Karate clan title titans

By Marc McGowan and Stuart Teather
CASEY has once again proved to be a breeding ground for junior karate stars with locals picking up a swag of medals at the recent Australian Karate Federation National Championships in Adelaide.
Nine-year-old Nic Borchard and 11-year-olds Vincent Damaso and Ngaheretia Kingi were among the local fighters to bring home medals from the meet.
Nic, from Hampton Park, won back-to-back national kata titles as well as a pair of bronze medals in the kumite and team kata, while his eight-year-old sister, Brooke, won the eight and nine-year-old girls’ kata event, her first national title.
Kata is a Japanese word describing detailed choreographed patterns of movements – practised either solo or in pairs – while kumite is sparring against an opponent.
Nic’s and Brooke’s older brother, Corey, 14, also competed at the national showcase.
The Narre Warren South P-12 College students are now preparing for Scottish Grand Master Shihan Tommy Morris’ annual four-day elite karate course next month.
Morris and the trio’s sensei at Kimekai Karate Dojo, Marco Mazzanti, will then assess them to decide whether they are promoted from their respective belts.
The Borchard siblings’ mother, Kathy, said it would be a testing time for her children.
“They’ve done all the hard work, but it’s pretty tough and they’ve all got pressure on them because Tommy Morris only comes once a year,” she said.
Another Hampton Park local, Ngaheretia Kingi, won silver in the 11-and-under kumite at the National Championships, almost completing a double after winning the event the previous year.
Eleven-year-old Ngaheretia, from Kilberry Valley Primary School, trains at the Shukokai Dojo in Dandenong with respected sensei Ennio Anselmi, and has had a run of success in recent times.
She placed second at this year’s Victorian Open and also picked up a silver at the Australian Open, along with making her second successive state team.
She started karate at age seven, training alongside her three sisters in the sport.
Ngaheretia’s older sister, 13-year-old Kiana, also competed at the National Championships, and came home with a bronze medal.
Karate is a family affair at the Kingi household, with mum Sharina encouraging her children to get into the sport.
“It’s just really good for self-defence, it’s peace of mind when they are teenagers, they’ll be able to look after themselves,” she said.
Cranbourne resident Vincent Damaso picked up a bronze medal in the 12-13 years kata at his first National Championships, capping a remarkable rise since joining Kimekai Karate 19 months ago.
It was an impressive effort against 16 of the country’s best fighters in the division, and the young gun attributed his success to his instructors at Kimekai Karate.
Vincent has gone from strength to strength since beginning competition karate in February.
His results include second place at the Melbourne Open in July, and fourth in both the kata and kumite at the Australian Open in April.
Vincent’s father, Levi, said his son was nervous heading into the championships but did everyone proud.
“All the senseis are saying that he’s a natural – he hasn’t done it for long and he’s already competing at a national level,” he said.
“He was a bit nervous, he was going against a two-time National champion and Oceania champion, but he was able to perform very well in his Kata.”
Levi said Vincent was hoping to compete at the World Championships next year, but there were no definite plans.