Club joy at WAKO results (From Stourbridge News)

Club joy at WAKO results

Up-and-coming taekwondo students from Hagley enjoyed some impressive performances at the recent WAKO English Open International which was held in Stourbridge.

Louise and Stuart Evans came first and second respectively in their senior traditional forms categories, both of them adding this success to the ones achieved earlier in the year in similar style categories - most notably the British Taekwondo Championships titles.

The performance of the day came from Matthew Cartwright (pictured above) who competed in the adults sparring under-79kg black belt category for the first time.

Cartwright came away with second place, out-kicking his opponents on route to the final.

In his semi-final he defeated former champion Dave Hilton from Dudley Black Dragons by four points, but lost narrowly in the final to a fighter who has an enviable record at the open circuits at this weight category.

Also competing from the club were Lee Grazier, Gavin Barlow and Neil Wood who all performed well.

The tournament attracted competitors from numerous countries in a variety of martial arts styles.

Chief instructor John Swift said: "All of the participating students were excellent and are learning and developing more and more with each event.

"In particular Matt Cartwright trained exceptionally hard and made a remarkable impact in his first senior event."

John Swift currently teaches more than 400 students in north Worcestershire.

They train on Thursdays at Hagley Community Centre and Saturdays at Haybridge Sports Centre. For further details contact John on 01562 827437 or 07989 980155 or via the website www.taekwondo-schools.co.uk.