Karate NS Achieves Success at 2023 US Open and North American Cup

We wanted to share with you some results from 2 International tournaments Karate Nova Scotia attended from April 5th to 9th, 2023 in Las Vegas, NV.

11 athletes went in total, accompanied by Mitch German as a coach.

The results were:

North American Cup – Results – 2 athletes, 1 medal

• Sean O’Neil – Silver Kumite Men’s -84kg
• Ryan O’Neil – 5th Men’s -75kg

US Open – Results – 11 athletes, 7 medals

• Boys 14-17 – Gold Elite junior team Kumite
• Sean O’Neil – Silver Kumite Men’s -84kg
• Ryan O’Neil – Silver Kumite Men’s -75kg
• Emmi German – Silver Kumite cadet -54kg
• Owen Jones – Bronze kumite cadet +70kg
• Serena MacRury – Bronze kumite cadet +70kg
• Evan Peddle – Bronze kumite junior -61kg

It is worth pointing out that if Sean and Ryan had got a gold medal at the North American cup, they would have qualified for the Pan Am Games. Sean lost his match 2-1. They will have another qualification chance at the Karate Pan Ams in May 2023, so based on these results they still have a great shot at making the Pan Am Games.

These results are really a testament to the work High Performance Coach Mitch German has been able to put in. Karate Nova Scotia’s athletes have shown a big difference in bringing back medals in competitions outside the Province since he took on this role.

The Sport Nova Scotia Podcast

This six-episode series hosts athletes and subject matter experts who will cover everything from body image and over-exercising to eating disorders, athlete-coach relationships, psychological maltreatment, training-life balance, and transitioning out of sport.

Drum Roll Please!! 2023 Game Games Results!

Karate participated for the first time in the 2023 Canada Games which were held Feb 18-25, 2023, Charlottetown, PEI; Ages 16-17 only.

Results – 9 athletes, 6 medals (tied 3rd overall in medal count by province)

• Gassan Alkurdi – Gold Kumite -61kg
• Evan Peddle – Silver Kumite -61kg
• Mikayla German – Bronze kumite -53kg
• Denise Thibault – Bronze kumite -59kg
• Dorian Thibault – Bronze kumite -68kg
• Saad Eldlio – Bronze kumite +68kg

2023 Nova Scotia Canada Games Team – Karate

History is being made as Karate will be represented for the first time in the Canada Games at the 2023 Winter Canada Games being held in February 2023. Proudly representing Nova Scotia are:

• Coach German
• Coach/Manager Fung-German
• SHABAD KAUR JUNIOR FEMALE KATA
• JACK BOUTILIER JUNIOR MALE KATA
• MIKAYLA GERMAN JUNIOR FEMALE KUMITE -53KG
• DENISE THIBAULT JUNIOR FEMALE KUMITE -59KG
• AARUSHI PATIL JUNIOR FEMALE KUMITE -+59KG
• EVAN PEDDLE JUNIOR MALE KUMITE -61KG
• GASSAN ALKURDI JUNIOR MALE KUMITE -61KG
• JACK BOUTILIER JUNIOR MALE KUMITE -68KG
• DORIAN THIBAULT JUNIOR MALE KUMITE -68KG
• SAAD ELDLIO JUNIOR MALE KUMITE +68KG

2022 KNS Team Nationals Success!

It has been a few years since everyone has gathered from across Canada to show off their karate skills! Karate NS is proud of our results and wish to congratulate not only the medal winners, but every athlete for their success. It takes a lot of work just to get there. The journey was long, and much of the success would not have been possible without the support of parents, coaches, officials, and many others! We congratulate Karate Canada, Nathaniel Besso (Karate NFLD President), and the army of volunteers who overcame many challenges and put on a great Nationals event that has generated great memories for all to cherish! Newfoundland thank you for your hospitality and great weather!

