Montgomery Catholic Preparatory School students Heather and
Peter Walski, along with their father Bill Walski, will represent the United
States in the World Martial Arts Games in London, England in October.
“I am really excited to be traveling to London,” said Peter.
“It’s going to be really cool meeting athletes from all over the world.”
The Walski family studies Shotokan karate, a discipline that
blends fundamental movements, forms, and sparring to develop physical and
mental fitness. While they have not been practicing for very long, these young
athletes quickly rose through the ranks at their dojo, Grandmaster Webb's
Karate and Fitness Fellowship of Christian Martial Arts Academy. Originally
intended to be a fun way to learn basic self-defense, the Walski family quickly
took to the different aspects of Shotokan Karate, and each one has a different
area they like the best. 7th grader Heather specializes in kata,
which is a set sequence of moves, like punches, kicks, jumps, and stances. 6th
grader Peter enjoys weapons, especially the bo staff, and Bill excels at hand-to-hand
sparring. At the World Martial Arts Games, Heather and Bill will be competing
in three events each and Peter will compete in four events.
Heather and Peter both admitted that karate was not
love-at-first-kick as they found the basic moves and repetitive kata sequences
to be boring. Both children have a background in gymnastics and soccer, and
their athletic conditioning and competitive natures helped to keep them engaged
throughout their karate practice. They caught on quickly to new concepts and were
able not only to master the basic skills but also to quickly learn new movements
and techniques. The turning point for each one of them came in their first competition,
where they both placed highly: Heather earned 1st in kata, 1st
in weapons, and 3rd in fighting and Peter placed 1st in
fighting.
“I was really nervous that I wasn’t going to do well,” said
Heather about her first competition. “But then I placed in three events, and it
boosted my confidence in my abilities.”
Twice a week, the Walski family trains at their local dojo
in Montgomery. Once a month, they travel to the main dojo in Ashland, Alabama for
an intense 7-hour training with their US National Team teammates. This is in
addition to their regular schedule of schoolwork and soccer practice.
The World Martial Arts Games will take place in London from
October 25 to October 27. Around 500 athletes of different ages and martial
arts disciplines from 20 countries from around the world will compete in events
that include kata demonstrations, grappling, sparring, and wood and brick
breaking.