They wanted to teach quiet Ola

Ola ... was it like this?

Ola Svensson was a vacationing Swedish karate and Savate instructor. He just dropped by one afternoon and asked whether he could train with us. Normally, someone from a hard style has a difficult time working in kenpo and I discourage them just jumping into a class or two while they are here on vacation. I recommend the Japanese school down the street. I noticed his accent and asked where he was from. It turned out he knew Ingmar Johansson, my friend in Sweden. Ola came to us for a week and warmed up with the class, then went off in the corner to kick the bag. No attitude, just wanted to work. I showed him how to hit harder with his punches and that made him smile. He took Ed Cabrera’s boxing class and said he really enjoyed that. The lesson here is that when you let someone into your class you don’t know what they’ll do. Hopefully they won’t hurt one of your students and get you sued. This man was competent and didn’t come to show off and run his mouth. Everyone likes Swedes and Aussies, said one of my black belts. Well, we got an Aussie, too.

Minutes of Women’s Meeting

World Savate Combat Championships, Novi Sad, Serbia - 18th June 2009

Present:
Valerie King, France
Julie Gabriel, Great Britain
Janesse Leung, Canada
Rebecca Murray, Canada
Mariko Hara, Japan
Mitsue Watanabe, Japan
Akodad Hayatte, Morocco
Maja Odzic, Serbia
Tatiana Abrosova, Russia
Tina Turk, Slovenia
Nina Vehar, Slovenia
Marija Kosi, Croatia
Ksenija Koprek, Croatia
Florence Quist, Canada

1) The members present discussed the need to have a named person in each country who can be a contact for the women’s issues. It was agreed that this MUST be a woman. Valerie distributed her cards and asked each country to contact her with the name and email address of their contact.
2) There was a question about the development of women’s Savate, and specifically how to increase numbers of women participating. There was a survey of those present to get an idea of the percentage of women savateurs in each country:
Great Britain, Canada, Japan – have about 50% women licence holders
Slovenia, Croatia - 40%
France - 30 %
With more women in Savate, we could have more officials - this would help especially around weigh-ins. It was agreed that it is not appropriate for men to conduct weigh-ins for women fighters.
3) Members present were asked for their thoughts on two piece integrals:
Two piece would probably be cheaper, and would also allow the top to be changed. For example, to have one colour top for the fighters club, and a different colour top for their national team.
Many men are uncomfortable with one piece, American and Canadian men are particularly unhappy to wear a one piece integrale.
Canadians in the World Assaut Championships last year had two piece integrales with flat buttons to keep the pieces together. Some members thought that a Velcro fastening might be safer than buttons.
The Japanese said they would like to try a two piece integrale. The Slovenians thought it would be more practical.
4) Hajib & Integrale
The constraints placed on some women by their culture or religion were also discussed, particularly about the need for head or arm covering.
It was agreed that loose clothing would be a big problem for several reasons e.g. the judges can’t see the touches accurately, loose tops would obscure the targets and the breasts could be hit accidently, the opponents foot could be caught in loose clothing causing an injury.
The members present agreed there was no problem with a long-sleeved integrale – however, the sleeves should not be baggy, as this would be dangerous to the other fighter. It was agreed that long sleeves would be safer than short sleeves as it is easier for a foot to get caught in a loose short sleeve.
With regard to the hajib, some members felt we should not encourage the subjugation of women. However, after discussion, it was agreed that if a women wanted to wear a hajib, it should be allowed. It was agreed that a hajib would need to be fitted tightly to the head and neck to prevent the opponents foot getting caught and to prevent the hajib slipping across eyes. There is also an option to wear the helmet.
5) A further question was raised about whether international women should be forced to wear the hajib if they went to a competition in a country where local women are expected to wear it, for example, Iran.
Some countries said they would wear it, others said they wouldn’t. The Canadians said you should not force women from other countries to wear a hajib if they don’t want to. One member present said “I respect his tradition, but he must accept my tradition also” – all agreed with this.
It was suggested that a Women’s competition could be held separately, but that this would require more female officials. Perhaps the host country could arrange training for more women officials.
Joel Dhumez (International Development) attended the last few minutes of the meeting to find out how it had progressed.
Afsaneh Bagheri was suggested as a potential Iranian Correspondent.
The member present agreed that further meetings would be useful

FIS calendar 2010/2011 - NEW

2010

• European Championship Combat

Qualifying Tournament, June Clermont Ferrand, France
Seniors Men Women, Juniors

• World Savate Cup Tournament (WSCT) Assaut

June/July Paris, France
Assaut World Championship
Men & Women September Madagascar or France

• European Championship Combat: FINALS

Juniors, Seniors Men & Women
November – December Misc. (Serbia, Croatia, Italie, France…)

• FIS UNIVERSITY 1st Assaut World championship

25 & 26 June, Nantes,France



2011

• World Championship Combat

Qualifying Tournament:

• 1st World Youth Championship Assaut - NEW, NEW, NEW!!!!!!!
  

