Young Manjimup pair score martial arts medals at State comp

Two up-and-coming martial artists from Manjimup showed off their talents, winning multiple medals at a Statewide competition last month. Yellow belts Charlie McNeven and Ollie McKeon-Young, both 10, of ATI Martial Arts Manjimup, travelled to Perth to compete in the ATI Martial Arts Club Championships across October 29 and 30. The competition is one of the biggest in the State with clubs from all over the metropolitan area, as well as regional centres such as Broome, Albany and Bunbury all attending. The Friday consisted of technical events such as board-breaking, jumping front kicks and Poomsae, which is a sequence of pre-arranged movements, with the Saturday used for sparring. Charlie took home a gold, silver and bronze, with Ollie also claiming a gold, two silvers and a bronze. The students’ coach Tristan Johnston said he was amazed by the results of the two boys in their first competition. “They handled themselves with the maturity of seasoned competitors, even though they have only had seven months training and managed to produce podium winning results,” he said. “I’m very excited for the future of ATI martial Arts Manjimup after such an amazing result at the club’s first tournament.” As a former State, national and international champion, Johnston said he looked forward to coaching students to the same level of competition success.