Local Athletes Represent the U.S. at International Championships

Bolingbrook should be smiling proud right now. The Village has 5 athletes representing the United States in Shotokan Karate at International Competitions over the next 6 weeks. Representing the United States at the World Shotokan Karate-do Championships in Lisbon, Portugal (September 20-22, 2019) are: Alex Grosvenor (17), a Senior at Bolingbrook HS, practicing Shotokan for 11 years; Eliza Salvado (17), a Senior at Plainfield East HS, practicing Shotokan for 9 years; Enzo Floresca (15), a Sophomore at Benet Academy, practicing Shotokan for 11 years; Jhaeden Hoffmeyer (14), a Freshman at Bolingbrook HS, practicing Shotokan for 8 years; and Julia Rodriguez (13), a Freshman at Benet Academy, practicing Shotokan for 9 years. The World Championships are held every 2 years and represent the highest level of competition internationally that this sport has to offer.

Additionally, Grosvenor and Floresca (a member of the U.S. Junior National Team) will be representing the U.S. in competition at the the Pan American Karate Federation Continental Championships in Guayaquil, Ecuador (August 26-September 1, 2019) based on their outstanding performances at the USA Team Trials and Karate Nationals held in July 2019. Both earned silver medals in that competition garnering them a spot at the Pan American games.

These athletes will be competing in events like Kumite, which is sparring, and Kata, which are the forms executed within this karate discipline. It takes years of mastery in both events, and most of these athletes have received everything from bronze to gold medals in both categories at the national levels. All of these athletes volunteer time outside of their practices to give back to their karate club and the communities they serve, as well as being excellent students and active in their respective high schools through other sports, music, arts and student government.

All of these student athletes are black belts of varying degrees in the sport and practice 3 times a week or more at local park districts in Bolingbrook, Naperville, and Palatine. The Illinois Shotokan Karate Club is the largest club in the United States with over 75 park districts across the state offering their classes.

These athletes are raising stars in the sport of Shotokan Karate. You can watch a live stream of competitions from Lisbon, Portugal here: http://wskakarate.org and get information about the Pan American Games here: https://www.pkfkarate.com For information about the Illinois Shotokan Karate Club visit their site: https://www.iskc.com.

Congratulations to Alex, Eliza, Enzo, Jhaeden, and Julia! Good luck in your competitions--we know you will represent Bolingbrook and the United States proud.