Huge IMAA medal haul for Bushido

By Stephen Leonard

BUSHIDO Clondalkin made its presence felt at the recent IMAA Open held in Dundalk, Co Louth on Sunday.

This was the last competition before the WAKO World Cadet & Junior World Championships, so each division was crammed with the best athletes in the country looking to test themselves before they step onto the mats in a fortnight’s time for the biggest challenge of the year.

The Clondalkin outfit had nine competitors stepping into action with most making the podium at least once as the overall medal tally reached seven gold, one silver and five bronze.

First up was unbeaten World and European champion Karyna Nikitina who did not disappoint, dispatching all her opponents in the Under 18 Points Fighting category.

Croia Byrne, making her move to the intermediate divisions for the first time after a successful stint in the novice categories, won out in the Girls Under 18 Intermediate Points Fighting class.

Shannon Gayson lined out in the Senior Elites Ladies and finished with a well-earned bronze medal in one of the toughest divisions of the day.

Ten-year-old Zach Lamari, having just recovered from a bad sinus infection, had to settle for a third place finish this time around after his successful podium firsts throughout the year.

Eoghan Gorman and Luke Kelly both won their respective divisions with ease with the former also stepping up to the Senior Continuous –69kg and making it a double gold.

First-timer Chris Lawless did not show any nerves as he made his way to the finals of the Junior Men’s Continuous category, but was stopped short by a couple of points in the final.

Siblings Ryan and Amy Wade carded two gold and three bronze medals between them, while Gavin Moore was very unlucky not to make the semi-finals of the Men’s Open Weight Points Fighting division.