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Favorite Quote: |
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"Be yourself... Be original. The original is always worth more than the copy"-- Author Unknown |
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Martial Arts Olympics |
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Sammy won TWO GOLD MEDALS at the 2008 Martial Arts Olympics in St.Petersburg, Russia, one for forms and one for weapons. The "Extreme" Martial Arts Demo Team was also awarded a gold medal. For more information about the Martial Arts Olympics, visit imacusa.net. Photos and videos are posted on this site. |
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WKA World Championships |
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Sammy won a perfect FIVE GOLD MEDALS at the 2009 WKA World Championships in Huelva, Spain out of five divisions. A fun trip and very successful !!! |
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January 2010 --
"Lonestar Open"
When we last visited Texas for the Lonestar Open last August it was 94 degrees. No such luck this time. It was 45 during the day and under 40 degrees at night. Didn't really need to leave New York for this cold weather!!!
What makes it all worth it is when the promoter goes out of his way to make you feel at home. Greg Beaver gives it his best and makes sure that everyone is happy that they came. The tournament always starts on time, there are always enough judges and there are mats at every ring.
This year I moved up to the older 12-13 year old division and its always tougher when you are the youngest in an older division. However, I felt really good about all of my new forms and even though I had only practiced once with my new music, I was very happy with the way it worked out.
I finished with one first place (in Traditional Weapons) and four second places out of five divisions. In the Grand Championships I was really feeling good, but a slight bobble of the bo cost me. I got two 9.9's and three 9.8's and lost by one 1/100th. But I don't feel bad. When you have tough competition you have to turn it up and go for it.
I have to say that I am not a big fan of the new rule changes. In the overall grands, the finals are now 17 and under, where it used to be 13 and under. All things being equal, beating a bigger, stronger, more imposing 17 year old will be tough for us 12 year olds, let alone the 9 or 10 year olds. But we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.
For now, it was nice to get the first competition under my belt.
Hi to Sean (pictured on the left) and James, and their parents who traveled for several hours to see me compete and get the feel of a NASKA competition. Hope to see you at more competitions and to hear about your progress. Nice to meet people who I have only previously met through my web site.
Next stop is Ontario California...and hopefully some warm weather. |
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February 2010 --
"Compete Nationals"
We went Califonia looking for warm weather and to escape snowy New York and the weather was great. Except for the long plane flight, this is usually a very nice tournament.
All of the usual girls showed up, Gabby, Jessy, Amanda and Mackensi and just about all of us won at least one division. I was fortunate to win two divisions, Extreme Weapons and Creative Forms. I broke out a new Creative Form and it was good enough for a win.
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March 2010 --
"Amerikick Internationals"
After two flights across the country it was nice to take a 2 1/2 hour drive to the tournament. We went to Philadelphia early so that we could tour the "Liberty Bell" and "Independence Hall." It was a beautiful day and we were lucky to go that day because it soon turned cold and by the end of the weekend there was a downpour.
I was happy to see that Amerikick joined the evergrowing group that provided mats to for the extreme divisions and runoffs. So thanks to Mark Russo and Bob Leiker for that.
I had a real good competition. I was feeling strong and fresh, as I didn't have to make that long flight. So I competed in 7 divisions out of 8 and won 6 divisions, with one second place as well. Amanda proved she is the dominant force in Traditional Forms as she won that division. I also won both of the "creative/musical/extreme 13 and under" Grand Championships, forms and weapons.
After the competition it was off to Amanda's house. I watched Amanda's soccer team win their game 2-1 and Amanda played great. Next was a great dinner, dessert at Rita's ices and a drive home in the rain.
The tournaments come quickly now, just about every other week for a while. So no time to rest... time to train for Ocean State.
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April 2010 --
"Ocean State Grand Nationals"
This tournament is usually held in the tournament hotel and there are usually no mats for the daytime eliminations and runoffs. This year, the tournament was moved to a temporary location and although there were cement floors, there were mats at all rings, which is always a welcome site.
Another welcome site was Aidan (see photo on left), a young student from Bustos Karate in Plainview New York, where I also train. He is a Brown Belt and did great, finishing in First Place in three underbelt divisions and flashing some great skills.
Unfortunately, on Friday night, my good friend Amanda broke her toe during continuous fighting and it took her out of Saturdays Competition. She had been dominating the Traditional Forms division but was unable to compete. However, she was at ringside to support her friends, and that was great.
I had a very good weekend. I finished first in three divisions, Musical Weapons, Musical forms and Creative Forms, and second in Extreme Weapons and Traditional Weapons.
I won the 13 and under Creative/Musical/Extreme Forms Grand Championship and was on stage at the nightime finals for the fourth year in a row !!
