Students from Ely & Witchford Tang Soo Do started their 2026 competition season with another good performance at this year’s WTSDA Great Britain National Championship in Nottingham, 25th April.
Leading the results for the Dan (black belt) divisions were Mr Will Dockerill and Ms Laura Vanhulle (a previous Gup Grand Champion) who impressively picked up trophies in all three of their individual Cho Dan categories, 1st’s in weapons and hyungs as well as 3rds in sparring. Our other Dan grade students showed particular strength in the sparring category with Mr Jakub Ozog (E Dan) picking up a strong 2nd place while Miss Emily Rutherford, Mr Stuart Rutherford and Mr Franciszek Tomczyk all achieved 3rd place results.
Philippa Collins lead the way for our Gup (coloured belt) students with an impressive 1st place in weapons. Gerardo Ruiz picked up a 2nd in sparring and 3rd in hyungs and Albert Haynes picked up a 2nd in hyungs in his first ever competition.
Both Will and Philippa now go on to join the rest of the GBTSDA competition team and attend the WTSDA World Championships in July taking place in Chicago USA.
As usual the club students and instructors were also involved with being judges, time and score keepers in addition to competing so for many it became a very long, but productive day.
Final tally for the day was 5 x 1sts, 2 x 2nds, 7 x 3rds and a chocolate bar (for being score keeper on the most productive ring of the day!)
| Name | Grade | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Albert Haynes | 2nd Gup | Hyungs | 3rd |
| Gerardo Ruiz | 1st Gup | Sparring | 2nd |
| Weapons | 3rd | ||
| Philippa Collins | 1st Gup | Weapons | 1st |
| Franciszek Tomczyk | Cho Dan Bo | Sparring | 3rd |
| Laura Vanhulle | Cho Dan | Sparring | 3rd |
| Hyungs | 1st | ||
| Weapons | 1st | ||
| Will Dockerill | Cho Dan | Sparring | 3rd |
| Hyungs | 1st | ||
| Weapons | 1st | ||
| Stuart Rutherford | Cho Dan | Sparring | 3rd |
| Emily Rutherford | Cho Dan | Sparring | 3rd |
| Jakub Ozog | E Dan | Sparring | 2nd |
