‘Karate Kids’ eye US, Italy after smashing success in France
All members of the private team won a medal each in France and they now hope to strike gold in the US and Italy.
PETALING JAYA: Fresh off their stunning success in a French tournament, a private Malaysian karate team, dubbed the “Karate Kids”, hopes to strike gold in the US and Italy as well.
Team spokesman Minalochuni Pathmanathan said they are trying to raise funds to compete in tournaments in the US and Italy.
Minalochuni is president of the International Okinawan Shorin-Ryu Sei-bu-kan Karate Do Association of Malaysia which manages the team. She said it had not been easy raising funds for the group in the past but hoped their performance in France would open some doors.
“We plan to participate in a tournament in the US on July 2-7, and another in Italy on Nov 3-6.
“It’s not going to be easy to raise funds for these tournaments, but we’re applying to the government and several companies and people who may want to help,” she told FMT.
The group is not affiliated with the Malaysian Karate Federation, which is the governing body of the sport in Malaysia. However, Minalochuni says the group is registered with the sports ministry.
The team had gone to Paris on credit, extended by a local travel agency, and made headlines after securing a solid haul of medals: every member of the team won at least one medal each.
This included what might be the country’s first gold medal in a global meet which was won by 17-year-old Nivashini Sivaraman in the kata category for the 15-17 age group.
Minalochuni said the team’s performance showed they were no flash in the pan, and hoped they would receive more funds and sponsorships.
To attend the French tournament, the nine-member team could only raise about RM18,000, but needed four times that amount.
Team coach Shachiidanantha Pathmanathan said they hoped to open their own dojo (martial arts centre). At present, the team trains at a nearby futsal court or community hall in Taman Sri Manja, Petaling Jaya. Members of the team come from Puchong, Subang and Kajang.
“It would be safer and more comfortable for our students to train in our own dojo, because the facility would have padded mats on the floor designed to absorb the impact of a fall,” said Shachiidanantha.
Team member Mugeshvaran V Ganesh said they could create more karate champions by having their own dojo.
“We can have more students and provide detailed training programmes for each of them. We would have a dedicated place to invest all our time into creating more future champions,” Mugeshvaran said.
Paveedra Devi, another team member, said they were looking at potential locations. “We are still deciding but hopefully in a month or two, we will open our dojo.”
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She added that the whole team was grateful for the outpouring of support and donations the team had received since their return from France.