Here are the results from the 2022 Nationals:

• Sean O’Neil – Gold in Senior Male -84Kg
• Ryan O’Neil – Gold in Senior Male -75Kg
• Gassan Alkurdi – Gold in Junior Male -61Kg
• Isaac Davis – Silver in Youth Male -55Kg
• Jesse Niet – Bronze in U21 Female -50Kg
• Mikayla German – Bronze in Junior Female -53Kg
• Emmi German – Bronze in Cadet Female -47Kg
• Owen Jones – Bronze in Cadet Male +70Kg
• Jack Boutilier – Bronze in Cadet Male -63 Kg

Isaac and Gassan have both qualified for the Junior Pan Ams Championships in August, Gassan also qualifies for the Junior Worlds in October!

Time soon to take this experience, lessons learned, and start the cycle all over again for 2023!

Update: Owen Jones will be joining the Canadian team as well for the Junior Pan Ams in Mexico City. Our HPC and KNS Team Head Coach MitchGerman will also be heading to Mexico City as a Canadian Coach!

CASK Halifax Instructor Promotion!

Sensei Garrett Chase is excited to announce that CASK Halifax instructor, Michaela Peters, was promoted to the rank of ‘Nidan’ (2nd degree black belt) last night in Victoria BC.

Thank you, Nidan Michaela, for your hard work, dedicated leadership, and commitment to the Halifax school and students. Well done and well deserved!

Please join me him n congratulating Nidan Michaela on the CASK Karate Halifax facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/CASKKarateHFX

2022 KNS Team Heading to Nationals!

Did you miss us? Karate Nova Scotia is sending a contingent of 2 Officials, 28 Athletes and 9 support staff, including coaches, team manager, medical officer and president. The group heads out to St.Johhn’s, Newfoundland for the Karate National Championships being held July 1st to the 3rd. You can get more event details here!

We wish everyone luck! Do us proud!

2022 KNS AGM Results!

Great AGM tonight! Great turnout! Very appreciative of the support!

All the reports are available here: https://karatens.org/kns/annual-general-meetings/2022-agm-results

Minutes will be made available once complete.

The Executive Board welcomes two new Directors at Large, Doug Chetwynd and Ralph D`Entremont! Also returning as Secretary is Michaela Peters, and Maria Habchi as Athlete Director. They are joining the likes of Greg Da Ros (President), Shannon Doane (VP), Peg Mumford (Treasurer), Kevin Jones (Director at Large) … still one opening for a Director at Large .. should someone be interested (KNS Members), reach out! Now the work begins (continues ….) 

2022 KNS Annual General Meeting & Nomination Process

We hope everyone is enjoying summer! What better way to end summer than to have an Annual General Meeting!

This is to give notice to its members that on May 15th, Karate NS will be having its AGM via Zoom.  See the event details on the KNS website for all the info!

The AGM will be open for any registered member for 2022.  A meeting registration form will be made available the week of the AGM, and the Zoom link will be shared with you once you KNS membership is validated.

NOW on to nominees!  Each dojo has 2 voting members, these voting members are up to the dojo to decide.  The voting members can nominate an current member for any position on the board/executive, or even multiple (but nominee must choose one to accept if offered).

If any of the vacancies may be of interest to you, perhaps you could reach out to your sensei to see who the voting members will be and seek a nomination for a position.  The nomination process is on the event details page on the KNS website.

You do not have to be of any senior rank to be on KNS board/executive, you just need to be able to commit the time and energy.

As usual we hope to see a great turnout by our members,

Thanks

Greg Da Ros / KNS President

2023 Canada Games – Karate Nova Scotia Coach Selection!

Karate Nova Scotia is proud to present it’s Team Coach and Team Manager for the 2023 Canada Games. Mitchell German will be taking on the role of Head Coach, and San Fung-German will be taking on the role of Team Manager. Coach German is a past multi medalist athlete, both Nationally and Internationally. He has been coaching since 1995, and has been the head coach of the provincial team since 2002. Coach Fung-German, is also a past multi medalist athlete, Nationally and Internationally, and has been part of the coaching staff for the provincial team since 2005. Karate Nova Scotia’s athletes couldn’t be in better hands for karates first venture into the Canada Games. Congratulations to you both!

