BY JOHN DECOSTE
The Advertiser
NovaNewsNow.com
Members of the Abhaya Mixed Martial Arts Academy brought home a total of 12 medals and numerous trophies from the East Coast Grappling Championships March 10 in Saint John, NB.
The tournament drew competitors from 10 different clubs and training groups who competed in grappling matches where the aim was to force a submission by way of a choke-hold or joint-lock.
The growing popularity of grappling sports was evident in a significant increase in the number of competitors over last year’s event.
The tournament divided competitors according to weight and experience, and featured both gi (training uniform) and no-gi brackets.
Abhaya founder Patrick Bazinet explains that matches in the gi bracket are generally methodical and technical battles in which competitors can use the sleeves and collar of the uniform to set up attacks. In no-gi matches, the competitors wear shorts and t-shirts and generally rely on fast-paced and aggressive movements.
First in gi and no-gi for Kelades
Chris Kelades of Wolfville placed first in both the gi and no-gi beginner super-lightweight divisions, winning all six of his matches. Colin Yeliga of Wolfville battled to a second-place finish in the beginner super-lightweight no-gi and third in gi.
Bruce Armstrong of Wolfville, who has been training only a couple of months, took first in the beginner lightweight no-gi division and second in gi.
Another relative newcomer to the discipline, Ken Armstrong of Middleton, with less than one month of training, was second in the beginner middleweight gi bracket.
Jonathan McWaid of Kentville showed good composure in winning the beginner super-heavyweight division in no-gi and took second in gi.
Mark McNeil of Middleton overcame some tough competition for a well-deserved first-place finish in the intermediate lightweight division, and Eric MacDonald of Wolfville earned first-place finishes in the intermediate super-heavyweight gi and no-gi.
Cage Combat on the docket
Abhaya plans to be very busy the next couple of months. The club will host its own grappling tournament in late April at Kings-Edgehill School in Windsor and will have two fighters competing on the March 31 Extreme Cage Combat (ECC) card in Halifax.
Matt Hamilton of Greenwood will be making his competitive mixed martial arts debut on the Halifax card and Abhaya head instructor Rowan Cunningham of Port Williams will contest the ECC welterweight title against Cory Macdonald of Kingston, Ont.
Cunningham is currently the Canadian welterweight titleholder for the Quebec-based Apex fighting organization and will be looking to add a second championship belt to his collection.
Local martial artists win 12 medals at East Coast championships
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