Karate siblings excel

FOR anyone who has a brother or sister, the phrase ‘sibling rivalry’ doesn’t quite capture the essence of what it actually means. The constant bickering and excessive taunts often used by WWE wrestlers often equate to bruised egos, and the more dominant sibling protesting his innocence, while his younger brother or sister ball their eyes out.

However, that’s where the Hansraj siblings, Shayur and Viashna differ, instead of fighting each other, they focus their efforts on fighting competitors on the karate mat and beating them. They are also both good chess players, which they said helps them in strategic moves. They have their Protea colours and both of them are world champions in their respective categories.

Shayur is the current Kofukan World champ in kata and kumite while his sister is the Kofukan World champ in kata. The duo recently competed in the elite international and KSA open karate champs where Shayur bagged three medals, a gold (for the team event), a silver (for kumite) and a bronze (for kata) while his sister took home two medals, a gold (for the team) and a bronze (for kata).

“As a brother I could not be prouder of my little sister. When we were younger we did fight but maybe not to the extent that some other siblings do,” the Northwood School pupil said.

His sister and Danville Park Girls’ High School pupil said one of her proudest moments was being awarded her Protea colours. “I used to watch my brother training and fighting and I wanted to do the same. I was too young at the time but I’ve always had the drive to represent my country and it’s fantastic to have been able to do that in two sporting codes,” she said.

While Shayur has represented KZN in chess and South Africa in Kofukan Karate, Viashna has earned her Protea colours for chess and for karate. No one can deny these siblings have a special place in sporting history and it can only get better.