What we are working on:

Well, besides trying to catch up on emails, paperwork and such (being away for a week) and battling this terrible cold (thank you athletes in Orlando! :-)) Shihan and I have been busy preparing our schools for the holiday season. Today, we were picking out our Winter line of clothing with our new kickboxing logo (which is pretty cool!); I love shopping so this was actually a fun productive day! What girl doesn't like picking out clothing! This year we are going to bring in a bunch of different options for everyone; sizes and different clothing for men, women and youth, and let you order what you want. We will have long sleeve, short sleeve, dri-fit shirts and crew neck and hoodie sweatshirts. This year we are also bringing in some yoga apparel which is also awesome to kickbox in - comfortable and flexible! I'm very excited and hope you like what we picked out. Suggestions and comments are always welcome! Also, check out some of the new Adidas cool max kickboxing pants and boxing gloves that came in this week - Terry has samples available at the front counter.

2009 is quickly approaching. Six weeks, exactly from today will be January 31st, the last day of 2008. It can be an exciting time for those who are on track with their goals and on the flip side, a scary, intimidating time for those who have not crossed many goals off their New Year's 2008 Resolution list. Six weeks may not seem like a lot of time, but it's 42 days; 252 hours; 15, 120 minutes; etc. etc. How much time do you really need to set aside each day or week to hit your goals? Out of the 252 hours remaining, if for example, you spent only 4 days a week training for 1 hour each day, that would still leave you 23 hours of each day, or 228 hours to Christmas shop, attend parties and family functions, drive your kids to their hockey games etc. etc. If you plan out your day properly, there is no reason why you should not be able to get to your kickboxing class or workout. If you need any suggestions to help you get through the holiday 'craziness' just send me an email. I'd be happy to help you out!

tammy@bernardokarate.com

Currently, we are working on some new, exciting changes and additions to our programs at the Karate schools for 2009. Everything will be announced shortly!

If you have not ordered your copy of this year's Black Belt Class of 2008 DVD, please visit the front counter at either the Oxford school or the Dearness school; we have pre-order forms available for students and parents to view pictures from all of the pre-tests, the endurance grading and presentation grading (and also never-before-seen video footage from the endurance grading - hey! who let that video camera into the dojo!). It will be a memorable keep-sake for sure!

Be sure to check back to our blog daily to see what's new and exciting at Bernardo Karate. We will keep you updated on all current events and activities in and around our Schools.

WKA Florida World Championships 2008 Day 5

Friday/Day 5: Our Final Day of Competition!!

I am so excited to be announcing Team Canada's Medal count!! Canada won 205 medals at this year's World Karate Championships - 61 Golds; 56 Silver; 88 Bronze. Can you believe these numbers???? What an amazing achievement for all of our Athletes.

Today's Bernardo Karate student results:

Today, Alexa started the day off with her Junior Girls, 13-17 years, Weapons (with music) division. I was over at another ring when I heard the song 'Disco Inferno mixed with Kick Start my Heart' blarring on the speaker....I knew I had to get my butt over to Ring #1 to see Alexa's blazing Bo form. She was awesome!! Alexa won her second Gold medal of these Championships and quickly had to get changed and ready for her Girls 13-17 years, -50 kg light contact kickboxing division. I've always respected Alexa's ability to spar, but today, I also came to respect how much 'heart' she has when she competes. Alexa had a tough final against an English competitor, and despite being down after the first round, Alexa pressed forward and battled the English girl right to the very end, never once giving up. Alexa finished with a Silver medal and we could not be more proud of Alexa's performance. Alexa next had to prepare for her final event; Team Freestyle forms with Canadian Team member Mark Santoro from Windsor, Ontario. Alexa and Mark were completely 'in-sync' for their performance and clinched the Gold medal edging out two other Canadian Teams and an English Team. Alexa finishes these World Championships with 3 Gold Medals and 2 Silver medals. Congratulations Alexa! This is such an impressive achievement! Way to go!

