Bromhof’s KJD Martial Arts Academy hosts successful junior championship
BROMHOF – Youngsters of dojang's across Gauteng competed in a junior championship at the KJD Martial Arts Academy.
With body punches and high kicks, taekwondo is an Olympic full-contact sport that is not for the faint-hearted.
On September 29, the KJD Martial Arts Academy hosted a junior’s championship in World Taekwondo Federation Olympic style.
Clubs from across Gauteng including the Centurion TKD, UTEG Vanderbijlpark, and the Kumgang Club Kimberley joined KJD academy for the tournament.
“We had a fantastic tournament. Our youngest competitor was four years old. The host was Grand Master Eun Woo Lee, a 9th Dan World Taekwondo Federation black belt and owner of the KJD club. Johan van der Bank from UTEG was the referee,” said KJD Martial Arts Academy’s Lorraine Lee.
She suggested that anyone wanting to learn how to protect themselves while getting a good cardio workout, learning this martial art may open a world of benefits to participants and their wellbeing.
“At KJD, we do not only teach the physical body but the spiritual one as well. We accept adults and children from four years old upwards, with the adult classes separate,” she said.
Lee elaborated on some of the benefits of taking up the martial art at an early age.
“We have also taught many children with ADHD and other physical and mental problems and we have assisted these children in learning how to concentrate, how to respect their families and teachers and how to grow their self-confidence and be able to communicate with others.
“We also teach them physical motor coordination and how to express themselves verbally.”
The academy recently moved to a new dojang at the Parkside Centre in Ostrich Street, Bromhof, and will host another championship for seniors and juniors on 24 November.
“More seniors will compete on 24 November and we would love to see non-members, especially youngsters, joining us for this so that they can learn the benefits of taking up this discipline.
“Taekwondo is a full-contact sport and there is lots of excitement during these champs. If you don’t fully understand what taekwondo is all about, come to take a look and you will see how fun it can be.”
The championship will start at 8am and finish late.
ALSO READ: Northwold fencer aims for Olympic Games after successful World Championships