Under 18 years

• Assaut European Championship

World Championship Combat: FINALS

68 competitors from 9 martial arts - 1st asian martial art games

No.of Events 112 Male 37 Female 31 Total 68

The first Asian Martial Arts Games were hailed as a success with 40 countries participating and a combined total of 1,500 athletes and officials in attendence. The First Asian Martial Arts Games started on Aug. 1 in Bangkok, the capital city of Thailand.
H.R.H. Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn declared the first Asian Martial Arts Games open during a sparkling ceremony at the Indoor Stadium, Hua Mark, Sports Authority of Thailand, on Saturday night. Amidst an opening ceremony that highlighted the rich history and cultural heritage of the Kingdom, the Crown Prince graced the occasion with his presence and read a short address in Thai to provide the royal seal of approval on the Games. Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva provided details of the event before introducing Olympic Council of Asia Vice President Timothy Fok. Action hero, Tony Ja lit the Olympic flame -- but only after a theatrical battle against a challenger waiting by the cauldron high in the arena.
The 7th of August 2009 proved to be the ultimate day of the Muaythai competition in the inaugural Martial Arts Games as Thailand fighters pulled off nine gold medals to elevate the hosts to a huge point advantage at the top of the medal standing. The Thai boxers, who had marched into the final in nine classes, underlined their supremacy in the sport by sweeping nine gold medals out of fifteen up for grabs. Of the nine gold medals the Thai team won, two came from female fighters

Gold medals were also awarded to:
Lebanon (Women's Light weight 57 - 60)
Lao (Women's Pin weight 42-45 Kg)
Iraq (Men's Light weight 75-81 Kg)
Kazakhstan (Men's Middle weight 71-75 Kg)

Thailand ranked first in the Games with 21 gold medals, 17 silver medals and 16 bronze medals (54 medals overall). The 21 gold medals came from the muay Thai, jujitsu, kickboxing, pencak silat, kurush, and taekwondo games.
Kazakhstan ranked second as the country had 15 gold, seven silver and 12 bronze medals from judo, kickboxing, kurash, taekwondo, karate-do, and muaythai contests. The third place went to South Korea, with 10 gold, six silver and three bronze medals from the taekwondo, judo, karate-do, and wushu and kungfu competition.
The closing ceremony of the First Asian Martial Arts Games kicked off at 18:00 p.m. on Sunday at the Indoor Stadium Sports Complex, Bangkok's Hua Mark. The 1st Asian Martial Arts Games was another fabulous opportunity to bring the spotlight to the sport of Muaythai while providing athletes the chance to further improve skills by gaining experience in a multi-sport competition.

CLICK to enlarge --->>

Muaythai Recognised by Australian Sports Commission

IFMA made another very important step towards its goal for IOC recognition as Muaythai in Australia has become fully recognized by the Australian government. Muaythai is now an officially a National Sporting organization and a member of Australian Sports Commission.

This is a huge success for the sport in Australia! Over 13 years of hard work were devoted towards making this a reality. The Oceania Muaythai Federation (OMF) was inaugurated in 1996 and in 1997 the late General Vorayudh chaired the first meeting of the OMF and General Assembly. At that time, Mr. Stephan Fox (the current General Secretary of IFMA) was the President. The position was passed on to John Cockburn in 2000. Now, nine years later, the 3rd of July 2009 is a historical date for the sport.

IFMA would like to congratulate the Australian Muaythai Federation. Australia will be in full preparation for the upcoming 2009 IFMA World championships and 2010 Sportaccord Combat Games in Beijing.

Congratulations to IFMA, but with a bitter taste, when I see savate standing outside of all these tryings.

European championship IFMA 2009

European championship - 15th May – 22th May 2009 , Liepaja, Latvia, Europe.

The 2009 IFMA European Championships exceeded all expectations. Thirty-five countries participated in this outstanding event which took place in the beautiful city of Liepaga, Latavia. Spectators were able to see Europe’s finest Muaythai athletes battling for medals over the seven day event.
Latvia may be one of the smaller European countries, but it showed that it is a leading sporting power house in Europe. The event was under the umbrella of the Latvian government and organized by the Latvian Muaythai Organization.
Europe has several countries which prove time and again that they are a force to be reckoned with; Russia, Ukraine, Belorussia, Turkey, England, Finland, Poland, Germany, France, Czech Republic and Italy were challenged by Muaythai’s best from Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, and Israel. Countries like Denmark, Romania, Hungary, Croatia, Lithuania, Bulgaria, and Spain showed that their fighters are in full preparations for the upcoming world championships in Bangkok.
The junior division was action-packed and came down to some very close decisions. The fights were tough but safety for all athletes is of utmost importance. There respect these youngsters have for one other is truly remarkable and which is one of the key components of the sport of Muaythai.
The female divisions had the capacity crowd on their feet. The female fighters have long since emerged from the shadow of the male divisions and are always a crowd pleaser. This year it was Belorussia, Finland, England, Turkey, Bulgaria, and Hungary that really stood out.
Congratulations are due to the Latvian Muaythai Organization and the President, Mr. Vasily Fleisher for hosting an outstanding championship. The next big event for our athletes will be the IFMA World Championships in Bangkok in honour of his Majesty the King of Thailand’s Birthday.

