The event, held in Bath, was attended by approximately seven hundred spectators, and included half time entertainment from Bath University dancing groups and a pre-event cheerleading display.

The first fight was between Nikos Konstanidis (ARUKBC) and James Boxall (Bath). Konstanidis counterpunched well against a determined opponent, landing a number of good shots to the head. In the end he was unlucky to only be awarded a draw by the judges.

The next three fights all went to Cambridge with wins for Julius Bušauskas (CUKBS), Daphne Tsalli (CUKBS) and Georgios Evangelinos (ARUKBC). Fighting against Bušauskas was Dom Parfitt, a Cambridge local (and CARISMA srudent during summer months) studying at Bath. Parfitt did well in the opening exchanges, troubling Bušauskas with some good punching combinations. As the fight went on however Bušauskas’ speed and kicking ability began to tell as he landed a series of impressive strikes to the head. Daphne Tsalli performed particularly well in what was her first fight, dominating her match throughout with some excellent punches. Evangelinos also did well in his fight against Robert Dinsey, Bath’s most experienced fighter. Dinsey worked hard but was mostly unable to find a way through Evangelinos guard and had no response to some excellent punching combinations.

Bath fought back however and won the next two fights against Cambridge kickboxers Tim Williamson (CUKBS) and Alex Elliott (CUKBS), both of whom were fighting for the first time. Williamson fought bravely but couldn’t quite do enough to take the decision against a good opponent. Taking on Elliott was Bath Captain Chris Harvey. Elliott struggled early on in the fight, finding it difficult to deal with the speed and movement of his more experienced opponent. He did have some good moments as the fight went on however, getting Harvey against the ropes on a number of occasions with some determined boxing. Unfortunately in the end that was not enough and the judges’ decision went the way of the Bath fighter.

Next in the ring was CUKBS vice-president Ollie Osunkunle (CUKBS), taking on Bath University Kickboxing Club Chairman André John. Osunkunle fought an impressive fight and emerged as the clear winner, with John unable to deal with his speed and power.

Last up for Cambridge was Alex Kaus (CUKBS), fighting against Ahmed Suleiman. This was a closely contested match with both fighters landing some good shots. In the end it was the Bath man who came out on top however, after doing just enough to secure the judges decision.

Overall the night was very successful for the Cambridge team; for the first time CUKBS and ARUKBC were joint against a third opponent and all fighters performed well and gaining valuable experience in the ring.

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Frank Gorringe:

Chris Webb:

Chris Kelly:

Alex Howard:

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The overall results are extremely encouraging:

Andrea Cristofaro(*): second
Andrew Gillham: winner
Carlos Virvez(*): second
Heidi Holmes: winner
Ian Chau: second
James Waddell: winner
Nas Salmi(*): second
Robin Turner: second
Sam Goldsheider: second

(*) people at their first kickboxing competition

CARISMA fighters showed once more to have a distinct style, good technique and all those qualities that a martial artist should have by definition: even those at their first experience entered competently the tournament and stood their ground with good performance.

Please have a look at the videos:

Andrea Cristofaro

Andrew Gilham

Carlos Virvez

Heidi Holmes

Ian Chau

James Waddell

Nas Salmi

Robin Turner

Sam GoldScheider

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Any comment is appreciated, as usual.

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University Championship 2009

CUKBS had large group of participants including people that just 10 days before were fighting in the Varsity match against Oxford: unfortunately though none of the Varsity winners could make this event. Other fighters representing CUKBS were: Heley Matthews, Leo Schwartz, Sam Goldsheider, Peter Stovall, Frank Gorringe, Dinike Jayamaha and Ian Chau: the last three fighting in their first competition.

The competition hosted over 200 fighters from university kickboxing clubs from around the country and it was a true challenge given the house rules: full contact was allowed to the body while controlled (light) contact was required for face strikes.

