Rieley Kalke (12yrs old) and Jorja St.Pierre (11yrs old) of the Provincial Martial Arts Salmon Arm team travelled to Calgary to compete at the Rocky Mountain Championships this past weekend. This was Kalke’s first tournament as a Junior Black Belt. She brought home a bronze medal in point sparring. Jorja St. Pierre, who is preparing to test for her junior black belt later this year, placed silver in both kata and point sparring. These girls only need to place at one more qualifying event to earn a spot on Team Canada and be able to compete at the World Championships in Las Vegas in June.
Fellow Shuswap martial artist Chris Evans, who is the Provincial Martial Arts instructor in Malakwa and trains at the Sicamous club with Sensei Holly Raczynski, travelled with his three daughters to Calgary to compete at the Rocky Mountain Martial Art Championships as well.
Related: Shuswap martial artists fight for medals in Western Canadian Championships
Sensei Chris won gold in both of his sparring divisions: men’s black belt 40+ in point fighting, and kickboxing. His daughters, Ella Suk, Natalia Suk, and Austyn Evans also all competed in forms and point sparring. They are all training hard in hopes to qualify onto Team Canada to compete at a World Championships being held in Las Vegas in June.
The Provincial Martial Arts runs programs in Sicamous, Malakwa, and Salmon Arm. Those interested in becoming a part of this team may come try out a free trial class, visit www.provincialmartialarts.com for details.
