Griffith karate competitors were kicking butts and raking in the medals at the National Australian Kyokushin Karate Association Championships.
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Karate disciples from the RMA dojo dominated the non-contact ladder, taking out the first, second, and third place spots at the tournament in Sydney.
It was a glorious moment for Jack Evans, who defeated all challengers in his division and returned to Griffith as the newly crowned Australian champion.
"It was a pretty special moment for us, taking out the first second and third spots," Mr Evans said.
It was persistence paying off for Mr Evans, who narrowly missed out on the gold medal last year after breaking a rib during at the 2018 national championships.
However he's come back with a vengeance this year, taking out the Victorian championships and now the Australian heavyweight championships.
Mr Evans' sparring partner Tony Sampson earned his share of the glory when he took out the silver medal.
"It's a pretty good feeling to take home all the medals with your training partners," Mr Sampson said.
James Tyrell is fairly new to the tournament scene, but he managed to surprise himself by taking out the bronze medal.
"I thought the competition was going to be crazy, and it was crazy," Mr Tyrell said.
"I didn't expect to walk away with a medal."
A major highlight of the tournament was when Wyatt Carter won gold medal for the 8-9 year-old heavyweight division, despite weighing in at only 34 kilograms.
Nobody turned up to fight in the mid-weight contact division, and so Wyatt took on the heavyweight kids and won against all odds.
Some of his opponents were a good 15 kilograms heavier than Wyatt, and one of them was two belt levels above him, and yet Wyatt took on all-comers and emerged triumphant.
"It felt really good," Wyatt said.
Wyatt's victory comes as no surprise to his sensei Frank Cirillo, who takes the view that "if size mattered, elephants would rule the world".
Wyatt's dad Phil Carter said he was proud of his son for having the courage to throw his hat in the ring.
"He shows pure heart at every tournament," Mr Carter said.
"He's always willing to get on the mat and give it a crack."
Hannah Mitchell took out another medal for the 13-15 age bracket, adding to her considerable collection.
She's been learning karate for ten years, and she says she's enjoyed every minute of it.
"It's really fun and there's a lot of people I've made friends with," Hannah said.
"It's a really nice environment to hang around in."
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RMA's karate disciples are already back on the mats and training their fists for the next big upcoming tournament.
The Riverina Kyokushin Karate Championships will be held at October 19 at the Exies Bagtown Inn.
The categories will be non-contact, padded-contact, and knockdown karate. Those interested in competing can fill in a form at the RMA dojo.
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