Massimo Gaetani, head coach for CARISMA and CUKBS commented: “I am extremely pleased of these results.  At this competition as well as during the Varsity match we demonstrated that superior technique is a winning factor. Now at our second year of collaboration I can see a great improvement in the performance of the individual members as well as a very strong motivation of the team as a whole.    We are already training toward next years competitions”

Leo Schwartz, CUKBS president, added: “We were extremely happy with the way CUKBS performed at the University Championships. All our fighters acquitted themselves with style and showed a lot of fighting spirit. Standing out was James Waddell’s devastating round-kicks to the head and spinning-back side kicks. Heidi also devastated two of her opponents in the first round with relentless combos resulting in two technical knockouts in her first two bouts! We were disappointed to find out that Frank after decimating his poor opponent with obviously superior technical skill was failed by the judges decision but are confident he will prove a fearsome opponent in future years. Finally all our boys in the 82kg and below category did fantastically, all reaching the semi-finals with a good combination of punching and kicking techniques executed in fluid combinations. Many thanks to all those who helped out, the future looks very promising for CUKBS”

We would like to thank Soren for the precious help in dealing with the organizers and support with the coaching, Chris for photos and driving and Bradley for the video filming.

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Rupert Goodway (on the right wearing black head guard) v Naoya Koda. Rupert here demonstrates superior technique and a nice repertoire of strikes managing to score many times with kicks to the head, including several axe kicks:

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Josh Jenkins (red gloves on the right) and Jack Ceadel.  The result is very close and Jack is winner.

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The Varsity 2009 Team

All of the 9 fighters (see picture above) demonstrated good round technical skills and fitness preparation, managing their energy well till the end of each fight. While Oxford based their strategy on sheer power and very basic techniques all Cambridge competitors, including some experiencing their first time in the ring, showed competent skill, well paced attacking and defending strategies and a good repertoire of strikes.

The show took place in the picturesque Cambridge Union Society, surrounded by a noisy crowd of supporters.  It started with a demo fight between Andrew Gilham representing CARISMA and Robin Turner representing Anglia Ruskin University Kickboxing Club, although also a CARISMA member himself.  Both Andrew and Robin performed well and finished in a draw.

The Varsity fights were:

Chris Webb v James Richardson: Chris winner
Josh Jenkins v Jack Ceadel: Jack winner
Veronika Kantorovich v Cicely Marshall: Veronica winner
Heidi Holmes v Alison Evans: Alison winner

Rupert Goodway v Naoya Koda: Rupert winner
James Waddell v Zac Etheridge: Zac winner
Peter Stovall v Borna Guevel: Borna winner
Sam Goldscheider v Jeff Douglass: Jeff winner
Ollie Okunsunle v Andrew Duniec: Ollie winner

Varsity 2009

We would like to thank everybody who helped with the show: Chris, Colin and Duncan with photography, James with video footage, and the great support from Cambridge University students, CUKBS, CARISMA and ARKBC members that contributed to turn this event into a show (see picture below).  Training is not over as CUKBS will be at the 2009 University Championship in Canterbury (Kent).

Leo Schwartz, President of CUKBS commented: “The 3rd Annual Varsity Tournament was a great success! The crowd were fantastic and the fights were some of the best we’ve ever had at Varsity, professional and well-matched. We unfortunately lost 5-4 but it was neck and neck all the way to the end. Congratulations to all who took part and many thanks to everyone who made it possible. Watch this space for info on videos and pictures, coming soon.”

Please keep an eye on this link for the next posts about pictures and videos.  If you were at the show please leave a comment with your impressions, just click below.

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Hi kickboxers,

as you know, our annual Varsity kickboxing match is to be held at the Union 7pm this friday (20th). Come support your friends and raise the roof in what is going to be an action packed night. £5 for non-members, £4 for CUKBS members and free to union members. The line up is as follows:

Demo
Chris Webb v James Richardson
Josh Jenkins v Jack Ceadel
Veronika Kantorovich v Cicely Marshall
Rupert Goodway v Naoya Koda

(interval)

James Waddell v Zac Etheridge
Pete Stovall v Borna Guevel
Sam Goldscheider v Andy Douglass
Heidi Holmes v Alison Evans
Ollie Okunsunle v Andrew Duniec

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