South Manchester Grading Results - 17th September

We were so pleased to be able to book back in at the National Taekwondo Centre, one of the best Martial Arts training facilities in the UK. We held a grading for our students training in the South Manchester, Cheshire and Stockport areas and looked at students right up to the grade of Nidan.

It was a fantastic day with plenty of support from our Instructor team. It was the very first time a large grading for most of our lower grades and you all performed brilliantly.

We are delighted to report that the vast majority of students passed their grading with only a couple being asked to come back and retake a section.

We’d like to thank the parents for their support and co-operation on the day and everyone who helped out. It is a true team effort and we cannot make a successful event without you.

It was also Karen Sensei’s last grading as an Instructor. We want to take this opportunity to thank her for all she has done to promote karate and develop the students of the Handforth area. She has been a loyal and much loved Instructor of ours for almost ten years and we will miss her warmth and cheerful nature at senior class.

There were so many excellent individual performances including rare-double grade - Luke Barnett from the Handforth dojo. He was promoted straight to red belt.

The APP has now been updated with your new grades. We have also updated our Black Belt Roll of Honour to include our 4 new shodans and 1 new nidan.

The following students have reached the level of Brown Belt which takes many years of dedication.

Eimaan and Jalal Kaleem, Caitlin Lowe, Emma Paisley-Begg and Stelios Anastasiadis were all awarded their 3rd Kyu Brown Belts after being assessed by the panel. All did brilliantly and were made to work hard. Mia Ridehaugh put in a good performance but has been asked to work on her kumite. I am sure she will come back stronger in the next couple of months. Don’t give up Mia, you have passed 66% of the grading, make sure you finish it.

Brothers Giacomo and Salvatore Tognarelli successfully passed their 2nd Kyu and 1st Kyu. Both boys have strong karate and beautiful teachnique. They are well on their way to getting their black belt in the very near future, keep up the excellent work.

4 New Black Belts

Claire Chaffer, Danny Chaffer and Patrick Chaffer all began their karate journey together after Zoe had already been training for a little while. Fast forward a few years (and the rude interruption of Covid!) and we have another full family of Black Belts! This is only the third time we have seen this - Team Withington were the first, Team Dolan were second and now Team Chaffer complete the TREBLE! All supporting one another, achieving great things together. Claire, Danny and Patrick have all made tremendous improvement in the run up to the grading and were so determined on the day. We were impressed with all three of you. Your combinations and kumite were absolutely solid. The Kata section proved a challenge, however; cool heads and the benefit of experience thankfully prevailed. Claire in particular has shown the great spirit required, battling back from ill health, gaining some momentum in her training and putting in a strong, fearless performance on the day. We are so happy for you and proud that you represent our Club. What a lovely family, we hope you continue to enjoy your karate journey together and keep up the great work.

Danika Wood - Shodan

Danika has got her Black Belt after training from the age of 4! We are so pleased for her and proud of the way she has come back so quickly and with such resilience and determination. Danika passed her combinations and Kata sections at the April Dan grading with very respectable marks, but was unlucky in the kumite and had a few tricky opponents. It just wasn’t her day in the end. We invited her the South Manchester grading to see if she had made the required improvement and it really was like watching a completely different person. She came straight out looking sharp and focused. She showed the fighting spiritwe asked for and landed some great techniques pretty much straight away. Her movement had improved and she no longer looked afraid to be in there. Her control was excellent and she looked outwardly confident (even if she may have been a bit terrified inside). A very well deserved black belts for such a lovely and polite young lady. She was so happy and so relieved to get her belt. It was hard earned and well deserved. Even some of the best of us have had to do it twice! You are in good company don’t worry. I am so pleased for Danika who now joins her sister Kirsten in the Black Belt club. Mum next…… come on Caroline!

1 New Nidan

Alex Moriarty is now on her second stint here at Red Tiger. Training in her early teens almost every single day. She reached her Shodan in record time and was living and breathing karate. Alex was one of the hardest workers we’ve ever had. Always red faced, always giving you 110%. She achieved everything there was to achieve at the time and did all her in her own tenacious style! Fast-forward a few years and now she’s back training with the same fearlessness and tenacity. Alex is the exact same girl we all knew and loved! She works just as hard as ever, she’s slotted right back in as if she’s never been away. She’s quickly earned the respect of those around her (who wouldn’t remember her first time around) by just trying SO SO incredibly hard.

She attempted her Nidan in April and passed both her Kihon and Kata sections easily. Her marks for Kata were easily some of the best received on the day by the panel. Nerves, pressure and tension can sometimes take over in the sparring and ultimately it ended up being a very upsetting and frustrating day for her. Now, we wouldn’t be doing our job as examiners if we see somebody in front of us who is wholly talented and capable of so much, not quite perform the way we believe they can. I know she has been cross with us but in the last two months Alex has dedicated all her free time to working on everything we have asked her to. She’s calmed down, worked on her movement and made remarkable progress in such a short space of time.

I hope that she felt better on Saturday, she looked more comfortable, less rigid and more confident. She landed some excellent techniques and counters. She dictated the movement in some of her rounds and as the rounds went on, she was more able to relax and react rather than forcing things, overtrying and missing the target. Alex was so delighted to receive her Nidan, she got the loudest cheer on the day and you could see that an enormous weight was lifted right in that moment. The examiners team are also proud that she came back stronger and proved to us that she could do it.

I feel that Alex is a karateka for life. It’s in her, she loves it and is brilliant at it. The only person who doesn’t believe in you, is you. And that’s a shame. To you, I say this; do not let the fact that you had to complete this is two parts diminish this exceptional and extraordinary achievement. To come back and do what you have deserves the respect and admiration of everyone. It must be extremely hard to come back after a big break and re-learn everything again. YOU DID THAT. We are grateful to have you here, you are passionate about karate and set a wonderful example to others. You are truly deserving and should be proud to call yourself a Nidan at Red Tiger. We don’t just give them away here. Here, they are earned. I hope you go on to do more and more. You have everything it takes and the resilient personality to get you there!

From an organisers point of view I just want to say thanks so much to Helen Dolan Sensei who came over and did all the paperwork so that we could have a full panel. That was kind of you to give up a sunny afternoon and support the Club.

The next South Manchester grading is Saturday 23rd Spetmber.