Page 12 - Sports Energy News, Cornwall, Issue No 67

12 June 2018 Issue #67 www.sportsenergynews.com

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Cornwall, ON

Kicking off Seaway Karate’s 25th Anniversary

By Victoria Klassen

he Seaway Karate Club recently celebrated its 25th
Tanniversary. Jim Riddell, who is a fifth degree black belt,
started the club in 1993. Back then there were no karate clubs
in the area unless a person travelled to Brockville. Riddell
remembers the first night the club opened, when 27 people
came out to the class.
“It was a novelty for a lot of them who came out that first
night,” shared Riddell. “They had no knowledge of the sport
and they wanted to see what it was about. But we did retain
quite a few of those 27. Out of those 27, five of them went
on to get black belts. The industry standard is less than one
per cent.”
To celebrate the 25th anniversary, Seaway Karate’s past
black belts came to a black belt grading. Thirty-six Seaway
Karate black belts came out to the event. Riddell says there
were other past black belts who were not able to make it
because they are living around the world—in places like
Colorado, Switzerland, and Amsterdam.
Over the years Seaway Karate has hosted various self-
defence fundraisers where the money goes back to the
community. They have helped raise funds for the Heart
and Stroke Foundation, the Canadian Cancer Society, local
schools, and for individuals and groups in the community. Here is the photo of our Seaway Karate Club members from our May 4th Blackbelt grading. We
Seaway Karate first opened in Ingleside, and by 2005 it had had 8 that achieved the rank of Shodan (1st degree blackbelt) and 1 Nidan 2nd degree (Sam ter
opened a second location in Cornwall. Riddell said that after Horst) the names from left to right: Joel Dinelle, Amanda Trakus, Marc Berube, Mairen Fleming,
running this club for 25 years, he is now seeing past students Sam ter Horst,Finley Fleming, Donna Wilson, Patrice Legault, Stuart Wilson. Photo Submitted
bringing their children to Seaway Karate for lessons.

Photo Submitted