Proud: Ishinryu Echuca juniors (back from left) Ashlyn Shoobert, Reagan Allen, Victoria Illig, Frank Potter; (front) Keaon Nolan, William Atkins, Adam Russell, Spencer Keech and Arlo Keech show off their certificates after successfully completing their grading last weekend. Photo: supplied
It was a weekend full of karate action at the Ishinrye Echuca dojo, with a bumper two days of seminars and gradings being held at the gym.
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Dozens of participants were at the dojo on Saturday and Sunday, with special guest Sensi Bruce Hyland headlining the weekend.
There were two training seminars on Saturday, one by Kyoshi Craig Bernotti and the other by Hyland, as well as grading for the juniors on Sunday.
Tamara Davies started up the Ishinryu Echuca dojo in 2012 with the guidance of Hyland.
Davies first began karate when she was four and has been training full-time ever since, and she said the weekend’s activities at the dojo were a great success.
“It was really fun. The kids had a blast and the adults enjoyed themselves,” Davies said.
“I was really happy with the turnout. It was a great atmosphere.”
Family: Members of Ishunryu Echuca at the seminar last weekend. Photo: supplied
Hyland is a rock star in the karate world, with a wealth of knowledge and experience. He first started training in karate in 1972 and graded up to a seventh Dan in 2015.
At 70 years old, the karate master master competed at this year’s World Karate-Do Alliance World Championships held in Poland in September, coming home with a silver medal.
It was the latest accomplishment in a great career that has seen Hyland earn 12 karate gold medals at tournaments around the world.
Davies has been training with Hyland throughout her 23-year karate career, and she said it was awesome to have someone of his pedigree teaching and sharing his knowledge in Echuca.
“Bruce is such an amazing, inspiring person. He is the most humble person I have ever met,” she said.
“To think that Echuca has the opportunity to have someone like that around is amazing.
Impressive: Bruce Hyland, age 70, demonstrates a kicking technique with Ishinryu Echuca student Abbey Mottram. Photo: supplied
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“There are people in Melbourne and even all over the world who don’t get the chance to train with or meet someone of his calibre.
“He is very inspiring. A lot of the stuff that he does, he leads by example. He really shows you what is possible — if he can work that hard, so can we."
Davies said she and Hyland had big plans for the event in the future, with hopes of making it a regular occurrence.
“We want to make it an annual event and get even more karate kids there,” Davies said.
“We want to grow the event and make it bigger, that would be pretty amazing.
“Bruce is talking about making this weekend training seminar bigger in the future — getting more instructors and different instructors and sharing the knowledge around. It’s a great chance for people from Melbourne to come up and see the town of Echuca too.”
Learning opportunity: Gracie and Arlo with fifth Dan Ishinryu Carrum Downs instructor Nigel Knighton. Photo: supplied
Ishunryu Echuca offers classes across a wide age range, from kids as young as four up to adults.
Training for term four started this week, with training held on Monday and Wednesday nights from 6pm to 7pm.
New members are welcome to join at any time. Davies said for a limited time the club was offering a free gi (uniform) to newcomers who sign up.
All smiles: Ishinryu Echuca owner Tamara Davies with her student Keaon Nolan after his first grading last weekend. Photo: supplied
She said the club was a great place for people to come together and train alongside each other.
“We all came together as one big family,” she said.
“We had an age span of 70 years here on the weekend — Bruce being the oldest, and kids as young as four as well, and we had every age in between.
“We don’t discriminate. If we can have a child work with an adult, we will, because it boosts their confidence. We always encourage kids and adults to work together. ’Ishin’ out of Ishinryu means ‘all of one heart’ in Japanese, and our style really stands by that. We are not just a martial arts school, we are a family and a community.”
Potential new members can phone Tamara Davies on 0458 317 458.
Special achievement: Moto Meru owner Craig Bernotti (left) with his student Lachlan and Sensi Bruce Hyland after receiving the ‘instructors choice’ trophy for his amazing efforts. Photo: supplied
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