South West Games Inc. will be hosting the tri-annual South West Games which will fall in 2010 for this cycle. The SW Games will run from March 19 to March 28, with taekwondo (as one of its long term permanant sports) scheduled for 28 March in Bunbury, the host city.
The Games is contested by players who are residents from the South West region and involves a plethora of sports and other competitions to vie for the honour of best sporting shire-or-city for the South West region. Of course, the official winners must reside within one of the 17 South West Local Government shires or cities. So, out of the clubs in our ATA Western Australia clubs, it would be mostly players and members from the Falcon, Halls Head and Mandurah clubs, but they will be representing their shire or city where they reside rather than their club.
The South West Games started in 1985 in Bunbury and is modelled along the concept of multi sports games as played in such environments of the Olympic Games or the Commonwealth Games. It is a popular concept and brings all regional sports persons together in friendly competition. However, in celebrating the 25th year anniversary, the South West Games organisers are including players who reside in non South West regions
More information on the Taekwondo part of the games will be posted here as soon as more is confirmed.
Venue: Bunbury PCYC, Parade Road, Bunbury
Weigh-in: Saturday 27th March at 5 pm
or Sunday 28th March at 8 to 9 am or at 11 am
Competition schedule: – Sunday 28th March 2010.
Poomsae starts 9 am morning
Sparring starts 1 pm afternoon
You can check the program and competition draws on the Southwest Games website link;
Location: Mandurah High School Gym, Gibla Street, Mandurah
Date: Sunday 22nd November 2009
Scheduled Times: 8:45 am to 12 noon junior sparring;
Lunch break: 12 noon to 12:30
Scheduled Times: 12:30 pm to 2:30 pm poomsae competition; 2:30 pm to 4:30 pm u18 and seniors sparring
Application forms can be obtained from your club instructors.
Closing date: 14th November 2009.
Tournament report:
Players completed their weigh-in and were ready.Their weights were recorded and the system calculated all correct handicap points in accordance with the criteria for the league competition in each allotted belt and weight age group division.
The day started on time, and the fights commenced with the junior age group divisions, and finishing ahead of schedule.After the lunch break, Tore Bule Turner demonstrated his Michael Jackson impersonation dance moves to the delight of the crowd, including the slides and the moon walk.
The poomsae competition went underway and each player did their best.The seniors came on after that and at the end of the day, there were quite a few sore bodies.
The concept of the league system was designed to enable players to have as many competition bouts as possible in a round robin format.The top 2 players will fight off in the final to decide the gold and silver medal winners while the next placed 3rd and 4th player ranked on the league ladder play off for the bronze medal.
This year’s second league comp was contested by 8 clubs and the medal tally shows:
Well do we have a fine story to tell from the 2009 Taekwondo Australia Nationals held recently during October 2009 in Brisbane.
Skip Sommerville, ATA Mandurah, as a young fledgling 52 year old – well he is not that young in age but still young in health, heart condition and still fine in physical fitness and prowess. Skip had been training hard for his poomsae and sparring competitions after the state tournament. Still nursing a shoulder injury and some hammy soreness, he perservered. He had been watching the nationals entries and was getting rather disappointed when at the final close of entries, there were no opponent for him in his entered division, the blue belt 50+ heavyweight division – he was the only entry. There was one other entry in the blue belt heavyweight category but this was in the lower age group category – the 41-50 age group (who was also unmatched).
Undeterred, he was asking if he could be paired off with Steven Bult from Queensland so he could have at least a fight, even though Skip would be slightly dis-advantaged being the older aged player. He searched high and low at the venue on the Saturday coloured belt comps day, and he found his likely opponent, and we also found Steven’s coach. That was where we began the negotiations so both players, at least could have a match fight. After much discussions, both Skip and Steven convinced the tournament organisers to give them a match play fight. So this was set.
But since this is to be a match play fight, there needed to be a prize, and Steven’s coach suggested the prize to be a pretty, tall, slim blonde. Incidentally Skip’s partner is pretty, tall, slim and blonde. So now Steven had to offer something to add to the prize, and since he was a pig farmer, we suggested that he offered his farm up. We thought that was fair – the farm and the blonde. The prize was winner take all, ie. the farm and the pretty, tall and slim blonde. The match is now definitely on, and the prize offered were "accepted" by both players.
The adrenalin was churning and burning. As the coach, Kim suggested to Skip that he better win, so he could then offer the farm up to Monika (his partner) as the prize for a wife. If he lost, Skip would be in big trouble – but Skip was very confident. All set, and ready to go. We were set on the sidelines waiting for the match, and you could see both players really psyching up for the match, when suddenly both players had second thoughts about the prizes they are offering for the winner to take all. Well no matter, both agreed to play their best and the best man to win. Determined as they were, the match was quite even in terms of the points being scored. The final score was 5 points to Skip and 4 points to Steve. Skip WINS. Yes, if the prize was still available, Skip would have won the farm and keep his blonde partner. In the end we are convinced the motivation that Skip had to win was really his thoughts of "The farmer wants a wife". Monika is now still waiting for the farm.
You can view Skip’s fight (the 1st round) on this video clip. note: you can actually see Skip, even though at 52 years of age, is quite light on his feet as he pranced around the court stalking his opponent and finally winning the match.