Gilles Doiron was up next in his Men's, -70 kg light contact kickboxing division final against a German Competitor. Every one was gearing up for what was to be one of the most exciting fights of these Championships. We had watched the German competitor in the elimination rounds and knew his fight with Gilles was going to be amazing to watch. These two fighers did not disappoint. Gilles was amazing with his movement and finished every combination with quick, powerful round kicks to the body. Gilles also scored some amazing Axe kicks! The German kept pressing and kept Gilles busy for the entire 4 minutes (2 minutes each round). Gilles was clearly the better-conditioned athlete, moving around the ring, looking energized at the end of the match while the results were being calculated. In the red corner, the German was bent over, exhausted, trying to catch his breath. It was so exciting to watch and when the fight was complete it seemed 'like forever' before the results were announced and Gilles' arm was raised in Victory!! Gilles trained very hard for this Gold medal - and he totally deserves it! Congratulations Gilles on your first ever WKA Gold medal!! We're so excited and happy for you!

Our final student competing for the day was Mitchell Triplett....and talk about being on a mission! Mitchell looked totally pumped in the Boys 12 and under Team Point fighting championships. Mitchell knew if he won his match, the boys would have their Team Gold medal in their hands. Mitchell stepped into the ring calm and cool and was a blitzing machine! His timing was amazing and he scored numerous 'reverse punches' to help the Boys Team win their Gold medal. Congratulations Mitchell on a great victory for your Team.

As I have mentioned in previous posts, Shihan and I have had such an amazing time coaching our students and Team Canada members. This week seems to have flown by even though we have had over 35 hours of competition. We hope our students are pleased with their results, as Shihan and I are very proud of each and every one of you!

There is one more exciting thing to report.....out of 5 Team Fighting events, Team Canada won 4 of them; Men's Team Fighting; boys 12 and under; junior boys 13-17 years; girls 12 and under; junior girls 13-17. Our Women's Team won the silver medal today and only lost by two points!! I had the pleasure of coaching our Women's Team this year. Congratulations Ladies.

Tonight after dinner, we came out of the restaurant and watched the Space shuttle launch (visible from Cape Canaveral). What an amazing thing to experience. The space shuttle lit up the entire sky and we watched it disappear into 'thin air'.....something I'll never forget (shoot! I didn't have my camera with me!)

I've updated 30 or so more pictures to the photo gallery. I hope you have all enjoyed our daily blog at the World Championships. It's been fun for me to update you all on our students amazing results. I'll see you all back at the club on Monday.

Special thanks to Florence and Nasrudeen for my Mickey Mouse t-shirt! Haven't had one of these since I was a kid! :-)

Congratulations Bernardo Karate and Team Canada!

Signing off from Orlando, Florida, Disneyland.

Sempai Tammy

WKA Florida World Championships 2008 Day 4

Thursday/Day 4: Finals
Wow!!! What an exciting day of finals! Team Canada is kicking butt in the medal standings. So far after our first day of finals, Team Canada has 32 Golds, 26 Silver and 58 Bronze medals (I'm missing the results of 9 Team Canada members - promise to have them all by tomorrow!!) I can't wait to see our Team competing again on Friday!!

Starting off our day, Sempai Laura Schumacher performed an amazing kata and won a bronze medal in the Women's Veterans +35 Traditional forms division. I have never seen Laura more intense or more powerful in her form. It was a pleasure to watch her compete. Congratulations Sempai!

Next on the schedule, Junior Black Belt Mitchell Triplett won a Gold medal in the boys 12 and under, -45 kg point fighting division. Mitchell fought amazing! Great movement, quick hands, great kicks....the whole package!! Way to go Mitchell!

Alexa Littleton competed in the first of 5 final events today, starting with her Junior girls, 13-17 years, Weapons (without music) division. Alexa looked sharp and powerful with her Bo staff and won her first medal of these championships - GOLD!!!! Congratulations Alexa! It never gets boring watching Alexa spin her bo! :-) Alexa also had her finals today in her Junior girls, 13-17 years, -50 kg point fighting division. Alexa had a tough battle against a competitor from Italy. The Italian had quick kicks and Alexa really had to work her angles to get inside this competitor's amazing lead leg. Alexa fought back in the second round and closed the gap in points, but the Italian scored a few more points just as the time ran out on the clock. Alexa fought really well and won a silver medal. Congratulations Alexa! Two divisions down and three more to go on Friday!

Sempai Jeff Muir has the biggest smile on his face today!! Sempai Jeff won his first ever WKA Gold Medal in the Men's Veterans +35 years, -85 kg light contact kickboxing division. Sempai Jeff kept the pressure on his USA competitor with non-stop punching, kicks to the body and kicks to the head for the entire 4 minutes (2 minutes each round). It did not look like Sempai Jeff wanted to stop at the end of the match!! He was working hard the entire time, but made it look like fun! Way to go Sempai!! We are tremendously happy for you and proud of you! Be sure to check out Sempai Jeff's pictures in today's 'updated' photo gallery.

