Local kickboxers to take on the world in championships

FOUR members of Glasnevin based kickboxing club Red Star will be flying the flag for Ireland this week.

Craig Tuite (14), Eliza Bluma (15), Dayna Walsh (14) and Robyn McDonnell (14) line out with the rest of the Irish national Kickboxing team as they take on the world’s best at the WAKO World Kickboxing championships for cadets and juniors from August 28 to September 3.

The championships iare known as the Olympics of Kickboxing, and boasts the greatest standard of all world bodies. 

Over 2,200 participants from 57 countries are expected to attend the event in CityWest and Fáilte Ireland says it will lead to a €1.7 million revenue boost for the city.

The four locals have trained exceptionally hard over the past four months in preparation for the event.

Having been selected by Kickboxing Ireland to be on the national panel, they had to meet strict training and competition criteria in order make the team. 

Their coach, Jon Mackey, says he is very happy with their work to date.

“Not many teens dedicated their summer holidays to training as hard as these guys did,” he added.

“They trained six times a week at our club and have progressed into dynamic little fighters.

“Our club is no stranger to international success on the European and world stage. These juniors are the next generation of elite international kickboxers. I’m very proud of their dedication to training and their attitude to the preparations.”

Team Ireland will have high hopes for the event after finishing second in the overall medal tables in the European Championships in 2015. The sport is really taking off in Ireland and President of Kickboxing Ireland, Roy Baker, is looking forward to this week’s contest.

“The hosting of this Junior and Cadet Championships for the first time in Ireland is a culmination of ten years of development and progression of the sport of kickboxing in Ireland,” he said.

“It has been made possible by the hard work and dedication of the current executive board and previous executive boards. This event has only materialised because of the support of state agencies like Fáilte Ireland.

“I am proud of what we have achieved to date and what we intend achieving in the future. The sport of kickboxing has been on an upward trajectory for the last ten years and the incremental increase in awareness and participation are testament to the work we do as a national governing body of the sport.

“We put our athletes at the forefront of everything we do and everything we intend to do in the future, as they are our future.”