LYNNWOOD—A dozen martial artists from Lynnwood-based Taekwondo dojang NW Blackbelt Academy returned from the U.S. Open in Las Vegas, Nevada, earlier this week with five metals – one, gold, two silver, and one bronze.
The U.S. Open took place from March 5 through March 8 and was open to black belts across the world. Participating countries included U.S., Canada, Kazakhstan, Brazil, Chile, Japan, Australia, Puerto Rico, Mexico, Argentina, Ecuador, Costa Rica, and more, bringing more than 3,000 competitors together to compete.
The tournament was divided into various age categories: youths (10 and 11 year olds) and cadets (12- to 14-year-olds). On the first day the athletes weighed in, practiced, and held a meeting to discuss strategy.
Outside of matches the athletes had the opportunity to explore the sights of Las Vegas, from visiting malls, to having meals together. Master Joe Whitworth, on the other hand, spent all his free time outside of matches to rest (save for gambling once and winning $150). Competition days often spanned all day, from 7 a.m. through sometimes 5 p.m.
At NW Blackbelt academy there’s the regular martial arts class and the sports class. Within the sports class there are three teams. Team one, who competed at last week’s international tournament, consist of “upper tier, black belts,” Master Whitworth informed the Lynnwood Times, who were invited to compete last week.
Of the competing athletes in team one, three went to the finals. One of the silver medalists, JP, is a cadet (under 57 kilos). There were over 50 people in his division, and he had to in six fights to get there, so it was no easy task, Master Whitworth said.
“He’s a really good player but he was never able to come through on any of the big stages in the last three, four, years. He would often lose usually in his first or second fight and it’s just heartbreaking because he’s such a hard worker,” said Master Whitworth. “But it all came together for him this time. He was very calm, he looked like a veteran, he stopped making the same mistakes as before. These are all things they have to go through because they’re kids and they’re maturing.”
The single gold medalist, Trinity Almada, on the other hand, is headed to the Junior World Championships in Uzbekistan later this year. As a Team U.S. coach, Master Whitworth will be accompanying.
Almada was almost disqualified due to an eye injury but, with some negotiations with the ref, came back and won the gold.
Master Whitworth shared with the Lynnwood Times that his immediate goal for his team is to “keep working hard” and strive to win the upcoming National Championships in June. It’s Master Whitworth’s goal that at least 95% of his team will win a national championship by the time they reach college.
“There’s a right way and a wrong way of doing things. There’s kids that lose their first match because the guy was just a little bit better. Even though they might have made a mistake, they don’t get down on themselves, they try to fix it and try to be more focused on their performance and that’s the type of things I’m trying to teach them. Medals are great but we don’t always get medals in life, so I just try to teach them to persevere, do the right thing all the time, and if you do that good things will happen,” said Master Whitworth. “That’s my philosophy I’m teaching.”
NW Blackbelt Academy is currently focused on training for the two upcoming national tournaments, AU Taekwondo Nationals in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and the U.S.A. Team Nationals in North Carolina this summer.
“We’re going to do a lot of general stuff, a lot of repping, a lot of volume, then we’ll get into a lot of speed and strength training and specific training. Then we’ll do some test matches on the system, and then we’ll be ready for the nationals,” said Master Whitworth.
Master Whitworth said he is extremely proud of his team, and their parents’ support. He added that he’s also extremely grateful for his wife for the tremendous support during competition season – handling travel arrangements, preparing meals, and reminding him to take vitamins and drink water.
Author: Kienan Briscoe
