Official Team KUSA Blog

The team is back from New Orleans and the 2011 AAU Junior Olympics. This was our first trip to New Orleans and our first Jr. Olympics competition. We weren’t sure what to expect going in, but it turned out to be a great experience.

Our first athlete staged at 8:15am. We finished by 3:30pm after nine of our athletes went to battle inside the Earnest N. Morial convention center. It wasn’t nearly as big as most national events (though only advanced belts and Black Belts are eligible) but the competition was great nonetheless.

Congratulations to all of our athletes

Gold Medalists

• Connor Cole | Final match defeated Kyle Ruth (Georgia).
• Kenzie Cole | Final match moved up to 12-13 division and defeated Dominique Horning (Louisiana).
• Ruth Mendez | Final match defeated Niki Leduc (Texas).
• Gabriel Mendez | Final match defeated Dorian Soto (Florida).
• Robert Franklin | Final match defeated Alex Cannizzaro (Michigan).

Silver Medalists

• Chad Franklin | Final match defeated by John T. Martin (Florida) — Lost by one point.

For Madeline, Claire, and Arthur it’s back to the mat for more training and adjustments. They came to Saints country and fought like true warriors, but it just wasn’t their day.

Madeline and Claire now have their first national tournament under their belt which is a huge step in getting a National title. It’s all about the experience and we’re confident that when these athletes learn from their mistakes and begin to take advantage of their new experience level in training, they’ll be a force to be reckoned with in the future.

There are no undefeated champions in this sport. Attending these tournaments is always a step in the right direction and I’m proud of every single person on this team who continues to dedicate themselves to the sport of Olympic Taekwondo with us. My hat is off to all of them.

This one is in the books and it’s one of the best National events we’ve participated in. I don’t have any images from competition day since I was working the whole time, but I’m sure they’ll trickle in from parents. Here’s a gallery of all the images Mr. Geary took from day one and two. Now it’s back to the mat!