Young boys



Ernesto Hoost




Two rings


Ceremony

SPORTACCORD COMBAT GAMES IN BEIJING - A REPORT

Source: WAKO

Technical Delegates from the Sportaccord Martial Art IFs met in Beijing 27-30 July in order to prepare the upcoming Sportaccord Combat Games (28 august-4 september 2010). All sports were present with their delegates as well as the Preparatory Committee Directors and their delegates. The first day was opened by the Vice-President of General Administration of Sport in China, Mr. Yu Zaiqing and Vice-Mayor of Beijing Municipal Peoples Government, Mr. Liu Jingmin and IOC member Mr. C.K.Wu (also AIBA President). Mr. Wu chaired the meeting. Mr. Espen Lund was the WAKO representative as Technical Director.

Main topics of the meeting:

* A presentation of each sport
* Inspection of all the arenas
* Workshops divided in the sports in each arena
* Presentation of requirements from each of the sport to the Beijing Preparatory Committee
* Drafting the program and time schedule

Very briefly some practical information.

Official Hotels

InterContinental Beijing Beichen: The Technical personnel and some Officials will use this hotel, a 5 star, which is situated close to the Olympic Green (Birds nest and Watercube arena and next to the National Indoor Stadium).

Beijing International Conventional Hotel: The hotel for athletes and coaches situated nearby the Olympic green.

Arenas (all used during the 2008 Olympic Games)

National Indoor Stadium: Used for Opening and Closing Ceremony. Normally this was supposed to be the arena for Ring sports, but after evaluation and the size of this arena, that take 18.000 spectators, it is too big.

Beijing University Stadium:

The Ring Sports stadium, Boxing, Wushu, Kickboxing and Muaythai

Capacity 7.000 spectators

Beijing Science and Technology University Stadium:

Tatami Sports stadium 1, Taekwondo, Karate, Kickboxing, Judo and Jujitsu, Kendo

Capacity 8.000 spectators

China Agricultural University Stadium:

Tatami Sports stadium 2, Aikido, Wrestling, Sumo, Sambo

Capacity 8.000 spectators

All qualification for participation in these games are done during the 2009 WAKO World Championships.

More information to come.

Author: Espen Lund

BEIJING 2010: THE HOSTING STRUCTURES and delegates











Source: IFMA

Martial Arts Delegates Meet in Beijing for Sportaccord Combat Games

The first SportAccord Combat Games Technical Meeting took place on 27-30 July 2009 in Beijing. The meeting was held in the Intercontinental Hotel, located within walking distance of the National Indoor Stadium, where the opening ceremony of the 2010 SportAccord Combat Games will take place. The meeting was carried out in an open, cooperative and effective manner, with concrete results and action plans worked out.

Beijing paid high attention to this technical meeting. Vice Mayor LIU Jingmin, also President of the Preparatory Committee personally opened the meeting on 28 July. He welcomed all the meeting participants and set up meeting objectives on behalf of the 2010 SportAccord Combat Games Beijing Preparatory Committee. SportAccord equally regarded the technical meeting as a milestone for the preparation of the inaugural SportAccord Combat Games in 2010 in Beijing. All IF concerned were represented by their respective Technical Delegates. The group was led by AIBA President and IOC Member – Mr. C.K WU (representing SportAccord President – Mr. Hein VERBRUGGEN, and the Chairman of the SportAccord Combat Games Committee – Mr. Antonio ESPINÓS), and supervised by SportAccord’s two Combat Games Committee Deputy Chairmen, Mr. François BESSON and Mr. George YEROLIMPOS.

During the two-day meeting, the two sides updated each other on the event preparation. Most importantly, the IF Technical Delegates met with their counterparts – the competition team of the Beijing Preparatory Committee to work on each sport event technical details such as competition format, rules, equipment and competition schedules. Both sides worked out concrete results and further actions plans. All the meeting participants visited the selected venues, which also hosted the Olympic events in 2008. Taking in consideration the event legacy, the 2010 SportAccord Combat Games proposed primarily Olympic venues located in universities, whose characteristics are perfect for Combat Sports.

Meanwhile, SportAccord officials and the leaders of the Beijing Preparatory Committee carried out an in-depth discussion on the event promotion, marketing and cultural programme. Given the limited time left and based on the guidelines provided by SportAccord, Beijing is determined to explore the full potential of the Combat Games, the 13 sports attached to it, and the people around.

With the conclusion of this technical meeting, the 2010 SportAccord Combat Games preparation work has entered a new phase that calls upon continuous cooperation among all concerned stakeholders, which both SportAccord and the Beijing Organisers are very confident about.