Latest News
Dan Grading Success
15 Nov 2021
Leeds Shotokan are delighted to announce the recent dan grading success of Shaho Mahmood and Ronan Mascarenhas.
Under the watchful gaze of Sensei Frank Brennan 8th Dan and Sensei Garry Harford 8th Dan, Ronan was successful in achieving his Shodan (1st Dan), and Shaho managed to achieve the grade of Nidan (2nd Dan).
Both have worked incredibly hard for their achievements and have shown the dedication and determination required to achieve their goals.
Everyone at Leeds Shotokan are very proud of you both!
KUGB Student and Youth Nationals
07 Nov 2021
The final two competitions of 2021 were held at Queens Park Spots Centre in Chesterfield on the 7th of November.
This year saw the National Youth Championships and National Students Championships run side by side. Because of this it meant that a few of our competitors could enter multiple categories and get more time on the mat than usual.
The small Leeds Shotokan team saw Libby Vernon enter her strongest competition showing this year as she continues to improve and build her confidence in both the Youth and Student the Kumite. It was also fantastic to see Mustafa Younes put his mitts on for his first taste of National Competition in the boys Kumite.
It was the duo of Jade Stapleton Smith and Luciano Zanuni who dominated the day though, between them taking the gold medal in every event they could enter.
Jade came out on top in the final of the Student Championship and Luciano took gold in the Youth category. And they fought side by side to take the gold medal in the Students Team Kumite, an extra challenging day for them given that they had to start every match an ippon down due to not having a 3rd fighter.
As ever we are very proud of everyone who goes above and beyond to compete in these championships. They are long but rewarding days and we hope to continue to grow our competition squad in the new year.
GOLD – Male Team Kumite – Student Nationals – Leeds Shotokan
GOLD – Male Senior Kumite – Student Nationals – Jade Stapleton-Smith
GOLD – Male Junior Kumite – Youth Nationals – Luciano Zanuni
SILVER – Male Senior Kumite – Student Nationals – Luciano Zanuni
BRONZE – Male Junior Kumite – Youth Nationals – Jade Stapleton-Smith
KUGB Northern Regions 2021
24 Oct 2021
The KUGB Northern Region championships took place in Sunderland, and it proved to be a fantastic day for Leeds Shotokan.
The event sees some of the best competitors in the country compete alongside some newer competitors hoping to gain valuable experience. It is a great opportunity to see some of the best Karate in the country go head to head.
Ethan Armstrong returned to form after a disappointing Shotokan Cup outing to take the Senior Male Kumite in style. He followed this up by leading the Senior male team to glory alongside Luciano Zanuni, Jade Stapleton-Smith and Nathan Brady. This was a particularly excellent achievement as it marked the 5th year in a row that Leeds Shotokan have been crowned champions of the Northern Region.
Luciano and Jade renewed their friendly rivalry in the final of the junior male kumite with Luci coming out on top on this occasion after an excellent Gyaku Tsuki punch.
Libby Vernon entered a strong display in the Junior Female Kumite battling through a couple of rounds to earn a well-deserved bronze medal. Alison Sherridan, competing in an event of this size for the first time, gained fantastic experience as she works towards her black belt grading, picking up a bronze medal in the Senior Female Kumite in the process.
It was, however, Serena Matyas Sarri who was the Leeds star of the day. Serena entered her first competition with Leeds Shotokan at the National Championships a few months ago, and despite losing in the first round of both events, gained fantastic experience and a determination to work hard. Over the next few months Serena has dedicated herself to training, completing private lessons most weeks as she works hard to improve her Karate. This improvement was fully on display just a few months later at the Northern Regions where she fought and defeated some fantastic fighters on her way to a sliver medal in the Girls Kumite 10-11 years. Her day wasn’t finished there though having made her way to the children’s brown belt kata final where her excellent performance of Bassai Dai was enough to take the title.
