze as the day ended, the overalls were then announced with Lanny James winning the 13-17 colour belt award and this was enough for Ely to pull away from the pack and win the Welsh Open this year with Fairwater and RTA Didcot finishing joint runners up. | 
return to top | Grand Prix V stage II - 6th May, Eastern Leisure Centre | | Starting in the u13 division the u13 white belts saw Shannon Jenkins in the female group, both in her first competition and not letting the nerves get to her Shannon calmly and with a good pattern won the semi and then the final to pick up gold. Next up in yellow/green u13 were Lewis Brooks, Sam Walsh and Jamie Dare, all made it through the early rounds but unfortunately weren't on form enough on the day to progress beyond the quarter finals. The final u13 was Ethan Davis in the blue/red group and putting in some solid patterns he progressed through to the quarter finals but was unable to push out his opponent and had to bow out here. In the 13-17 Jake Ward another newcomer to competition was drawn in a white/yellow group and was unfortunate to draw a yellow belt in the semi final but can be happy with the bronze for his performance. In the yellow/green group cousins Sarah and Amy Jones easily moved through the rounds to face each other in the final where Sarah's confidence in patterns shone through to give her the gold and leave Amy with silver. In the blue/red males group again cousins Ben Hull and Ryan Davis easily dispatched their opposition through the rounds to face each other in the final where Ben's stronger performance won him the gold leaving Ryan with silver. In the female blue/red Lanny James moved through to the final in the female group and performed well to pick up the gold. Our final competitor for patterns was Daniel Neale in the 18+ yellow/green division and he performed very solidly winning through to the final where he raise done more good pattern to pick up another gold. In sparring u13 white Shannon Jenkins picked up an automatic gold and no other female white belts entered. In yellow/green Jamie Dare fought well to the 1/4 final but was narrowly edged out in the final decision just denying him a semi final appearance, Sam Walsh and Lewis Brooks gave good accounts of themselves in their early rounds and were both rewarded with a final appearance against each other, here Lewis was more positive controlling the round from the start and picked up his fifth Grand Prix gold for sparring, Sam was happy though to receive his silver for all his hard work. In the blue/red group Ethan Davis fought well and advanced through to the semi final where he raised his game to win that and enter the final against his old foe Kane Collins - on the day Ethan was unable to get enough points to get the win but can be proud of his silver for a good effort. In 13-17 first up was Jake Ward in the white/yellow/green group - as the lowest belt and the smallest and youngest of the group he was at a distinct disadvantage but he kept battling and although losing the round can be happy with his performance and winning a bronze. In the female yellow/green we saw the Jones girls Amy and Sarah both dominate their semi finals and face up to each other in the final but this time it was Amy who had more confidence and she picked up gold to leave Sarah with silver. In male blue/red Ben Hull and Ryan Davis both made easy work of their quarter finals but were then unlucky to be drawn against each other in the semi, Ben took the fight to Ryan and did enough to get the win and move into the final leaving Ryan with a bronze, here he faced a bigger black tag opponent and had to work very hard to take a narrow win and pick up gold. in the female blue/red Lanny James ended up fighting everyone in the group one straight after another as two no shows in the top half of the draw meant her opponent going straight to the final whilst she had to fight a quarter and semi final - although not on top form she did enough to win these but the final she picked up her tempo and put in a great display of sparring to lift a well earned gold. Final sparrer of the day was Daniel Neale in the 18+ white/yellow/green group, with a lot of big lads in it there was plenty of heavy action with more than a few knocks but Daniel performed very solidly improving with each round until he was in the final . here he raised the ante just a little more and on a well deserved gold, his second of the day. Another good day for Ely school as their students all did well and can be proud of themselves - they should what good quality and high standards are at the school and now going into the final stage a number of them are well placed to pick up overalls as long as they compete with the same dedication next time. Well done to you all. | 
return to top | XV World Championships, 24th-29th April - Bled Slovenia | | Starting in patterns first up was Cassie Lund in the female I dan and in a good first round she outperformed Liubina Spasova of Bulgaria opponent to move into the next round. Next up she faced Iida Nao of Japan, with a good first round things were looking good but unfortunately the Japanese girl was able to raise her level to win the round and move into the quarter final. Next to compete was Tom Harris in the male I dan patterns - starting off in round 1 against Ilija Medic of Austria he performed very well to easily move through to the next round where he came up against Juan Requena of Chile where he kept up his high performance and advanced into the quarter final. Here he faced Ilya Tan of Kazakhstan who went on to the final, Tom put in a very strong pattern but it wasn't enough to outperform the Kazakhi and Tom had to bow out in the quarter final. In sparring first up was Cassie Lund in -51kg, moving into round 2 she faced Madonna Baranova of Ukraine, with two hard fought rounds it was a close match between both girls but the final decision went to the Ukrainian, who went on to the final, meaning Cassie had to bow out there. For the Males in -57kg Tom Harris