2022 Senior National Team Trials – KNS GOLD!

Congratulations Ryan O’Neil!!! Gold medal in -75kg at Karate Canada Team trials. Next stop, Pan Ams!! All the hard work does pay off! Congrat to Riley Deveau also on his performance and the work Coach German put in to ensure their success! We are all proud of the achievement! Watch all the action again: https://www.youtube.com/KarateCanada

2022 Senior National Team Trials – KNS Team

Karate Nova Scotia would like to wish Riley Deveau and Ryan O’Neil the best of luck at this weekend’s Karate Canada Team Trials. This weekend’s event (Feb 19-20, 2022) will help select athletes to represent Canada at Senior Pan Americans in May 2022. Riley competes on Saturday in the Male Kumite -67kg event starting at 7pm Atlantic Standard Time, and Ryan competes on Sunday in the Male Kumite -75kg event at 12 pm (noon) Atlantic Standard Time. They are being supported by Karate Nova Scotia’s High Performance Coach Mitchell German. Best of luck to all the competitors!

Live stream: https://www.youtube.com/KarateCanada

Schedule: https://www.sportdata.org/karate/dtm_timetables/6010.html…

Draws: https://www.sportdata.org/karate/set-online/veranstaltung_info_main.php?active_menu=calendar&vernr=6010&ver_info_action=catauslist#a_eventheadend

KNS Logo Survey

We have been looking at branding over the last year and are checking out the appetite for the following logos.  Please visit the survey and submit a vote.  We’ll take the feedback into consideration as we move forward.

https://qfreeaccountssjc1.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_29263oQVQiXALTU

KNS Strategic Direction Survey

We have decided to extend the deadline for the KNS Strategic Direction Survey to February 7th. If you have not already, we would like to encourage the karate community, to complete this survey, as it will help us create a Directional Document for Karate Nova Scotia over the coming years:

We really value your input, as we want to ensure Karate Nova Scotia is serving the needs of all it’s members.

Karate Nova Scotia (KNS) is in the process of developing a directional document that will support KNS in determining priorities, goals and outcomes that will develop an overarching strategic direction for the next 3 years. KNS is asking individuals in the membership to take 10-15 minutes to complete this survey.

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2021 Yarmouth Cup Results

The results are in from the submissions to the first Virtual Yarmouth Cup held in December, you can find all the winners here!!

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Karate Nova Scotia 2023 Canda Winter Games Coach & Team Manager – Call for  Applications!

2023 Canada Winter Games Head Coach & Team Manager Position Overview

Karate Nova Scotia is seeking two experienced, highly motivated, and passionate leaders to assume the roles of Female and Male Coach & Team Manager for the 2023 Canada Games team in Prince Edward Island.

Responsibilities:

• Work together along with Technical Director to create a team plan, including training camps, competitions, and athlete identification\selection.
• Ensure all club coaches and athletes are advised of all Canada Games age activities and training camps.
• Be knowledgeable on all aspects of the Canada Games technical package.
• Demonstrate principles of sportsmanship, fair play, and respect for rules.
• Monthly reporting to the Board of Directors.
• Dedicates time to training camps\events, both local and out of province.

These positions require commitments leading up to and including the 2023 Canada Games and require coaches with a true love and appreciation for Karate and understand the role that the Canada Games plays in the growth and development of Karate in the province.

Time requirements will include attending all team trainings (TBD) and the full second week (February 27th to March 5th, 2023) Canada Games Event

The Head Coach and Team Manager roles require shared functions as defined by the 2023 Canada Winter Games Karate Technical Package and titles will be assigned to the successful selected applicants by the Karate NS Board of Directors.

Coach & Team Manager Requirements:

• NCCP Competition Development Certified -OR- NCCP Competition Development Certified 90 days prior to the 2023 Canada Games (Nov 20, 2022)
• Criminal Records Check and Child Abuse Check
• First Aid certified
• Experience developing training plans and athlete performance tracking
• High level of communication and organization skills

These positions are volunteer with a possibility of minor honorariums and travel expenses to be paid.

