A grading was held at our large events dojo Kearsley Academy for all the students training in the North Manchester, Bury, Bolton and Lancashire Dojos. There were plenty of students booked in by Sensei’s for grades ranging from the first full grade of orange belt right up to 1st Kyu brown belt with 2 white stripes.

It was a fantastic day with plenty of support from our Instructor team. This was Katie Wilson Sensei’s first grading as a Sensei and Sempai Michelle’s first time helping out on the front. Welcome to the team ladies.

We are delighted to report that all students passed their grading and some very high marks were awarded on the day, especially among the brown belts. We were so impressed with the standard throughout all the grade groups. We appreciate the effort and courage it takes to come for grading and are proud of you all.

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.

The APP has now been updated with your new grades. (Thank you Helen Sensei) and here are just a few of the photos taken on the day:

Your photos will be ready to collect in classes next week.

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

Mia Ridehaugh - Mia has spent the last few weeks working really hard on her karate. She had already passed her Kihon and Kata sections and did brilliantly in the kumite. Much more fire and spirit than last time. Keep up the excellent work Mia and well done.

Esme, Ezra and Ryan Smith - What an excellent display of karate from this dedicated family. Outstanding performances from all three students. Esme in particular as improved immensely. we are so pleased to have you guys training and progressing with us. You are setting the standards we want in our club. It’s also wonderful to see families training and achieving together, pushing each other and reaching goals. Well done.

Harry, Max and Andy Guest - The improvement from all three of these students is tremendous. The effort they put in at the grading was second to none. They all worked so hard. Andy and the boys are so good at kumite in particular, but they are clearly working hard to tidy up the rest of their karate. Excellent grading fellas keep up the amazing work.

Barbara Celinska - What an exceptional student Barbara is. Powerful and graceful at the same time. There are no weak areas in Barbara’s karate. She is going to be an outstanding Black Belt. She clearly pays attention to all the small details and that’s how you go from being good to great. Keep up the great work Barbara.

Two New 1st Kyu’s -

James Rigby and McKenzie Lamont from the Tottington and Holcombe Brook Dojos both successfully passed their 1st kyu and were really made to work for it. The lads are good friends and this really does help them keep each other going throughout these challenging gradings. James and McKenzie have always been such promising students right from the beginning. Both are now starting to fulfil their potential and put in strong performances at the grading. James is really powerful and works so hard. McKenzie has a natural ability when it comes to the sparring and is always impressive. They both have their strengths and areas to improve and I am sure it won’t be long before these two are outstanding Black Belts. They are a pleasure to teach and I can’t wait to get them ready! Well done fellas.

Huge thank you to everyone involved in making this event a success.

The next Club Kyu grading at Kearlsey will be held on: Sunday 17th September.