Local winners of Fifteenth Karate Championships

Over the past weekend athletes from all seven Central American countries were at the City Center for the Fifteenth Karate Championships for the region. It was the first time that Belize was chosen to host the competition and according to athlete and vice president of the Belize Karate Federation, Leon Guild, the country was not prepared. Guild says they grabbed the opportunity anyway because if they waited for the perfect time, it might never come. The local athletes only managed to garner four bronze medals in the Female Team Kumite and Minus seventy-five kilogram Kumite categories. While that doesn’t sound like much, it is the first time that Belize won any medals at all. So the winners are proud of the achievement and see it as an indication that with more training, the gold is within reach. News Five spoke to the four medalists about this learning experience.

Leon Guild, Bronze Medalist, Minus 75 Kilogram Kumite Category

“What was strange for me was competing against other countries in my own country. It was off beat and uncomfortable because you know always when you’re playing in your own home court your family is there, your friends are there, the general public is there and they don’t know you personally but they know your face and they are expecting a lot from you.”

Myra Pinelo, Bronze Medalist, Female Team Kumite

“The feeling was very good because we are in our own country so we tried our best to get that medal. We got the bronze and for us it was like first.”

Delahnie Bain

“What do you think could have been done differently or better to win more than the bronze?”

Myra Pinelo

“More training, more dedication and more time to work as a team because we had little time to prepare as a team but I’m sure that next time we’re gonna do better.”

Kimberly Bowman, Bronze Medalist , Female Team Kumite

“The experience was excellent because getting to compete against other countries showed us what we are compared to them and shows what our level is. All the athletes from Belize have been persistent with training. We train very hard and I see possibilities with all of them for getting medals and not just us, we all did well.”

Anne Link, Bronze Medalist , Female Team Kumite

“It was exhilarating as any tournament for me. I mean to see competitors from Central America come in and compete against us, it’s always amazing to see the techniques they bring in and new ideas and that is what let us be able to improve in our own skills.”

Delahnie Bain

“Were you nervous going in?”

Anne Link

“I believe everyone was nervous. It’s a challenge but I believe for everyone to face this challenge, it’s a victory in itself.”

Leon Guild

“I’m satisfied with the way the team performed and I am captain of the national selection and like we said earlier, our team was fairly new. Most of our guys were new and they got their first international experience in this event and between the coaches and myself we got what we expected from first timers so we’re okay. And then normally Belize doesn’t win anything so this time to walk away with four bronze that’s really tremendous for us.”