Eight members of the Williams Lake Shogun Martial Arts Academy represented Team B.C. in Montreal at the recent World Karate and Kickboxing Council National Championships.
Macy Lainchbury, Adanna Nustad, Carl Lam, Tanna Lauriente, Abrie Kilian, Wes Nustad, Glen Rogers and Katharina Koppe qualified to represent the team joining the top 600-plus martial artists from around the country May 18-20 at the tournament — each competing in various weight classes and age groups.
Wes, 33, Kilian, 31, and Rogers, 29, each competed in the 75- to 80-kilogram weight class in continuous fighting.
Wes finished with a silver medal, Kilian took fourth and Rogers placed fifth — a result that qualifies Wes and Kilian for the WKC World Championships Oct. 2-7 in Montreal with Rogers on the team as an alternate.
“It was my first nationals so I’m happy with it,” Wes said. “All the competitors were very good. They were well prepared, that’s for sure. But it was lots of fun.”
Wes also finished with a 10th-place finish in point fighting, while Kilian took eighth.
“Of all the weight classes ours was the most loaded one,” Kilian said. “We were in such good shape and I think we could have done better, but we just did some little things wrong and kind of beat ourselves.
“Apart from that, the tournament was excellent.”
Koppe, competing in the ladies’ event, finished with a silver medal in continuous fighting while Lam, 16, in the 16- to 17-year-old under-60 kg continuous fighting division, finished with a bronze medal — both results strong enough to earn spots at worlds.
Lam said he’s looking forward to the opportunity to compete on the world stage.
“This will be my first time,” he said. “I’ve competed at nationals a couple times before but worlds have normally been too far away. I’m excited about worlds. Now, I’ve just got to train and get ready.”
Lauriente, 15, in point fighting and continuous fighting, also qualified for the Canadian team as an alternate.
Lainchbury and Adanna, both 10, competed in point fighting and team kata, with Lainchbury also competing in individual kata.
Both said their divisions were tough, and both were slotted against a past world champion for their age group at the tournament.
Lainchbury finished fifth in point fighting, making her an alternate for Team Canada, while both combined in the team kata event to take sixth (also alternates). Lainchbury competed in the under-30 kg class, while Adanna fought in the under-45 kg class.
Wes, whose daughter is Adanna, added competing alongside her was a great experience.
“That was pretty awesome,” he said. “It was a good bonding experience. Everybody at the tournament was super friendly, nobody really had an ego there, so it was pretty low stress for them [Adanna and the younger kids].”
For more on the WKC World Championships visit www.wkccanada.com.