11 first-place finishes for Sudbury’s Team KMAC

The Sudbury martial arts Team KMAC is off to a great start after securing 11 first-place finishes in Mississauga.

On Feb. 15, Team KMAC competed at the National Martial Arts Circuit Championships; their first tournament of the season. KMAC represented the majority of Northern Ontario by bringing 15 competitors; ranging from ages eight to 18, all in hopes of placing top four against other martial artists from all over Ontario, Quebec and Michigan.

Highlights of the tournament included the classic battle of David & Goliath: Chelmsford native Tyler Boucher paired off against a much taller opponent.

Boucher was surprised that a crowd formed around the ring, cheering his name every time he scored a point. The fight was close, right to the very end, and even though it was not the outcome Tyler wanted, he certainly gained many new fans.

Luckily, his teammate, Cedric Lessard, was able to fight his way to second place.

Another highlight is the always interesting sibling rivalry of the Walia sisters, who managed to defeat everyone in the division and meeting up at the finals.

Older sister Cassyra made sure to let her younger sister, Myah, know who is the Canadian Champion.

However, Sudbury KMAC’s Master Chris Fortin predicts Myah will soon be a force to reckon with.

At the end of the day, Team KMAC ended up with 11 first-place finishes, and plans to be just as successful in North Bay and Sudbury in March.

Following is the breakdown of competitors and how they fared at the competition:

Bradley Ferguson, age 18 – Black Belt – 1st Lightweight Sparring.
Sarra Gratton, age 17 – Black Belt – 3rd Chinese Forms, 3rd Korean Forms, 4th Open Forms, 4th Sparring
Cassyra Walia, age 14 – Advance – 1st Sparring - 1st Korean Forms – 1st Chinese Forms – 2nd Open Weapons
Brennen Chaput, age 15 – Advance - 1st Chinese Weapons – 1st Sparring - 4th Chinese forms
Aiden Lavoie, age 15 – Advance – 1st Open Weapons – 2nd Sparring – 4th Korean Forms
Jayden Rivers, age 12 - Advance - 1st Sparring - 3rd Open Forms
Cedric Lessard, age 12 – Advance - 1st Korean Forms – 2nd Sparring
Myah Walia, age 12 – Advance – 2nd Sparring, 2nd Korean Forms, 4th Chinese forms, 3rd Open Forms, 4th Open Weapons
Tyler Boucher, age 12 – Advance- 2nd Open forms, 3rd Korean forms, 4th Open Weapons
Luciano Gianfrancesco, age 10 – Novice - 1st Open Form – 1st Open Weapons
Mikaio Walia, age 9 – Novice- 3rd Open Forms – 4th Open Weapons
Ivano Gianfrancesco, age 8 – Novice - 2nd Open Weapons
Lucie Sloan, age 7, Jack Sloan, age 9, and Kyren Jarvie, age 10, all placed 5th in their respective divisions.