ITF Irish open (INTA)

We headed off to the INTA ITF Irish Open last Saturday and Sunday. It was a great pleasure to see all our friends again from the other schools, clubs and associations and catch up.

The tournament was certain to be a cracker as it had some top class Taekwon-Do teams from across Europe. The Norwegians never fail to impress. The first time I saw them in action was in Stratford Upon Avon in 2004 at the GTUK Open and they were great then, they were great at the weekend.

The standard of this tournament was extremely high, and the technical content was, well, technical! Our guys did well, it was a real eye opener for some of them coming face to face with excellence. None the less, they performed well. For me the the highlights were both Erika and Lauren winning gold in both patterns and sparring, Néidin counter fighting and Alvy. Alvy stole the show in the senior -80kg black belt sparring. When it went around the ring that he was only gone 18 he became a crowd favourite, especially after he clobbard a big Norwegian with a back reverse which sent him crashing to the mat. He was on fire. I was very excited at his performance, even though I nearly blinded him earlier in the day!

My goal for him was getting past the first round, he surpassed that and him with a flu. Another big step on his way into senior territory. He has come such a long way, when he came to our club first he couldn't take a smack! Alvy was eventually beaten by a very experienced Darren Smith. Darren is a gent, a true warrior of the art. No better person to be beaten by, he went on to win the section.

I was happy over the weekend. Some of the top Taekwon-Do guys were commenting on our performances, we're still only one little club, but we're punching above our weight. I love seeing the Europeans and the Scandanavians. Their will to prepare is super. It's frustrating to see how focused they are on the day, even their juniors. Some of our guys were too busy chatting each other up, the Europeans had their ear phones on, in the zone. It's that Irish thing I gave out about before. Irish teenagers, always content to operate 100% below their own natural potential. I know I'm making a broad generalisation, there are plenty of teens who break the mould, they know who they are and again I have big respect for them. They will ultimately determine their own destiny, and good luck to them.

I had some interesting discussions while I was there. The Irish Taekwon-Do Advisory board seems very promising. If it works out the way it should, it will the future of ITF Taekwon-Do in Ireland. I'll be putting in my forms. What ITF you belong to is irrelevant, this is a big step forward.

So in closing, fair play to Dave Elson from the INTA who organised this event. No doubt there was pressure. In the end, even after a long day, it was a great tournament so fair play to him and his team.

Fair play to all those incredible Taekwon-Do athletes who made my day, and fair play to our Red Star competitors who continue to make my time in TKD very worth while :)