Nicole Triplett was up next in her Junior girls 13-17 years, -45 kg point fighting division. Nicole over-powered her opponent in the finals with amazing 'ring' work. Nicole was able to cut the ring and keep her opponent trapped in corners, where she was able to punch and kick her way to defending her title from last year as the Gold medal winner for 2009. It was a pleasure coaching you Nicole!! She always has a smile on her face no matter what! :-)

Nasrudeen Muhammed performed a great bo form in his boy's 12 and under Weapons (without music) division and won a bronze medal. This was Nasrudeen's first World Championships and he worked hard to win his first medal. Congratulations!

Tomorrow's competition will be intense and exciting. Out of our Bernardo Karate students on the team, we have Alexa Littleton competing in 3 divisions; Girls 13-17 years, light contact kickboxing, Weapons (with music) and Team forms with Mark Santoro. We also have Gilles Doiron competing in his Men's -75 kg light contact kickboxing division. I will update the Final Day of the World Championships tomorrow evening and will hopefully have the final medal count for Team Canada as well.

Shihan and I are having so much fun coaching Team Canada. All of our athletes are very humble and are displaying great sportsmanship whether they win or lose. We're proud of each and every one of you! Thanks for giving us this amazing opportunity and we look forward to Friday's final events.

I have updated another 30 or so pictures from today's finals. Enjoy!

Sempai Tammy

WKA Florida World Championships 2008 Day 3

Wednesday/Day 3: Our final day of eliminations is finally complete!

What an exciting day for Team Canada; every one is talking about how amazing and talented our Team is this year. We have heard so many good compliments!

Guess What? Alexa Littleton will have the opportunity of going for 5 Gold Medals this week! She advanced to the Gold medal rounds in the Girls 13-17 years, -50 kg point fighting division today. She had a tough first fight against a German competitor but really settled in and handled the rest of her competitors with great confidence. As a result, Alexa will be in the finals in her point fighting division, her light contact kickboxing division, two weapons divisions and the Junior Team Forms division. How amazing is that? We are very excited for Alexa and everyone is looking forward to watching her compete in her finals on Thursday and Friday.

Our 12 and under, junior girls, -45 kg point fighting competitor, Jessica Ticehurst had an amazing day. This was Jessica's very first competition at the World Championships. Jessica came out with quick hands and quick kicks and she ended up winning her first fight 9-4 and her second fight 8-4. We were so excited for Jessica because most students are pretty nervous their first time out competing, but Jessica seemed very confident and relaxed and it definitely showed in her matches (Her Mom later told me, Jessica was feeling pretty nervous the night before!). Next, Jessica advanced into the semi-finals against a German competitor. It was such an amazing fight that was tied with about 6 seconds left and the German competitor scored a point and ended up winning the match 5-4. It was so close for Jessica!! Regardless of the result, Jessica was super excited to win the Bronze medal and we could not be happier for her. Way to go Jessica!

In the girls 13-17 years, -45 kg point fighting division Nicole Triplett fought a tough match against a Scotland competitor. It was also tied right until the last few seconds, when Nicole threw a mighty reverse punch to win the match! Nicole advanced to the Gold medal finals which will be held on Thursday. We're looking foward to Nicole's final match which will be held against a fellow Canadian Teammate from Ottawa.

Nicole's brother, Mitchell Triplett won a bronze medal today in his boy's 12 and under, -45 kg light contact kickboxing division. Mitchell fought an amazing competitor from Germany. Mitchell stayed in the fight 'punch for punch,' but there were a few kicks in favor of the German competitor who will now be advancing to the Gold medal finals. It was a great fight Mitchell!

Sempai Laura Schumacher will be advancing to the Gold medal finals in the Women's, Veteran's +35 years Traditional Kata division. Laura looked crisp and powerful in her form Ara Kaki Unsu. Laura will set the pace for Team Canada tomorrow as Traditional forms is the first division to start off the Finals at this year's World Championships. Go Laura Go!!