Please submit a history of your Karate and coaching experience along with a short paragraph outlining your motivation to be part of the 2023 CWG coaching team to: td@karatens.org by Jan 31, 2022

The Coaches will be selected by the Karate NS BOD and will be based on the following criteria that will be put up for discussion:

• Coaching experience
• Leadership skills
• Analysis of Coaching Style and Technical Skills
• Availability for regular training camps, competition, and travel

Term: Feb 1st, 2022 – Mar 6th, 2023

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Karate Nova Scotia Provincial Team Coach – Senior/Junior Team – Application Deadline Sunday, October 10th, 2021!

Karate NS is seeking dynamic, motivated and effective individuals to fill the following NS Team coaching position. Duties are primarily focused on preparing our athletes for participation in Karate Canada’s Senior/Junior Nationals, and coaching athletes at said events.

Position: NS Team Coach, Karate NS Team
Term: October 2021 to August 2023

Duties:

• Event roles at Team Trainings and Nationals
  • Supports & coaches NS Team athletes at KC Nationals following High-Performance Coach’s directions
  • Oversees & coaches NS team athletes at National events
  • Attends Team training
  • Available for selected regional training sessions
• Available for all team trainings, and competitions in the 2021/22 and 2022/2023 seasons
• Strong commitment to the program’s operation and development

Supervision:  Responsible to the PSO’s Board of Directors through the High-Performance Coach and Technical Director.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience coaching athletes at provincial tournaments
• Willing to pursue or currently have NCCP Comp-Intro In-Training or higher certification or can attain this status by Nationals 2022. Priority given to coaches who are Comp-Dev certified, trained, and in-training.
• Demonstrated ability to communicate verbally and in written form
• Must have good administration, organizational and communication skills
• Completed Criminal Record Check/Vulnerable Persons Check

Honorarium: $30/day, all travel expenses related to NS Team duties

To Apply: Submit attached application via email to td@karatens.org by11:59pm Sunday, October 10th, 2021.

Please include your NCCP coach’s number.

Only those applicants selected for interviews will be contacted.

-Jeff Murphy
Technical Director
td@karatens.org

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2021 KNS Annual General Meeting Results

Karate NS hosted their first ever virtual AGM on August 29^th, 2021, 6:30-9pm. We had great representation with over 50% of the clubs in good standing!

All the standard reports were discussed and approved, we also approved our  new bylaws (with a few amendments to follow) for Karate NS!

All documents and minutes (coming soon) can be found at https://karatens.org/kns/annual-general-meetings/2021-agm-results/

The evening ended with a long overdue election due to the absence of a 2020 AGM, a result of the challenges of the pandemic.  We had a portion of the board who did not re-offer;  thanks to Matt Tippert and Matt Sullivan for their time on the board over the recent years; and special thanks to Milton Bourque, Thresa Griffin and Dave Griffin who have spent many many many years representing the members in various board roles.  We thank you all for your time, and hope that you continue to stay involved in the association in other ways.  You are all valued resources with lots of experience.

This election introduced us to leverage electronic anonymous voting.  This worked out very well!

Karate NS AGM Election Results:

1. President – Greg Da Ros
2. Vice-President – Shannon Doane
3. Treasurer – Peg Mumford
4. Secretary – Michaela Peters
5. Director at Large – Mark Doubleday
6. Director at Large – Rob Sweeney
7. Director at Large – Randy Roach
8. Director at Large – Kevin Jones
9. Athlete Director – Maria Habchi

Congrats to everyone!  Great to see all the new faces!  There is lots of work to do, a few weeks to regroup, then back at it!

For contact info and list of board members, support, staff, current committees, see https://karatens.org/kns/board-of-directors/

Feel free to reach out at any time!

Yours in Karate!
Greg Da Ros
President KNS

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2021 KNS Annual General Meeting & Nomination Process

We hope everyone is enjoying summer! What better way to end summer than to have an Annual General Meeting!

