Sixteen athletes from NOX Dojo ventured to Raleigh, NC for the AAU National Karate Championships to compete against over a thousand other athletes considered to be the best in the nation for AAU. The repeat of last year’s successes in terms of sheer number of medals eluded us this year yet the growth in skills surpassed all other years.

Held over the July long weekend from June 29th to July 1st, 2017, our team stretched themselves beyond their previous limits. This year a number of our athletes moved up to the extremely challenging black belt division where they competed against veteran international athletes. In addition, we also added a weapons division to the team.  Even with these new challenges, our athletes devoted their heart and soul into the challenges of competition. Without fail, every athlete represented Markham and NOX Dojo with dignity and poise. Enough so that bystanders would comment on the class in which we demonstrated ourselves. Even with these new hurdle heights we returned with eleven podium finishes.

Sean Wong (Over 45 Black Belt): Bronze Kata, Bronze Kumite
Shivon Dyson (Black Belt): Bronze Kata
Ethan Co (Advanced Kyu): Gold Kata, Silver Kobudo, Bronze Kumite
Nolan Chong (Advanced Kyu): Gold Kumite
Tiago Peisz (Intermediate Kyu): Bronze Kumite
Sydney Lublin (Intermediate Kyu): Bronze Kata, Bronze Kumite
Michaella Co (Beginner Kyu): Bronze Kumite

The rest of our team just missed the podium by a few positions resulting in a top 5 or top 10 finish for all athletes. Our last event of the season is the Junior Olympics this August in Detroit, Michigan. What we learned from Nationals will be used to improve our standings. Please stay tuned for its update.