The day was rounded off perfectly when Luciano Zanuni was awarded the Randy Williams Memorial Trophy for best overall competitor. The trophy, previously held by Ethan Armstrong, has a special place in Leeds Shotokan as it honours the late, great Sensei Randy Williams. Sensei, who was Chief Instructor at Leeds Shotokan for many years, sadly passed away in 2012 so it is especially moving for the trophy to come back with another of his students.
Results
GOLD – Leeds Shotokan – Male Team Kumite
GOLD – Ethan Armstrong – Senior Male Kumite
GOLD – Luciano Zanuni – Junior Male Kumite
GOLD – Serena Matyas Sarri – Children’s Brown Belt Kata
SILVER – Jade Stapleton-Smith – Junior Male Kumite
SILVER – Serena Matyas Sarri – Girls Kumite 10-11 Years
BRONZE – Alison Sherridan – Senior Female Kumite
BRONZE – Libby Vernon – Junior Female Kumite
KUGB Shotokan Cup 2021
03 Oct 2021
The busy competition schedule continued as Leeds Shotokan sent a small group of competitors to the KUGB Shotokan Cup. The Shotokan Cup is the British individual championships and only allows black and brown belts to compete, so the standard is especially high.
The day was a mixed bag for Leeds Shotokan with some exceptional performances but one or two were below their usual high standards. In the main though we were very impressed with the determination and attitude of all of our competitors.
Full results below
GOLD – Luciano Zanuni – Junior Male Kumite
SILVER – Sensei Caroline McGrath – Senior Female Kumite
SILVER – Jade Stapleton-Smith – Junior Male Kumite
BRONZE – Serena Matyas Sarri – Girls Kumite 10-11 years
KUGB National Championships 2021
04 Sep 2021
On Saturday 4th September a small squad of determined Leeds Shotokan students attended the KUGB National Championships in Nottingham, England.
The Nationals has long been the flagship event of the KUGB calendar but had an extra special feeling as it was the first competition in the calendar for a whopping 18 months!
Despite the small squad of competitors LSKC performed fantastically well and claimed a medal haul that many significantly larger clubs would be proud of!
Serena Matyas Sarri showed great bravery in her first competition for Leeds Shotokan. Her spirit and attitude impressed Sensei but most impressive is her continued application and desire to keep improving in every training session.
Arthur Turner claimed an excellent bronze medal in the Boys Kumite, having narrowly been edged out in the semi final by the eventual champion. This was Arthurs best showing at a competition and to do it on the National stage is incredibly impressive.
Luciano Zanuni and Jade Stapleton-Smith renewed their ongoing, and friendly, rivalry as they met each other in the final of the Junior Kumite. Luciano had a particularly difficult journey to the final having to beat a world champion in the quarter final, and a European champion in the semi final. It was Jade, however, who triumphed on this occasion in an incredibly close fight. These two have clearly picked up where they left off and continue to be an inspiration to all at the club.
Sensei Caroline McGrath battled her way to the final as she attempted to defend the Senior Female Kumite national title she won all the way back in 2019. On this occasion Sensei Caroline had to settle for the silver medal after a gruelling final.
In the Senior Male Kumite Ethan Armstrong stormed to the National title scoring a fantastic Ippon and then holding on for the win. This was Ethan’s first National title as a senior following on from dominating the Junior events for many years. This also completes the set for Ethan who has now been crowned the Senior Male Individual champion at World, European, and National level.
The final event of the day saw the Leeds Shotokan Male Kumite team claim the silver medal. Leeds were the reigning champions in the event and almost had to settle for bronze had it not been for a extremely close victory against a young, but talented Kirkby team. The final was another close affair which ended in a draw with an excellent team from the excellent Malvern dojo. The final fight off ultimately proved one too many for Ethan meaning we had to settle for the silver medal. It really was a fantastic final, and performance all day with Ethan, Jade and Luciano all fighting brilliantly well all day.
With the events over that didn’t mean the end of the trophies for Leeds Shotokan. Jade Stapleton-Smith was awarded the Derek Langham Trophy for most outstanding Junior competitor and Ethan Armstrong was awarded the Sensei Enoeda Trophy for most outstanding senior competitor.
