First Tournament!

[traz]

Hey guys, I'm signed up for my first tournament and its happening in just under 2 weeks. I study Hapkido, and I"m in 2 divisions. One is a point sparring competition with SKITA rules, and the other is a continous fight with no face punches, with WKC rules.

Basically, I'm nervous because I've never been in a tournaments and I"m not sure what to expect. Does anyone have any pointers? Anything to be weary of?
Anything in general?

Thanks guys!



PS, Sorry if this is in the wrong forum, I didn't know where else to put it

 

[TigerWoman]

Well, I'm not familiar with Hapkido sparring so can't help you much. But tournaments are for fun and to gain some experience. You will probably spar someone about your own weight and rank. If you go early, you might want to bring a carbo bar. Our sparring is always at the end of the day and usually just pizza and hot dogs are served. Enjoy the day! TW

 

[DuneViking]

RELAX!!! Enjoy yourself!!!! Move faster than your opponent!

 

[kanjc]

Good luck in the tournament, where is it at? I am in washington state and we have a hkd tournament coming up soon as well. I don't do hkd just tkd and I am going to my first tournament this saturday.

 

[Knifehand]

My first Tournament in next Saturday & Sunday. I've gotten a lot of good advice from MT and from my Dans. Relax, watch their shoulders, learn (quickly) not to telegraph your movements. Keep your balance, don't present a target, if you get caught in a corner keep moving. Above all, Have a good time, i've been told that your first tournament is a learning experience. But there is nothing wrong with giving it your best and shooting for the top.

Tang Soo and Good luck!

 

[traz]

It's not meant for Hapkido actually, its welcomes people from karate, tkd, kick boxing, and even has jujitsu, pankration, and all other sorts of tournaments. It's quite a mesh.

The point sparring tournament will be light-semi contact, however the continous tournament will be full contact with no punches to the head.

I'm trying really hard to get over the nerves. But I have a feeling I'll be nervous come next sunday

I'm definitely taking this one as a learning experience...but I'm still going to give it my all of course

 

[samuri-man]

karate is my specialty make sure you use distances properly kick at kicking range,punch at punching range, grapple at grappling range.

i'v done three comps all for karate

 

[Sin]

Sometimes you might get some one sided judges, so don't let that get you down. Just go there to have fun, and if you win....well ya win, but if you lose, rememmber its not the last tournament you will be partisipating in. Martial arts is a life long process, kind like a marriage(sp), so you have the rest of your life to win. Just go there and have fin with it.

 

[masherdong]

Relax!! Take a couple of breaths and spar like you would in the dojo. Just move faster and dont get hit!

 

[MJS]

One important thing to keep in mind is to use this tourny as a learning experience. Go there and have fun!! Seeing that this is your first one, I'm sure that you'll be nervous, but do your best to stay relaxed.

Keep sparring on a regular basis with people at your school.

Good luck and let us know how you do!!!

Mike

 

[kanjc]

I went to my first tournament on saturday, it was a blast! I saw some amazing MAist there, both young and old. I did ok, not as well as I had hoped, but well enough for me to sign up for the next one at the end of april. I took 3rd in my age/rank I might have done better but I stopped my opponets back kick with my groin and kinda lost the will (and ability) to fight.

 

[MJS]

I went to my first tournament on saturday, it was a blast! I saw some amazing MAist there, both young and old. I did ok, not as well as I had hoped, but well enough for me to sign up for the next one at the end of april. I took 3rd in my age/rank I might have done better but I stopped my opponets back kick with my groin and kinda lost the will (and ability) to fight.

Sounds like you had a great time!! One thing that I always try to tell people entering their first event, is to just relax and have fun! Even if you didn't place, which obviously you did, you still walked away with something...and that being the experience of a tournament.

Keep training hard, and you'll find that you'll keep getting better and better with each one!

Mike

 

[terryl965]

I went to my first tournament on saturday, it was a blast! I saw some amazing MAist there, both young and old. I did ok, not as well as I had hoped, but well enough for me to sign up for the next one at the end of april. I took 3rd in my age/rank I might have done better but I stopped my opponets back kick with my groin and kinda lost the will (and ability) to fight.

Sounds as if the tournament was a success, when you want more thats always good. Keep up the good work and it will pay off.

 

[traz]

Just thought I'd let you guys know how it went since you were nice enough to reply

I was in 2 divisions...point sparring and continous (which turned out to include full face contact).

In the point sparring, I got first, however it was a relatively small division. I still got gold though, so I'm happy

The Continous full contact sparring didn't go quite so well. In both my fights, I was pitted against higher belts and larger opponents, but I was still definitely outclassed as a fighter. However, I gave them a good run and landed some solid shots. Other than a bloody lip and some slight pain at the base of my nose, I walked away ok. I lost both fights, but it just means I'll have to train harder!

All in all I'm glad I went, I gave it my all and made some new friends. I must say, going with other members from my school really brought us closer, there was a definite sense of "family" and pride, as if we were a unit. It was cool heh. I also learned a great deal, gained valuable experience, and had a great time

 

[Jaymeister]

Congratulations on your gold medal

 

[masherdong]

Other than winning gold, you won much more. You won by gaining more experience, having your classmates closer to you, and the respect of other MA's that you fought against who will become your friends. Congrats on your achievements!

 

[Aqua4ever]

Congratulations! You have my utmost respect for entering continuous, thats tough stuff!
Congrats on the gold and glad you had fun
Aqua

 

[redcdiver]

Congratulations on your excellent showing at your first martial arts tournament. My daughter loves to compete and gets to about 6-8 tournaments a year. Her favorite event is continuous sparring. Keep up the good work. Just remember that sport martial arts is just part of the picture.

Mark