The young people from Suceava from the “He Pai” Club Suceava won an impressive number of medals – Cotidianul Crai nou

> The athletes competed in the Thao Quyen, synchronous Thao Quyen and Song Luyen events

During March 23-24, at the “Elisabeta Lipa” Multipurpose Hall, in Botoşani, the National Qwan Ki Do Championship for children (7-12 years) and juniors (13-15 years) took place, as I told you informed in a previous edition.

Organized by the Romanian Martial Arts Federation – Qwan Ki Do Department, the event, held under the auspices of the National Sports Agency, involved the efforts of the Botoşani County Martial Arts Association, the “Dao” and “Sinh Dau” Clubs, from Botoşani, with the support of the City Hall Botoşani Municipality and Botoşani County Sports Directorate.

This edition of the championship brought together the participation of an impressive number of athletes, 681, aged between 7 and 15, representing 29 clubs from 9 counties of the country. 186 athletes from 6 clubs participated from Suceava county.

The current edition of the championship benefited, in accordance with the excellent organization, from several moments of maximum spectacularity given by the presentation of a symbolic “Dragon Dance” – the representative of the chivalrous spirit -, but also from the demonstrative exercises performed by European and world champions in Qwan Ki Do.

In the following lines, Vo Su Ovidiu Zegrea, black belt 4 Dang, under whose guidance the athletes of the “He Pai” club complete their training in the martial art of Qwan Ki Do, was kind enough to present the results to the readers of the newspaper “Crai nou” the participation of his students in this edition of the national championship for children and juniors.

“The Suceava club “He Pai” was in first place both in terms of participation and the number of awards won by its athletes: 86 athletes aged between 6 and 15 years old won 65 medals: 9 first places, 23 first places II and 33 places III.

As in previous editions, the “He Pai” club had the largest number of participants. Also, Suceava county participated with the most athletes, 186 from 6 clubs: two from Suceava, and one each from Fălticeni, Rădăuţi, Câmpulung and Marginea.

It was a large-scale competition, with a high technical level, especially in the categories with experienced athletes, where our children confirmed and ranked on the podium, as expected.

We also had some surprises, children who were at their first participation and mobilized themselves in an exemplary way, achieving very good executions, appreciated by the judges and the audience present in the hall.

With or without medals, we all returned stronger, more determined and aware of what we have to improve in the future.

In martial arts, the practitioner’s most important competition is with himself, with his limits, with his trials, with his fears, with the motivation to continue and with all the challenges that a passion that not many understand gives him. We try to instill in students this spirit of self-improvement and progress with small and safe steps, trying to avoid attachment to medals or trophies, which only reveal a level reached at a given moment in a hierarchy established according to some strict rules. For this reason, for us, all children who continue practicing martial arts are champions and are appreciated for the perseverance, will and seriousness they show.

Competitive training is only a small part of what Qwan Ki Do encompasses. We try to achieve it as thoroughly as possible without looking at the competition as an end in itself, but as a means of verification and progress.

We thank the organizers, the Romanian Martial Arts Federation, the Romanian Qwan Ki Do Federation, the clubs from Botoşani, the referees and all those involved in making this special event happen!

Congratulations to all the participants and thanks to the parents for their trust and support!”.