Athletes from Cochrane’s Ippon Karate Dojo secured some hardware after competing at the national stage during the Karate Canada National Championships that took place earlier this month.
Chief instructor for Ippon, Adam Wackershauser, said that the tournament took place in Laval, Quebec from July 4 to 7. It hosted around 800 athletes from all over Canada, all aged anywhere from 12 to 35 years old.
“We basically had 13 athletes competing from Cochrane,” Wackershauser explained. “Four of our athletes medalled, we had a silver and three bronze, and then from those medallists, three of them qualified to go to the Pan American Championships in Brazil.”
The medallists include Lina Kokame bringing home silver, along with Brooklyn Carter, Indiana Carlyle-Bedford, and Piper Keegan all securing bronze. Wackershauser also noted the exceptional performances by Evan Squires and Zac Raymond, who both placed within the top five of their divisions.
Wackershauser said that Ippon has had a challenging, but really good year for their athletes. Overall, he said that all of his athletes did very well at the national competition, adding that three athletes from Ippon will be heading to South America for the Pan American competition next month.
“There’s not a stronger tournament in the entire country, so this is our biggest and most elite tournament,” he said. “They did very well [in] representing the club and the province, but we definitely have some stuff to work on for next year.
“Brooklyn, Lena, and Indiana, they’ll all be travelling to the Pan Am’s in August, so that’ll be a big trip. Going to Brazil is pretty far away, but it’ll be great.”
With the tournament behind them, Wackershauser said it is amazing to see his athletes achieve their goals. In his opinion, it’s always a milestone moment when he can share those moments with his students.
“And for us, this is our 19th year as a dojo," he said. "Year 20 is going to be in March 2025, and every year we’ve had people medal at the national championships. And we kept that streak going this year, which is awesome.
“It’s always such a special moment to see these athletes perform," Wackershauser added. "Some of them I’ve known for 10 years, some of them I’ve known since they we’re six years old, and now they’re performing as black belts, the highest level in out country. It’s hard to explain, but it’s amazing to experience as a coach.”
Looking to the future, Ippon is looking to move to a new facility. With a great group of talented young athletes, Wackershauser said they are gearing up to have them ready for the future tournaments.
“By next year we’ll have some other people on the podium that are young, and we have some kids that are just phenomenal, and within the next couple of months, they’ll be competing there too,” he said. “So, we’re in the sweet spot right now, in a good pocket of talented youngsters.”
Wackershauser said Ippon’s motto has always been – train hard and train smart, something he always instills when he teaches his students. With the goal to help more of his students reach the highest levels of karate, he’s hoping to see more of his students qualify for the World Championships later this year.
“Our programs are doing well, we have a great group of kids and adults, and we’re looking to just keep pushing forward the way we’re doing it,” Wackershauser said.