The schedule is tough this year. with three competitions over 6 weeks. Next stop is an international trip to Quebec Canada. Its usually fun and I am looking forward to it.
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April 2010 --
"Quebec Open"
This tournament is the only one of the NASKA tournaments which is outside of the United States, which means the food menus and everything is is in french and we pay in Canadian Dollars.
This tournamnet is known for its fabulous nightime show which attracts about 5,000 local spectators who wait each year for this event. This years show was no different. I was also fortunate to be part of the show. First, I was chosen along with several others to perform the opening demonstration to get the crowd charged up. I also competed in the "17 and under creative/musical/extreme forms finals" for the third tournament in a row.
I had another very good weekend. I finished first in three divisions, Musical Weapons, Musical forms and Creative Forms. I also won the "13 and under creative/musical/extreme forms" Grand Championship for the third tournament in a row.
The weather was brisk , but nice and the food was good too. Next year I hope to take a tour of Old Quebec City, which I did 5 years ago.
I was also happy that my good friend Amanda's broken toe didn't prevent her from competing in the Traditional Forms division and winning the Grand Championship. The photo on the left was taken at Quebec International Airport as we were leaving...with our "Grand Championship" trophies, having had another fun and succesful weekend.
Looking forward to Daytona Beach..ah sounds so good !!
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May 2010 --
"Gator Nationals"
This tournament is known for its fantastic weather and great fun. For the second year in a row, the weather was unbelievably beautiful. We arrived on Thursday and spent three hours on the beach-- right outside the tournament hotel. Had a great dinner and rested for the tournament.
As always the tournament was great. It started on time both days. The facility is very nice with alot of space. There are mats at every ring which is always appreciated.
I won Extreme Weapons on Friday and Creative Forms on Saturday. No Grand Championships this time but you can't win them all.
We ate King Crab legs and shrimp, spent time on the beach every day, saw Dolphins right off of the beach and there was the Ferris wheel, Slingshot ride, Bar-B-Q and hanging out with friends. A really nice weekend.
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June 2010 --
"New England Open"
This tournament is run by Joe Greenhalgh, who really puts 110% into the tournament. Every year he tries to add something special to the tournament. Last year it was "superforms" and this year it was the "professional divisions." So it was another fun weekend. I used the "professional" division to experiment with a new trick that I thought might be ready to go into my form-- but i found out that it wasn't. nevertheless it was the perfect place to give it a try, since there was really nothing at risk.
I finished first Musical Weapons and Creative Forms for the second straight tournament, as well as second place in two other divisions.
I was happy that my friend Aidan (see Ocean State above) from Busto's Karate in Plainview, New York (see links page) was able to make the trip and he did real well, winning 3 of his 4 underbelt divisions. He is going to be a real force when he reaches the black belt division in a year or two.
This is a really tough stretch, with tournaments just about every two weeks. Next is AKA Bluegrass in Kentucky and then the US Open right after that. Time to sharpen up those forms and take it to the next level.
No matter what, I always give more than 100%... I always give 110%.
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June 2010 --
"AKA/Bluegrass Nationals"
This tournament has always been a good one for me. When it was run by the late Ken Eubanks, I was fortunate enough as a "green belt" to perform by invitation of Mr. Eubanks at the night time show (see video on this site). Last year I won double grands (two Grand Championships) for the first time at this tournament. This year, I was fortunate to do it again. Three first place finishes and three second place finishes, followed by Grand Championshhip wins in both the CMX Open Weapons and Open Forms Divisions. What a great way to head into the US Open.
I also got to spend alot of time with my friends (see photo on left), starting with the NASKA Awards Dinner on Thursday night, where I received my award for earning FOUR World Championships in 2009. |
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July 2010 --
"US Open"
This tournament is the "Super Bowl" of NASKA karate tournaments. It is the biggest tournament of the year, attended by over 2,600 competitors from 33 countries. I was proud to represent Team Prorank and The State of New York.
Its all top competitors goal to get on stage at the US Open. As a member of Team Prorank, our demo team had made it on stage in the nightime show, and was included in the ESPN broadcast and DVD for the last three years.
The tournament has a different feeling than all of the others. There are more competitors who show up for just this one tournament than any other. Some are very good and its a shame that they can't do all of the hectic and expensive travelling that the NASKA circuit requires.
I trained very hard for the two weeks before the tournament because I knew that all five of my divisions were going to be on one day instead of two. There runoffs were also going to be held on the same day and the tournament was scheduled to start at 12 noon instead of the usual 5 or 6 pm. So I knew that conditioning and endurance would help make a difference.
I had a good Friday, winning three divisions and placing second in two others. I won the musical forms, musical weapons and creative forms divisions and then went on to win the CMX Forms Grand Championship. I was hoping that this would be good enough to get an invite to compete on stage on Saturday night at the ISKA "Night of Champions." Winning on Friday, even a Grand Championship does not mean a guarantee to perform on stage, since the "Night of Champions" has nothing to do with the NASKA Tournament.
