Warrenville karate team places at national tournament

Members of the Baekwoon Mu Sul Tigers, led by Senseis Jeremy, Sebastian and Elijah Talbott have become a force to be reckoned with on the tournament circuit. Sixteen members of the team participated in a total of 42 events at the 50th annual AKA Grand Nationals karate tournament held at the Hyatt Regency Chicago in January. During these events, team members had top showings from 1st place to top-10 in their given divisions.

At the tournament, team members vied for trophies against top competitors from the US, Canada and South America. More than 700 individuals competed in the AKA Grand Nationals tournament, in divisions based on age and skill set. The Tigers Team was represented in multiple age divisions--from six to fourteen years--and performed in a variety of events such as katas (forms) with and without weapons, and sparring against others of the same age and level of ability.

“AKA Grands is one of the oldest, if not the oldest, sport martial art competitions in the US. Competition at Grands is always tight, with competitors coming from around the world to participate,” says Sensei Jeremy Talbott. “The team performed well and again learned a lot through watching their competition while raising the bar for themselves at the national level. This team continues to grow, and I am proud of how each of them stepped up at this tournament.”

The Tigers’ final rankings at the 50th annual AKA Grand Nationals were:

Brady Collins – Finalist in weapons, traditional forms, and sparring

Alex Raymundo – Finalist in weapons and sparring, 3rd in traditional forms

Anishka Khuruan – Finalist in traditional forms

Emma Tumang – 2nd in sparring, 3rd in traditional forms

Lex Tumang – 2nd in sparring, 3rd in traditional forms

Marius Chrapka – Finalist in traditional forms and sparring

Mathew Randall – Finalist in weapons, creative forms, traditional forms, musical forms and sparring, 4th in extreme musical weapons

Tommy Randall – Finalist in weapons, traditional forms, and sparring

Matthew Ingraham – 3rd in continuous sparring, 2nd in weapons, 1st in creative forms, 2nd in traditional forms, 1st in sparring

Annita De La Serna – Finalist in traditional forms and sparring

Allen De La Serna – Finalist in traditional forms and sparring

Zachary Self - Finalist in weapons, creative forms, traditional forms, and sparring

Austin Campbell – 3rd in weapons, finalist in traditional forms

Benjamin Kildern-Pederson – Finalist in weapons and traditional forms

Sagar Gupta – Finalist in weapons, traditional forms, and sparring

Logan Chin – Finalist in traditional forms and sparring

About AKA Grand Nationals

The AKA Grand Nationals tournament is the longest-running tournament in martial arts history. The tournament is promoted and presented by Master John Sharkey of Sharkey’s Karate Studio (Naperville, Ill.), and is the pinnacle of the American Karate Association’s tournament schedule. In addition, the tournament is a 5A rated NASKA World Tour Event.

About the Team

Formed in 2011, The Baekwoon Mu Sul Tigers (Warrenville, Ill.), has grown from one team member to 18. In the 2013 season, the team produced four national champions and seven national top-10 competitors within the American Karate Association, one of the oldest tournament circuits in the United States. The team practices at LifeTime Fitness of Warrenville. You can find the Baekwoon Mu Sul Academy on Facebook or at http://www.baekwoontigers.com.