This is to give notice to its members that on August 29th, Karate NS will be having its AGM via Zoom.  See the event details on the KNS website for all the info!

Times have been challenging for all of us, and we missed 2020, so we felt the time was right to elect a new Executive and Board to see KNS through the next few years and continue to set plans for the future.

Due to the extended period of the current board, all members have served their mandate.  Some will look to be nominated to continue, while others have put in their time and are interested in other opportunities.

The AGM will be open for any registered member for 2021.  A meeting registration form will be made available the week of the AGM, and the Zoom link will be shared with you once you KNS membership is validated.

NOW on to nominees!  Each dojo has 2 voting members, these voting members are up to the dojo to decide.  The voting members can nominate an current member for any position on the board/executive, or even multiple (but nominee must choose one to accept if offered).

If any of the vacancies may be of interest to you, perhaps you could reach out to your sensei to see who the voting members will be and seek a nomination for a position.  The nomination process is on the event details page on the KNS website.

You do not have to be of any senior rank to be on KNS board/executive, you just need to be able to commit the time and energy.

As usual we hope to see a great turnout by our members,

Thanks

Greg Da Ros / KNS President

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2022 KNS Team Coaching Opportunites Coming Soon …

With the 2022 Nationals to be hosted in Newfoundland July 2022, the KNS Team program will have to be up and running early fall.  We will be looking for those interested in coaching for the 2022 season, keep an eye out for the Coach job description, it will:

• • • Be posted on the Karate Nova Scotia’s website;
    • Outline job duties, key responsibilities and performance criteria;
    • State the Karate Nova Scotia Provincial Team’s commitment to creating a fair, safe and open environment for participants;
    • Outline the Karate Nova Scotia Provincial Team’s expectations for coaches; and
    • Outline the Karate Nova Scotia Provincial Team’s thorough screening process.

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Karate Olympic GamesWe are fast approaching the most important moment in our history, the debut of our sport at the Olympic Games.

The success of Karate at the Games depends solely on all of us doing everything in our power to mobilize the Karate family as much as possible around the values of our sport to be displayed in Tokyo. The Olympic success of our sport requires our courage, perseverance and our ability to overcome adversities. 

We need you to share the actions that we are generating within our Olympic campaign, #KarateSpirit among your affiliates and followers on social media, as well as on all your platforms.

Antonio Espinós 
WKF President 

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KNS First Virtual Tournament Results!

Thank you to everyone who participated in our first virtual kata tournament All the judging is complete, and you can see all the kata video and results here:

https://youtu.be/prY9Yc4atjU

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COACH  NS – NCCP Multi Sport Virtual Learning

https://www.coachingns.com/nccp-online-virtual-learning

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ABUSE, HARASSMENT, BULLYING, DISCRIMINATION

The Canadian Sport Helpline was launched in March 2019 providing a safe place for victims and witnesses of harassment, abuse and discrimination to speak in confidence to a neutral third party and get the help they need.

This professional listening and referral service is available from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., seven days a week, by phone or text at 1-888-83SPORT (77678), and by email at info@abuse-free-sport.ca.

If you want to report a situation/individual or place a complaint you can do so to an independent third party safe sport officer (see Reporting section below).

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RETURN TO KARATE TRAINING – Update September 18, 2020

Good news for class sizes. The government announced today that effective October 1^st, the number of people allowed in a group without social distancing has increased from 10 to 50. Further details are in the email below, so our organization can start moving forward with the planning of Provincial Team workouts and tournaments.

If you have any questions, please contact Jeff Murphy at jeff-murphy@live.com.

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Career Opportunities!

KNS is pleased to announce that after a few years of working with Sports NS and  Canadian Sports Centre Atlantic, all the hard work has paid off!   

We are searching for a part-time Technical Director and a part-time High Performance Coach.  An application to one position does not prevent you from applying to the other should you feel you are qualified. 

We are excited for the outcome these roles!