also faced a Ukrainian, Evgeniy Ostapenko. Despite putting in a good performance Tom was unable to overcome the experienced Ukrainian and also had to bow out in the second round. In the male -85kg category Wayne Brooks started off against Brett Williams of Australia, totally dominating both rounds of the bout he easily advanced through to round 2. Here he faced Michal Kosatko of the Czech Republic and right from the off Wayne took the fight to the Czech, forcing him onto the defensive and keeping the pressure on throughout to take a well deserved win and move into the quarter final. Next up for Wayne was Andrey Kress of Russia, here we watched two experienced competitors work hard against each other, eventually Wayne got the upper hand and took a narrow lead, then after throwing a big shot the umpire immediately awarded a yellow card despite the Russian not being injured or even going down and that negated his point lead and gave him a minus point swinging the result the other way in the dying seconds. A poor official decision ultimately cost Wayne the quarter final and his chance to advance into the semi and face the DPR Korean and take a medal but he can take some solace in knowing he had beaten the Russian who went on to take silver. | 
return to top | UKTA select challenge, Saturday 24th March - Kelvin Hall Glasgow | | With the UKTA 2-0 down in sparring against Scotland Wayne Brooks was brought up for round three and he worked hard and fast to dominate this round and bring the score back to 2-1. With the score then at 2-2 Tom Harris fought the fifth round in the match against Scotland and bother sparrers used their small size to move a lot and attack quickly, at the end they cancelled each other out and a draw was given which meant the match finished a draw between UKTA and Scotland. In the match against Slovenia Wayne Brooks was the fifth sparrer up with the scores tied and fought a furious match with his opponent as both upped their work level in order to try and win but it was Wayne who edged the match scoring some big hits with his handwork. For the females Cassie Lund was up second round and dominated her Slovenian opposite number to bring the score to 1-1. Fourth round saw Victoria Phillips up and despite working hard moving and countering she was unable to gain the upper hand against the vociferous Slovene she faced and lost a hard fought match leaving the score at 2-2 - with the Slovenians winning the last round as well it meant a 3-2 win to Slovenia. | 
return to top | Scottish Open, Saturday 24th March - Kelvin Hall Glasgow | | Starting with the 13-17 black belts we saw our two new black belts up in a large group but both Gareth Francis I and Conah Prosser I performed very well not showing that they had only passed their grading less than three weeks previously, Gareth made it through to the second round and Conah to the quarter final in their first black belt events. In the 18+ division Victoria Phillips I and Cassie Lund I were both unfortunate to not proceed beyond the quarter final stages whereas in the male group Tom Harris I fared better by getting to the semi final and narrowly losing out, having to settle for bronze. In the 13-17 red belt group Lanny James and Ryan Davis both made it to the semi finals but neither were able to progress further so had to settle for bronze medals. In the 13-17 blue belts Ben Hull was very strong moving through the rounds and picked up a gold for his hard work. This was emulated by Sarah Jones in the 13-17 yellow belt group as he also took a well deserved gold from the event. In the afternoon the competition moved into the sparring events and first up we saw Sarah Jones in the female yellow/green group fight well to win her second gold of the day. Next up Ben Hull blue/red -63kg fought well in the quarter final, poorly in his semi but still got the result and then had a marathon final having 3 draws given before he finally found that extra point needed to pick up his second gold of the day. In the male blue/red -51kg belts Ryan Davis fought very well throughout his rounds to the final and then upped his game to take another gold in sparring. In the blue/red females Lanny James totally dominated her semi final to move into the final against her opponent a giving away 15kg she let herself get involved in some scrapping and both girls got yellow carded for their efforts. Picking up her sparring from this she then upped the tempo and wore her opponent down scoring shot after shot to pick up a well earned gold medal. In the black belts 13-17 Conah Prosser -51kg had some hard rounds to move through but after some very close sparring and a draw he made it into the final where he fought the easiest of his fights and then deservedly picked up a gold medal. Next up in -58kg Gareth Francis fought hard against some Slovenians and did enough in each round to get himself through to the final where h e dug deep and was able to raise one more fight which was enough to also give him gold for his sparring. In the 18+ black belts Tom Harris fought well but was unable to get that winning point in his final so had to settle for a silver. In the female group Cassie Lund -51kg faced no less than 3 Slovenians in her group but she kept focused and sparred strongly throughout the rounds and picked up a gold for all her hard work. Our final sparrer of the day was Victoria Phillips who totally dominated her Scottish opponent in the quarter final to move into the semi final where despite going on the offensive for points was unable to pick up enough to advance any further so had to settle for a bronze to add to her silver team medal. The final events for the day were the special technique but unfortunately despite a number of students trying the events no one ranked anywhere in this. Finishing with a total of 9 gold, 1 silver and 4 bronze and on 33 points it was yet another good tournament for Ely School which was added to with Ben Hull being awarded the overall for 13-17 colour belts. | return to top | Colour belt grading 17th March | The following passed their colour belt grading - congratulations on their promotions. | David Morgan and Ryan Davis promoted to 1st Kup | | | Kalyd Owens and Ben Hull promoted to 2nd Kup | | | Kieron Barry promoted to 4th Kup | | | Jamie Dare, Leighton Prosser and Daniel Neale promoted to 5th Kup | |  | Sam Walsh, Ella Hatherill, Danial Jenkins, Thomas Jenkins, Lewis Brooks, Demi Brooks, Joseph Powell, Sarah Jones and Amy Jones promoted to 6th Kup | | | Lauren Jones promoted to 8th Kup | | | Shannon Jenkins and Jake Ward promoted to 9th Kup | |
