Region 2 Grading at Haywards Heath

8 May 2011

Master Adam Goward (6th Duan) instructing the class prior to grading

On Sunday 8 May students arrived at the Dolphin Leisure Centre, Haywards Heath in Sussex to attend the senior belt class instructed by Master Adam Goward (6th Duan).

An hour later more students arrived who were due to take their grading/upgrading examinations after a one hour lesson. The grading exams were administered by Master Adam Goward (6th Duan), assisted by Master Tina Matania (4th Duan). Mr Shawn Feltham (2nd Duan) conducted. Well done to everyone who participated and took their examinations and special congratulations to our youngest students who passed their exams on the day (age 6 upwards) - you showed good spirit.

A young 3rd Ji (blue striped belt) student sparring with
duan grade Russell Jones. Observed by the top table.

Some advice from Instructor Master Tina Matania (Epsom Club, Surrey)

Remember to keep practicing your Mandarin Chinese terminology as it's always more difficult to remember when you're under pressure in an examination situation.

It's always a good idea to think through the technique before answering if you are not sure. For example, consider which section/area first - is it high (siang), middle (chorng) or low (sia)? Then is it a block or a strike? Is it a kick (ti) if so what direction is it going in etc.

A key lesson from the day, as always, is to persevere. The practice of martial arts teaches us not to give up. If a kick doesn't work the first time, adjust, assess, take on board any constructive feedback from the instructor(s) present and continue with maximum effort. A high standard of technical ability is only achieved through incremental learning over a period of time. In order to continuously improve we need to be tenacious and maintain a positive approach to our training.

The examination environment is also a good test to see how we perform under a degree of pressure, mostly imposed by ourselves! If we can learn how to perform under a degree of positive stress we can use this in our daily lives to cope with all kinds of situations. This means that the 'stress' or perception of being under scrutiny won't then adversely affect our ability to perform. For example, you'll be able to perform a form/thau in any situation for any audience and reproduce the exact same standard again and again, somewhat similar to a concert pianist!

Remember the shout (harn) is a key indicator of your spirit and commitment to training. Therefore you should practice in order to improve your shout which should come from the lower abdomen (not the throat). Also remember please do this in class of course and only in the correct places!

Tang Sou!

Master Tina Matania (4th Duan)
Instructor Epsom Club (Surrey)

 

Here are some more photographs below from the day:

Richard Cuss (3rd Ji) sparring with duan grade Lewis Richardson
putting on more pressure to assess ability to defend/respond

Duan grade Russell Jones also sparring with Richard
observed by Instructor Shawn Feltham (2nd Duan)

Free sparring and one-step sparring practice

Green belt preparing for the back kick

Master Goward leads the class with middle punch on forward stance,
always a good technique to start with

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