Junior Black Belt's Nasrudeen Muhammed (boys 12 and under, -45 kg light contact kickboxing) and Alysha Morrison (girls 13-17 years, -50 kg point fighting) both fought well today. It was the first World Championship competition for both competitors and we hope they enjoyed the experience as much as we enjoyed watching them compete.

Sempai Jeff Muir competed in the Men's Veteran's +35 years Traditional Kata division today. Jeff had a strong kata performance and just missed out on finishing in the top four for the finals. Sempai Jeff will now be focusing all his energy towards competing in his light contact kickboxing finals on Thursday. We can't wait! :-)

Shihan and I would also like to add how important Sempai Don Harper, Sempai Les Wolfenden and Sempai Darren Farnel have been to this week's competition. All three Sempai's have volunteered their time to help referee and judge in the forms and fighting divisions. The days of competition have been long and tiring, but without their help, who knows how long these days of eliminations would have been. Thank you very much! We really appreciate your help and the athletes appreciate your time and dedication to the sport.

We are now heading into the final two days of competition. I wasn't joking in my previous post when I mentioned we had a Canadian competitor in almost every final competition on Thursday and Friday. This is also the first World championships where Canada has a 'Team' in the finals of every Team Fighting division. Our Men's and Women's Teams, both Junior boy's teams and both Junior Girls teams are fighting in the finals. We're so excited about this and wish all of our Teams and competitors great success in the finals!

Only 2 more days to go!! I'll be back tomorrow after our first day of finals to report on our Gold, Silver and Bronze count.

I've added more pictures today in the photo gallery. Hope it makes you all feel like you're here with our Bernardo competitors!

Thanks for checking in on us! "Talk" to you tomorrow!

Sempai Tammy

WKA Florida World Championships 2008 Day 2

Day 2 of the World Karate Championships was definitely an exciting and successful day for Team Canada; it seems like we will have a Canadian Competitor in almost every final event!

Our Bernardo Karate students had another great day of competition as well:

Alexa Littleton 'axe kicked' her way into the Gold medal finals for her 'light contact' 13-17 years, -50 kg kickboxing division. Alexa will also be going for Gold at the end of the week in the Junior Team forms division with her weapon's partner Mark Santoro (from Windsor, Ontario).

Nicole Triplett fought a tough battle against a competitor from Scotland. In this -45 kg, 'light contact' 13-17 kickboxing division, Nicole pressed forward and fought with alot of determination and finished the day with an impressive Bronze medal. Way to go Nicole!

Our Men and Women fighters switched out of their boxing gloves to start the eliminations for their point fighting divisions in today's competition.

Stephanie Jones' timing was 'on' today, winning her first two matches by 8 or more points in the Women's 18-34 years, -60 kg division. She ended up fighting a Canadian competitor from Ottawa in the semi-finals and finished the day with a bronze medal. Way to go Stephie!

Sempai Jeff Muir fought very well in the Veteran's +35 years, -85 kg division point fighting division. He had a tough fight in the semi-finals against a British Competitor and finished the day with a Bronze medal. Sempai Jeff had some amazing kicks in his fights today and now he needs to rest up for his forms divisions tomorrow. Congratulations Sempai Jeff!

Nasrudeen Muhammed did an amazing bo form in his Junior boy's 'Non-musical weapons' division and will be competing for Gold at the end of the week. The top 4 competitors in all forms and weapons divisions advance to the finals.

Gilles Doiron (Men's 18-34, -70 kg), Katie Reid (Women's 18-34, -55 kg) and Murray Schumacher (Men's Veterans, 35+ years, -75 kg) all competed well in their point fighting divisions. These students fought hard and we're proud of their efforts and how they handled themselves in the ring.

Today was an exciting day as well for Team Fights. Both of our Men's and Women's teams are advancing to the Gold medal finals on Friday....and both Team fights will be against Team Germany!

Shihan and I are very proud of each and every one of our students representing Team Canada. The competition is tough this year and we're excited to watch all of you compete! It has been an extreme pleasure coaching our students and students from other parts of Canada.

Wednesday's eliminations start at 8 am with adult forms and weapons, boys light contact kickboxing and girls point fighting. Team Canada will definitely be a dominating force on Day 3 of competition of the World Karate Championships.

Time to squeeze a few more hours of sleep in! It's been tough to sleep....I've been nervous for all of our students! :-)

I've updated a few more pictures in our photo gallery. Enjoy!