| 
| Black belt grading 2nd-4th March, Glasgow | Congratulations to Master Taylor on his promotion to VIII degree and to the following for their grading in Glasgow with Grand Master Rhee IX this weekend. | Mr Gareth Francis and Mr Conah Prosser | |
| 
return to top | Grand Prix V stage I - 25th February, Eastern Leisure Centre | | The events started off in the under 13 division with the yellow/green male patterns which saw Jamie Dare, Sam Walsh, Danial Jenkins and Thomas Jenkins all start in this group unfortunately Jamie and Sam didn't progress past round 2 in teh biggest group fo the day, Danial and Thomas fared better and both went on to face each other in the first semi final and it was Thomas who came out on top leaving Danial with a bronze then in the final he lost a close round but was happy to pick up a silver medal. In the yellow/green female patterns Jade Cronick and Ella Hatherill both competed well through the early rounds, Ella stumbling at the 1/4 final stage whereas Jade went from strength to strength and took gold in a very good final. In the blue/red male patterns Ethan Davis was unlucky to draw the eventual gold medalist in the 1/4 final and missed out on the medal positions. Moving up into the 13-17 division the yellow/green group started off with Amy Jones and Sarah Jones eventually facing each other in the final where Sarah's solid performance earned her the gold and Amy had to settle for silver but is continually improving. In the blue/red group it was an all Ely semi final with Lanny James out performing Ryan Davis in the first semi and Conah Prosser doing the same against Ben Hull in the other semi. In the final a 5-0 decision went Conah's way giving a well deserved gold and leaving Lanny to pick up silver. Finally in the adult division our own Daniel Neale performed very well through the early rounds right to the final and kept up the good work to pick up a well deserved gold. Next up was the sparring which started again in the under 13 division. in the -140 yellow/green male sparring 4 out of the 6 competitors were from Ely so it was hard for them facing each other to start with. Sam Walsh and Jamie Dare both narrowly lost out in the 1/4 finals with Thomas & Danial Jenkins along with Lewis Brooks making it through to the semi finals. Both bouts were well fought but both Jenkins boys were unable to find enough points to progress further and had to settle for bronzes which put Lewis into the final where he fought very well against a bigger opponent and did more than enough to ensure he was able to pick up a gold. In the blue/red male group Ethan Davis once again lucked out to draw the gold medalist but this time in the semi final, defending well and moving a lot he didn't manage to score enough points to progress but picked up a bronze for his work. Moving up into the 13-17 division the female colour belt sparring started off with Lanny James against Sarah Jones - a bit of a mismatch with red versus yellow belt it did give Sarah a chance to develop her skills in sparring against a more experienced opponent and she can be very happy with her bronze. In the other semi final Amy Jones fought well to advance past her opponent and into the final - the final being Lanny versus Amy, this time it was Amy's turn to experience the harder opposition and she fought well defensively but didn't trouble her opponent in attack. The bout ended with a clear victory for Lanny picking up gold and Amy can also be pleased to pick up a silver with plenty of experience. In the boys colour belt sparring group Conah Prosser and Ben Hull both fought well in a fast and physical bout with Conah scoring enough points to ensure he progressed and Ben had to settle for bronze, in the other semi final Ryan Davis kept up the good sparring for Ely and eased past his opponent into the final. In the final Conah and Ryan both put on a great display of sparring and worked hard - in the end the decision went to Conah leaving Ryan with silver, this being his second gold it was a nice high to finish on for Conah in what may well be his last Grand Prix as he goes for black belt promotion soon. In the adult division Daniel Neale kept up the good work and stayed solid throughout all his bouts right through to the final and working hard and consistent did more than enough to ensure he picked up his second gold of the day. Once the sparring was over the trophies were awarded and pictures taken, thanks for everyone's help and participation given and people then headed off home with thoughts already running towards the next stage of the Grand Prix. | | National Squad Training - 24th February Bisham Abbey | | Eight members of the school travelled to Bisham Abbey to attend the National squad training session run by Master Taylor for selection of UKTA teams for events in the forth coming Scottish Open. A very hard but instructive session was run working on fitness, sparring and team patterns. A second session will be held on Saturday 10th March at the Barn, Michaelston College, Cardiff. more... | 
| Seminar / Grading 18th February, Heath Hospital Sports Hall | | Master Gary Miller VII ran the first area grading of the year for Wales and a number of Ely students were present to benefit from his instruction which emphasised the importance of correct stances and blocks and took everyone through pattern work and step sparring. Click the picture to the left for some pictures from the event. |
|
| |
