Five members of Williams Lake’s Shogun Martial Arts Academy recently represented Team B.C. in Ottawa at the World Karate and Kickboxing Council National Championships.
Macy Lainchbury, Tanna Lauriente, Tracey Beauchamp, Kurtis Olson and Jaime Lumbria qualified to represent the team joining many of the top martial artists from around the country May 17-19 at the tournament, each competing in various events and weight classes.
Tanna, 16, earned two bronze medals in both continuous and point fighting, qualifying her for the WKC World Championships in Italy in October.
“Other competitors came up to us and said they couldn’t believe how much she had improved last year,” said WLSMA Sensei Lee-Ann Lainchbury. “She was impressive.”
Macy, 11, competed in point fighting, finishing sixth. Macy was also named as an alternate to Team Canada for the upcoming world championships.
For Olson, 15, a couple close decisions went against him in continuous fighting, Lee-Ann said.
“[Sensei] Sheldon (Lainchbury) and I both thought he scored enough points to win both of his fights,” Lee-Ann said. “But unfortunately the judges called it the other way.”
Jaime picked up a bronze medal in point fighting, earning him a spot at worlds.
“He is a Shogun adoptee as he was not actually a member of our club before nationals,” Lee-Ann said. “But he is from the Williams Lake area and qualified at provincials.”
Tracey, 18, was awarded two gold medals — one in continuous fighting and another in point fighting. Unfortunately for Tracey, Lee-Ann said, the wins were uncontested as no one entered in the class.
Tracey also finished seventh in kata.
“She did really well for competing at her first nationals,” Lee-Ann said.
The martial arts academy said it would like to thank its sponsors Dairy Queen and Windsor Plywood, and everyone else who supported its fundraisers leading up to nationals.