Sensei Ryan would like to congratulate all who competed, and say a big thank you to Sensei Martin, and Sensei Caroline for their help in training, and on the day in preparing our competitors.
Leeds Shotokan Karate Club Kyu Grading
25 Jul 2021
On 25th July Leeds Shotokan students travelled to York Elite’s dojo at the Railway Institute to take part in training and grading with Sensei Garry Harford 8th Dan.
The grading always follows a demanding session, and is always a very nervous day for those attempting to grade for their next belt. Sensei was very impressed with the attitude and application of the students, especially given how long they had to train online for.
Sensei Ryan was extremely proud of everyone but especially proud of those students who graded for the first time. Remember that it is all the work that is put in beforehand, both in the dojo and online, that ensures you can perform to your full potential in the grading and competitions. That is why training as much as possible, and in the correct way will ensure that all students get the most out of themselves.
The full list of students who graded is below.
Lukas Hylton – 1st Kyu
Esme Devine – 1st Kyu
Reece Harrison – 2nd Kyu
Serena Matya Sarri – 2nd Kyu
John Timperley – 4th Kyu
Stavroula Angoura – 6th Kyu
Sam Corcione – 8th Kyu
Oliver Brack – 9th Kyu
Malachy Brack – 9th Kyu
Awais Farooq – 9th Kyu
Sensei Caroline
Sensei Caroline
Sensei Caroline McGrath Nominated for Leeds Sports Award
27 May 2021
Leeds Shotokan Karate Club are extremely proud to announce that our very own Sensei Caroline McGrath has been nominated for a prestigious Leeds Sport Award.
Sensei Caroline is nominated in the Coach - Participation category which celebrates coaches at grass roots level. Sensei is being recognised for her fantastic efforts both in the dojo, online, and in the competition arena where she has recently been selected for the KUGB England Squad for the 21st time!
The event is always a prestigious one with other nominees including Leeds sports royalty such as Marcelo Bielsa, Kalvin Phillips, and Georgia Taylor-Brown.
Unfortunately this years event has to take place socially distanced so there will be no awards ceremony at Leeds Arena. The awards will be broadcast on Leeds TV so make sure you are tuned in!
We are very lucky and very proud to have Sensei Caroline as one of our instructors, and we cant wait to celebrate her achievements, in person, soon!
Leeds Shotokan Karate Club Kyu Grading
13 Dec 2020
Leeds Shotokan Karate Club managed to hold the eagerly anticipated and long awaited first grading of the year. Due to the coronavirus pandemic the grading, originally scheduled for March, was cancelled on more than one occasion much to the frustration of the students who had worked so hard online and in the dojo.
Sensei Garry Harford 8th Dan visited the dojo on Sunday 13th December to asses our kyu grades for their next belt.
In order to comply with all COVID regulations the grading was a little different to what we are used to. Unfortunately there was no session beforehand and each grading group was very small.
Despite the challenges faced all of the students rose to the occasion with some excellent performances. Particular praise must go to Stravroula Angoura and John Timperley who have made vast improvements this year and are now at a fantastically high standard for their grade.
Sensei Ryan would like to take the opportunity now to thank everyone from near and far who have supported the club through this difficult year. Your commitment and dedication whilst having very little to work towards has been inspiring. It is this level of application and drive for self-improvement which is part of the very foundation of Karate.
1st Kyu – Alison Sherridan
2nd Kyu – John Pinder
2nd Kyu – Lukas Hylton
2nd Kyu – Maya Sharma
3rd Kyu – Mustafa Younes
3rd Kyu – Elsie Pinder
3rd Kyu – Serena Matyas Sari
5th Kyu – John Timperley
7th Kyu – Stravroula Angoura
9th Kyu – Keith Morton
9th Kyu – Torrin Morton
9th Kyu – Adella Morton
9th Kyu – James Trentini