CARRBROOK’S Jack Wilson was a double medallist at the 21st International Tournament Karate WKF – Central Europe Open, which was held in Bydgoszcz, Poland.
The 18-year-old struck gold in the individual male kata senior/adult class and silver in the individual Under-21 male kata.
Jack had to perform six rounds of kata, three for each category in the international competition which featured 900 competitors from 15 countries.
He has been training hard with his coach, sensei Julian Mallalieu in preparation for more international competitions and is also continuing to attend the monthly England squad training sessions.
Jack also attends training sessions with his club, Tameside Karate and is extremely grateful for the unwavering support he receives from all its members.
The medal success in Poland came weeks after Jack won a bronze in the Paris Open Karate Championship in his first adult karate competition as he became the first English competitor to win a medal in the kata section at the event since 2007.
And it was a measure of the progress of Jack, one of the youngest competitors in the event, that in the bronze medal match he beat Tran Fabien, the 10 times French champion who was also third in both the European and World Championships.
It was a great start to 2022 which promises to be an exciting year for Jack who is planning to compete worldwide in the World Karate Federation’s 1-Series in places like Austria, Egypt and China when he will be aiming to pick up points to qualify for the sport’s Premier League which features the world’s top 100 players.
Jack, a former pupil at Buckton Vale Primary and Mossley Hollins High School, was only six years of age when he took up karate and secured his black belt aged 10.
He has been a member of the Copley Recreation Centre-based Tameside Karate where he has been coached since the age of nine by Senseis Sharon and Julian Mallalieu.
Jack, who receives no external funding, is always grateful for any sponsorship towards the estimated £8,000 needed to compete this year. Anybody able to help can email his coaches at genbukaiuk@yahoo.com