Sempai Tammy

WKA Florida World Championships 2008 Day 1

Hello all!! Well the Opening Ceremonies and Day 1 of Eliminations/Competition are complete for this year's 2008 World Karate Championships. While we were indoors for the majority of the day, residents of Orlando, Florida were enjoying sunny, 80+ degree temperatures. The week-long competition, which is being held at Disneyland's Wide World of Sports complex, is an amazing venue. We are all very impressed with all that 'Disneyland' has done for the athletes and this year's World Championships.....even Mickey Mouse showed up at our Opening Ceremonies!

Enough of the 'chit chat'......I know everyone is anxious to hear how our students are doing in their competitions!

Alexa Littleton started our Team's first day of competition with two great performances in her weapons (Alexa competes with the Bo Staff) divisions. She is currently seeded 'first place' in both of those divisions and will be competing for Gold later in the week. She's very excited and pleased with her performances thus far. Way to go Alexa!

Katie Reid fought amazing in her Women's 18-34 years, -55 kg 'light contact' kickboxing division. Katie came so close to getting into the finals; in her final match, Katie fought World Champion Victoria Marcotte with alot of heart and really pressed Victoria in the final seconds of the match. Katie finished up the day with a well-earned bronze medal. We are very excited for her and very proud of the way she competed.

Florence Enns also had a good day today in the Women's Veteran's +35 years, +60 kg 'light contact' kickboxing division. Florence had a tough match against a competitor from Ireland who had amazing kicks. Florence kept pressing forward and fought her way to a Bronze medal. Way to go Florence!

Gilles Doiron had some amazing fights in his -70 kg 'light contact' kickboxing division. Gilles fought with alot of precision and speed and threw some pretty amazing 2 point head kicks which really put him ahead of his competitors. Gilles will be fighting for Gold later on in the week. We'll be cheering you on all the way Gilles!

Sempai Jeff Muir will also be going for Gold later this week in his Men's Veteran's +35 years, -85 kg 'light contact' kickboxing division. Sempai Jeff tired out his competitors by keeping constant pressure on them throughout each and every round. Sempai Jeff was clearly the 'best conditioned' athlete in his division. Way to go Sempai!

Our final student going for Gold later this week is Junior Black Belt Mitchell Triplett. Mitchell competed in the boy's 12 and under, -45 kg point fighting division today. Mitchell battled a few injuries over the past month or so, but nothing seemed to bother him today! Mitchell also competed on our Junior boy's point fighting Team.....they all fought amazing and will also be going for Gold this week as well. Way to go Mitchell. We look forward to your Team Fight and your individual Gold medal match on Thursday!

Sempai Shannon Grace, Sempai Stephanie Jones, Sempai Al Triplett and Sempai Murray Schumacher all had great fights today as well. We are proud of each and every one of you!

Tuesday's elimination competition day should be a long day as well. We are looking at close to 12 hours of competition!! We're very excited for all of our students (15 students from Bernardo Karate competing this year) and all of our members on Team Canada.

Team Canada has the largest number of competitors this year with Team England having the second most and Team Germany the third. We'll try to keep you posted on the medal counts as we go throughout the week. All finals (Gold Medal matches) will be completed on Thursday and Friday.

I have updated a few pictures from the Opening ceremonies and today's day of eliminations, which can be found on our website in our 'member's only' photo gallery. Please keep in mind our pictures are under copyright protection and cannot be copied or reproduced without explicit written approval. Thanks for your cooperation! I was unable to get any pictures of our Women fighters because I was in their rings coaching for most of the day. There are still quite a few pictures from Gilles Doiron's fights and some fun shots of our students and coaches. I hope you enjoy them. I'll be updating more pictures throughout the week.

That's all for today! Have to get some shut-eye and get ready for tomorrow's events.

Hope there's no snow in London!

Sempai Tammy Bernardo

Bernardo Karate would like to take this opportunity to congratulate Sempai Julia Campbell and Sempai Dan Coughlin on their recent engagement. Sempai Dan proposed to Sempai Julia on Sunday, November 2nd at the Grand Bend 2008 Black Belt Presentation Grading. The proposal brought several tears of joy and excitement to those who witnessed Dan's 'engagement ceremony' on stage. Sempai Julia was overwhelmed with joy; no one seemed to hear her response, but it was later confirmed that she did indeed say "YES" to Sempai Dan's proposal! :-)