(Denver, CO) – Students from elementary and middle schools across Colorado competed at the 2013 Twin Dragons Tournament in order to earn points towards the Elementary Schools League Cup. Competition was fierce across the five events that award students points. Students earned 3 points for each first place finish, 2 points for each second place finish, and one point for each third place finish. In scored events (forms and breaking), students earned 0.5 points for each 4th or lower place finish. In bracketed events (sparring and grappling) if there are between 5 and 8 competitors, all students who lose the first match earned third place points so that the way the bracket is drawn doesn’t affect the number of points awarded.
There were 35 different schools who earned points during the 2012-2013 school year. Last year’s runner up Global Village Academy (Aurora) took the title this year. They had two significant advantages that made them very hard to beat. As the oldest afterschool program, they had more higher belts and were able to compete across a large number of divisions. Instructor Jacob Gallegos spoke to this point when he said “As with all things in life, with experience, comes victory.” They also had a number of students training in the KAT Aurora dojang, which allowed them to enter the most competitors of any afterschool program. Instructor Christina Seraile stated “I think I speak for every instructor who has ever taught at GVA when I say how proud we are of you and how far you have come in your discipline and technique. It’s really been a team effort by the kids, parents, and instructors.”
Last year’s winner Aurora Quest K8 put up a valiant showing, but in the end fell just short. The drama was heightened by a tie on the initial scores for demo team, which would have been a 10 point swing ( – 5 for GVA, + 5 for Quest) if the tiebreaker had gone the other way. Quest was hurt by scheduling conflicts in TDT as well as the Fall Championships, and will surely be a contender for the title again in 2013-2014.
Master Komil Latipov’s Crescent View Academy (CVA) looked dangerous throughout the day, and threatened to take the lead with strong performances in both sparring and grappling. However, they gave up significant points in forms and breaking and didn’t participate in demo, which left them unable to catch up with the larger teams. Still, Jibreal Jones (CVA) won the grand champion belt for overall medals in the tournament.
Sensei Melinda’s Greenwood Options (GWO) students entered the largest team, and won top honors in both breaking and forms. With 28.5 points, their breaking performance was the most dominant of any team in any event. However, having not participated in the Fall Championships, they were starting at a significant disadvantage. Still, they won 2nd at Twin Dragons and 4th overall, a very respectable finish.
High Point Academy (HPA) will certainly be disappointed to drop one spot to fifth, but they did well across many events. It is an honorable finish for a program that is only two years old and they will certainly come back strong next season.
The Colorado Elementary Schools League has now had three events, each one becoming larger and more competitive than the last. Instructor Christina summed things up. “I’d like to commend ALL the schools and their instructors. You have done an amazing job to make the elementary school league as strong as it is.”
The league goes from Kindergarten to 8th Grade and welcomes students from any elementary/middle school. As with other sports, students compete for the academic school they attend, rather than the martial arts school where they hold rank. Teams interested in joining should comment on this post or contact any of the instructors mentioned in this article.
The League also awards the MVP Award for the student who earned the most points in the five league events (Sparring, Grappling, Breaking, Demo and Forms). Last year’s MVP was Riley Ward (QST). This year the top honor went to Isabella Walsh (GVA) with 18 points, followed by Taylor Altman (GVA) with 16 points and Jibreal Jones (CVA) with 15 points. Let’s give a big “Chook Ha Hahm Nida” to these well rounded martial artists!
The final results for the 2012-2013 League Year are posted below.
School |
Twin Dragons |
Fall Championships |
Total |
GVA-Aurora |
70 |
44 |
114 |
Quest |
62 |
36 |
98 |
CVA |
50.5 |
41 |
91.5 |
Greenwood Options |
60.5 |
|
60.5 |
High Point |
23.5 |
29 |
52.5 |
GVA- |
6 |
26 |
32 |
Normandy Elementary |
21.5 |
|
21.5 |
Coronado |
18 |
|
18 |
Omar D |
11 |
6 |
17 |
Northridge |
12 |
|
12 |
DaVinchi |
11.5 |
|
11.5 |
Colorado Connections |
9 |
|
9 |
American Academy |
8 |
|
8 |
Dakota Valley |
6.5 |
1 |
7.5 |
Antelope |
3 |
3 |
6 |
Aurora Options |
3 |
3 |
6 |
Montessori |
6 |
|
6 |
Walt Creek MS |
0 |
5 |
5 |
Monaco Elementary |
5 |
|
5 |
D. Green |
4.5 |
|
4.5 |
Powderhorn |
4 |
|
4 |
Leewood |
4 |
|
4 |
STEM |
0 |
3 |
3 |
Lexi B |
3 |
|
3 |
Dartmouth |
3 |
|
3 |
Ben Etters |
3 |
|
3 |
Stott Elementary |
3 |
|
3 |
DSA (Alex |
2.5 |
|
2.5 |
Wyatt |
2 |
|
2 |
Centennial |
2 |
|
2 |
Ponderosa |
1 |
|
1 |
Challenge School |
1 |
|
1 |
Bradford Elementary |
1 |
|
1 |
Peakview. |
1 |
|
1 |
Littleton Academy |
0.5 |
|
0.5 |