Westside kickboxing clubs wins a large haul of medals

THE recent success of Westside Kickboxing Club's hosting of the national San Shou Championships means a similar event will be held in Athlone again in early September. At the recent competition, held at St Peter's Sports Hall in Parnell Square, the Athlone-based Westside club took a staggering 14 gold and 12 silver medals. And when one considers the club has only been in operation for ten months, it adds further weight to the impact Westside Kick-Boxing Club has made on Ireland's martial arts scene in recent months. Not only did the club claim 26 medals at the San Shou Championships, but they also boasted the widely-acclaimed tournament's prized Best Fighter Award, in 16 year-old Offaly native Keith Hamilton. Speaking to the Westmeath Independent this week, Chief Instructor and Second Dan, Aaron McGrath (also the club founder), said the recent medal haul in the San Shou Championships was a further boost to Athlone's martial arts scene. "It was a fantastic achievement to take so many medals. We specialise in the art of Mugendo, but train out students in various forms of martial arts, including San Shou, and the reaction of people to the club has been amazing. I didn't expect to have anywhere near the current number of 40 students at this stage. Its popularity has just been amazing, and to win so many medals at a prestigious national championships is a major boost to our members," said the Athlone native. As a direct result of Keith Hamilton's Best Fighter Award, Athlone has been awarded another national championships in September, and at that event Aaron hopes to have even more young fighters involved. "We had 22 involved in the San Shou Championships, but I'd expect to give more people a chance in September. We could have up to 32 taking part," said McGrath. "We had under-18s and over-18s competing at the championships, and the results have really put us on the map. At the next event in September, we'll have fighters from all across the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, too." Mugendo uses a system of energy flow which, incorporated with simple movements, can be devastatingly effective, and it uses simple street fighting techniques. Sanshou, meanwhile, is a martial art which was originally developed by the Chinese military based upon the intense study and practices of traditional Kung Fu and modern combat fighting techniques. It combines full-contact kick-boxing, which include punches and kicks, with wrestling, take-downs, throws, sweeps, kick catches, and in some competitions, even elbow and knee strikes.