You can get the job posting and contact info here  https://cscatlantic.ca/careers

Closing date is October 13, 2020

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RETURN TO KARATE TRAINING – Update July 28, 2020

As most of you are probably aware, as of July 31st it will become mandatory to wear non-medical masks in indoor places. We received clarification today in a Conference video with Dr. Strang as this new rule applies to indoor sports such as karate. Dr. Strang stated that masks need to be worn while entering and exiting the building, getting changed, etc. While doing the activity wearing the mask is not mandatory. If the participant can wear the mask while doing the activity it is recommended, but not mandatory. One thing to note is that those not doing the activity would have to wear a mask, like parents who may be picking up and/or watching.

The Return Play document has been updated with this information.

Click to access KNS%20Recommended%20Protocols%20Return%20To%20Karate.pdf

We hope this provides some clarification to all those operating indoor classes, but if you have any further questions please reach out to Jeff Murphy at jeff-murphy@live.com

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RETURN TO KARATE TRAINING – Update June 19, 2020

As many of you have probably already saw, the Nova Scotia Government has announced that they are “bursting the bubble” and allowing for larger gatherings. Here is how these changes impact karate training:

• Groups of 10 are allowed to train with each other with contact and no social distancing. It is recommended that if there is consistent programming, that training groups are identified and remain together for a 2 week period… as much as possible.

• Groups up to 50 can train together. If your group is larger than 10, but less than 50, then you make subgroups of 10 within the group of 50. Those groups of 10 must remain exclusive to each other, and can not intermingle with the other groups of 10 in a single training session. Contact and no social distancing is allowed within the groups of 10, and there needs to be a 2m distance between groups. The same recommendation exists as above, best practice is if there is consistent programming, that training groups are identified and remain together for a 2 week period… as much as possible.
• Please refer to Phase 4 of the Karate Return to Play document with more advice on how to operate during this time.

Link to protocols: https://karatens.org/wp-content/uploads/documents/KNS%20Recommended%20Protocols%20Return%20To%20Karate.pdf

If there any questions, please contact Jeff Murphy at jeff-murphy@live.com.

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RECOMMENDED PROTOCOLS FOR RETURN TO KARATE TRAINING

Karate NS formed a working group to put together the protocols so that some aspects of karate training could resume within our membership.  The group is comprised of:

• Jeff Murphy – Chair (Murphy’s Karate Academy)
• Pat Thompson (Sports NS)
• Kevin Jones (East Coast Wado Karate Club)
• David Griffin (Windsor Karate Club)
• Shannon Doane (SMU Shotokan Karate Club)
• Jason Fields (New Glasgow Karate Club)
• Greg Da Ros (Halifax Ryuseikan)

As a result of the support of Karate Canada, further research within the Provincial Guidelines and other sports within NS, we are pleased to announce that Sport Nova Scotia and the Provincial Ministry of Communities, Culture and Heritage have reviewed our submission; and they have indicated that our plan, Phase 1 reasonably demonstrates that the Nova Scotia Sport Guidelines will be met.

Planning can now begin to meet the Phase 1 recommendations.

For information, you may contact Karate NS’ “Return to Training” Chair Mr. Jeff  Murphy, at: jeff-murphy@live.com

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Yarmouth Challenge Cup Weekend (includes KNS Awards)!

The Yarmouth Challenge Cup is shaping up to be an action packed May 31st to June 1st!
Here is the “Official List” of Events:
•    May 31st, 7-9 PM Kumite Clinic ($10) – Canadian Team Member – Ryan O’Neil
•    May 31st, 7-9 PM Officials Clinic (Free) – WKF Referee Dave Griffin
•    June 1st, 8:30 AM – 5:30 PM Karate Challenge Cup
•    June 1st, 7-9 PM KNS Recognition Awards
Complete details will available on the events page of the KNS Website, and of course .. Facebook
Thanks for your time and please share with your fellow karateka, family, friends and fans!
Which DOJO will be crowned CHAMPIONS!!