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2001 NEWS ARCHIVES
Mr. Khalid Iqbal of the UK travelled to Ireland to conduct a series of seminars for the IUTF. CIT TKD, UCD TKD and Millstreet TKD were the hosts for the events. All courses were well attended as Mr. Iqbal expertly covered a wide range of topics from sparring to meditation. The IUTF would like to thank Mr. Iqbal for the time and endless energy which he displayed throughout.
Following his fantastic win in the WKA World Championships Mr. Philpott was awarded a prestigious The Corkman newspaper/Kostel Sports Star Award for 2001. Mr. Philpott shared the stage with Irish international sports stars from rugby, GAA, atlethics, and rowing. He was accompanied to the black tie event by his family and instructors Ms. Dalton and Mr. Dalton. There were over 600 guests.
The IUTF funded an instructor’s trip to Turkey and Germany for Mr. McCarthy, Mr. Philpott, Mr. Dalton, Mr. Riordan, Ms. Dalton, Mr. Swan and Mr. Moriarty. The special instructor’s trip lasted for 11 days (7in Turkey and 4 in Germany). The daly training included self defence and pattern work under Mr. Dalton and Mr. McCarthy. The members also had the opportunity to train with former WAKO World Champion Dr. Ludger Dietzer while in Germany. Dr. Dietzer is an expert in semi contact (points) sparring and he delighted the Irish group with his amazing speed and fabulous technique.
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The IUTF were narrowingly beaten in the Final in the Clash of the Titans in Huddersfield, England. Having beaten Mr. Frank Murphy’s team in the previous round the Irish team were confident going into the final. However the win was not to be. “It is always difficult to get a decision in England, especially when there are four English judges. I think that all close bouts will go to the home fighter. This means that we have to work harder and win by a greater margin in the future. We can not afford to leave any bouts to the judges. We must make winning this event one of our priorities in the future,” said team coach Mr. Dalton after the event.
In June 2001, IUTF members traveled to Austria for the WKA World Championships where they won the following medals:
Senior:
Mr. John Riordan, BRONZE, -75kg Light Contact
Ms. Patricia Dalton, BRONZE, -55kg Light Contact
Mr. Mark Philpott, GOLD, -60kg Light Contact
Junior:
Padraig O Connor, GOLD in Light Contact
David Keane, GOLD in Light Contact
This was the first major kickboxing event attended by the IUTF and it demonstrated what world class competitors the association and the instructors are producing. Irish coach Mr. Dalton heaped praise on all the medal winners and paid special tribute to Mr. Philpott who becomes the first IUTF competitor to become a world kickboxing champion.
IUTF competitors also excelled at the WOMAA World Games in Killarney where the following seniors won in the Light Contact: Ms. Patricia Dalton (gold and silver), Mr. Wesley O' Reagan (bronze), Mr. Sean Keane (silver), Padraig O Connor (bronze in seniors).There were numerous colour and junior belt winners. The heavy contact suited the IUTF competitors who were supremely fit and confident after their recent international wins. Sadly Mr. Moriarty aggravated his recent back injury and now faces a lengthy lay off. In Open Team Forms, the Galway duo of Mr. Shane Fitzgibbon and Ms. Lisa Connolly took silver, being narrowly defeated by a five-person team from China.
Following the success of the World Championships the IUTF funded a team of 9 members for the WKA World Cup held in Hanau, Germany. A special mention should go to Padrain O' Connor who won the Junior heavyweight sparring with the flu. The following results were recorded:
Senior:
Ms. Patricia Dalton, SILVER, -55kg Light Contact + SILVER, Age 35 and over; Points, open weight
Mr. Paudie O Shea, SILVER, -85kg Light Contact
Ms. Deborah Donovan, GOLD, +70kg Light Contact
Junior:
Padraig O Connor, GOLD, +70kg Light Contact
