SUBMITTED
A number of martial artists from Arashi-Do Sylvan Lake travelled to Edmonton for the Mind Body Soul Tournament June 22. This is one of the biggest tournaments of the year in Alberta, for BJJ and Muay Thai.
Over 400 competitors took part, from young kids, to the executives (ages 40+). The oldest was aged 56. Of course, having competitors from the school in Sylvan Lake is a great experience and challenge.
Kyle Hebb, 24, competed in the Adult Muay Thai Beginner Division. Fighting two close fights, he ended up taking third place in that division.
First-time competitor Tokunbo Adeleke competed for the first time in BJJ. After training for about two years, he finally decided to test himself and compete. Fighting in the Executive Division (aged 35+, all experience levels), he started off winning his first match by points.
He then fought a blue belt, Tokunbo being a white belt, and lost by a submission to the eventual second-place finisher.
He ended up winning the third-place match against another white belt with an arm in guillotine. He was extremely proud of himself by completing this and his coach, Sensei Ken Sumner, said, “I was super happy with TK (Tokunbo). He showed great and really put himself out there. He tested himself and it was something that many adults don't do, but really should.”
Young, perennial competitor Nolan Smith, formerly of Drayton Valley, has moved his training to Sylvan Lake, where he is thriving. He competed in Gi BJJ, in which he didn't place, but he competed in NoGi BJJ, and ended up taking second place. His athleticism proved to be beneficial in this match.
He then competed in Muay Thai, and took second place. Unfortunately, overconfidence was his downfall in this final match at he didn't take it seriously. Muay Thai is one of Nolan's passions and something that he continues to do well in.