I only recognised one chap who I competed against last year, a really nice fella from King's Lynn named Chris. Everyone else was a new face.
Gem's age group started before mine so I was able to watch and partner her and Danny for their techniques before moving off to my own ring.
Gem and I were disappointed when her centre judge kept rushing everyone through their introductions and saying "not to bother". The introductions are an important part of the performance, highlighting the competitor's etiquette for which they seemed to not be marked for at all. Kuk Sool Won is supposed to be a traditional martial art with etiquette and manners being an incredibly important part of that, it felt a little like tradition was not being adhered to that day which was disappointing.
Gemma didn't place for her form or her techniques, although I thought her form was far better than those she was competing against. She made a mistake on her first technique which I'm sure cost her a medal as she still scored high despite it. Danny also didn't place for forms or techniques but got Copper for sparring - a difficult task as some of those guys were even bigger than him!
My form - Cho Geup Hyung, went well, although I felt that I rushed it a little and it could have been better. My techniques went well too - Sohn Mohk Soo 3 & 9, and Eue Bohk Soo 5.
Last year I wasn't able to spar because of my recent eye surgery, but this year I thought I'd give it a try. Sparring is my least favourite aspect of Kuk Sool so I wasn't particularly bothered how well I did, but I took home the bronze medal. I actually think I did better than that and know I landed more hits than I was awarded and lost points when I wasn't touched (we have video evidence! Hahaha), but ultimately the judges can only score what they see. I did land a beautiful crescent kick to my opponent's head and I discovered afterwards that he used to train in Kung Fu for years before starting Kuk Sool, so I am pleased with how I did.
I received a gold medal for my form and my techniques got a bronze which surprised both me and Chris (who took silver) as I thought we were both better than the girl who won gold. I should have chucked a fancy throw in there rather than being technical as the judges seemed to like those. Oh well. Lesson learned.
Finally Gem got her opportunity to spar. Due to low numbers they mixed all three Blue belt adult age groups. She did extremely well and won Gold!
We spent the rest of the day partnering other Kuk Sool friends and treated ourselves to an official Kuk Sool Track suit each. The demo was amazing and getting to see so many Lowestoft and Halesworth Black belts promote was awesome! Then we enjoyed a Pizza Hut for dinner, returned to our hotel and travelled back the following morning.
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