I was happy to learn that I was invited to compete against Danny Etkin and Jacob Pinto, two very tough competitors and good friends. Danny went first, Jacob second and I went last. When the scoring was in, Jacob had 9.7, 9.7, 9.7, 9.9, 9.9, 9.9 & 9.9. I received scores of 9.9, 9.9, 9.9, 9.8, 9.7, 9.8 & 9.7. Dropping the high and low scores, Jacob and I were tied. The first tiebreaker is to add back the highs an lows but since we both had the same high and low score, we were still tied. The next tiebreaker is to match the judges "choice" to the competitor. Three judges thought I should win but four judges chose Jacob and so Jacob won by 1/100th of a point in the third tiebreaker. Couldn't get closer or more exciting to that. Congrats to Jacob and to Danny too. We all had a great time.
A special "shout out" to Tahna, who is done competing this year but has ambitions which will take her her to great things. We will miss you this year.
After the tournament it was office to Universal Studios with Jackson, Sami, Sarah and Amanda and then Seaworld with Danny. A little rest and recreation at the Hard Rock pool, and then back to training in New York. Next stop is Maryland for the US Capitol Classics.
Special thanks to all of you great people who cheered me on on Friday during the competition in the runoffs for the Grand Championship and on Saturday night at "The Night of Champions." You are all inspiring. Thanks too to those of you who came up to me, took photos and provided kind words, like my new friend Zack, pictured to the left. I hope that I inspire you as much as you inspire me.
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July 2010 --
"US Capitol Classics"
This tournament has been held in Virginia for many years but this year, for the first time it was held in National Harbor, Maryland, and what a beautiful place it was. Right on the shores of the Potomac River, the Gaylord hotle was hugh and beautiful. There were great restaurants and as always, a great host in Master Dennis Brown.
It was a tough week for me leading up to the tournament. I severely twisted my ankle the Monday before the tournament and had to compete with a tightly wrapped ankle. I also caught a 48 hour virus on Tuesday and was still feeling weak on Friday night. So with no practice for a week , very little strength and a painful ankle, my goal was...well...just to show up.
I managed to win the musical forms division on Friday night and finished second in three other divisions. Then on Saturday I won the Traditional Weapons division and went on to win the Traditional Weapons Grand Championship. So all in all it was a good weekend, with two firsts, three seconds and one Grand Championship.
It was a fun weekend and I am looking forward to going back to the tournament next year.
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August 2010 --
"Dixieland Nationals"
Though I hadn't planned on attending this tournament, it turned out to be a fun tournament and a good chance to spend time with my friends and competitors in a less intnese setting.
This was my first time at this tournamnet which was much smaller than other NASKA tournaments but pretty good overall. Only the travelling was rough. We were the first to arrive on Thursday at 10:30 in the morning and we left for home at 3:30 am, making it pretty tiring.
Some of the "regular" NASKA competitors didn't make the trip and I missed seeing them but there was still enough NASKA and local competitors to make it interesting. I was fortunate to win five of my six divisions (Extreme Weapons, Musical Weapons, Extreme Forms, Musical Forms and Creative Forms) with a second place finish in Traditional Weapons.
I also won "Double Grands" for the third time this year, winning the "13 and under" CMX Weapons and CMX Forms Grand Championships.
Its a quick rest until the next competition, but fortunately, next weeks competition is in New York City so its only an hour drive to the tournamment. |
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August 2010 --
"Twin Towers Nationals"
As the competition season winds down, it was nice to have a competition in my own back yard, especially after travelling to North Carolina just last week.
My friend Sami Suddeth stayed with us this weekend and so we had time to be together. It was her sixteenth birthday too, so happy birthday Sami.
While walking in New York, on the way to the tournament, we spotted Elmo on the street and we "mugged" him for a photo --- Erika, me and Sami !! he was a good sport. Then it was off to the tournament.
Bad news to start. Jacob Pinto did some crazy tricking in the New York City Subways and hurt his foot. He didn't compete but stayed all weekend to cheer us on.
It was a good tournament for me, with five more first place finishes (Extreme Weapons, Musical Weapons, Extreme Forms, Musical Forms and Creative Forms) and a second place finish in Traditional Weapons.
I also won "Double Grands" for the fourth time this year, winning the "13 and under" CMX Weapons and CMX Forms Grand Championships.
In my home town, it was also nice to win the overall youths weapons "Grand Championship" on the night time stage. Thanks to everyone who came to see me in New York and cheered me on.
Its been a long and hard two weeks and school starts soon, so I am looking forward to a little rest. |
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Competition News 
