Wednesday, July 20, 2005 | ||
Bad Links? | Athletes fight for gold and national titlesBy MICHAEL BOYLAN Six athletes from Oh Do Kwan Martial Arts went to the AAU National Tae Kwon Do Championships in Greensboro, NC two weeks ago, one night after a storm severely damaged the studio where they practice. Each of the young martial artists fought for the gold medal in their respective age group and weight class and two of them took home top honors while the others brought home silver medals. The gold medal winners were Taylor Graham, 8, and Jasmine Leabell, 9, while silver medla winners were Elijah Holyfield, 7, Phillip Hayes, 12, and Tyshaun Sinclair, 9. Roland Thomas won a silver medal in the adult division. Joaquin Bonilla, the head of Oh Do Kwan, cited the groups conditioning as the largest factor in their success. The students were practicing two times a day for the last three months and during the final month leading up to the tournament they were also running at the Fayette County High School track under the direction of assistant coach Greg Lloyd. We ran four days a week and we were not playing around, said Lloyd. Their conditioning was a lot better than their opponents and they were ready for anything. In addition to her work with Bonilla and Lloyd, Graham was coached by Mekeshia Yarbrough, who has coached her for the last two years. Bonilla was very proud of his students performance at the national championships. Up next are world championships in Las Vegas in August and it is uncertain how many of these athletes will attend as the school year starts that same week. Though the studio sustained a lot of water damage and will need a new roof, carpeting, lighting and drywall, the students should be able to go back in the building within a few weeks and will be prepared for battle when the next tournament begins. |
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