A team of nine martial artists recently returned to the country with some hardware.
Dr. Kent Bazard and his proteges competed on the International Chinese Martial Arts circuit last weekend in Orlando, Florida, and returned with five gold medals, three silver and one overall championship title. The event was held at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center, in Orlando, last weekend.
"All of the fighters did very well," said Dr. Bazard yesterday "When you look at the way they are progressing in the sport, you have to be thrilled as a coach. We had a 15-year-old on the team who had to fight five persons and came out with the gold medal. That was very impressive," he added.
Winning gold medals for Team Bahamas were Dewitt 'DC' Pratt, Wayne Mackey, Giovanni Johnson, Dijonaisse Brown and 15-year-old Neil King. A number of them are expected to return to Orlando for the 4th Annual International Chinese Martial Arts World Championships, set to be held November 2-4, at Walt Disney World.
In December last year, the 'Beast Mode Sanda MMA Crew', as they are called, wrapped up a very successful season the sport's national tournament here in The Bahamas, and this year, they picked up right where they left off. Dr. Bazard said that they sacrificed everything for the trip last weekend, and it only could get better from there.
"Well, this was their first competition for the year and they performed extremely well," he said. "Now, we intend to increase awareness of the sport. We intend to have a lot of demonstrations so that Bahamians can become aware of what we do. A lot of these guys didn't have any sort of martial arts training when they came into the gym, and now they have progressed to the point where they are winning gold medals. We have an open membership. We start from 12 years old, because Sanda starts with light contact. We feel that is a good time for them to get their feet wet in the sport."
Gold medalist Pratt said that he thought the competition went very well, and is looking forward to returning to Orlando for the ICMAC World Championships in November.
"I'm a striker, so I'm used to punches and kicks, and the guy who I fought for the gold medal, he is a grappler so he was determined to take me to the ground. That kind of threw me off a bit, but in the end, I was able to maintain my composure and stick to what I do best which is striking," said Pratt. "Initially, it was a challenge because he was very aggressive and strong, but I couldn't change my game-plan. I just stuck to what I knew and came out with the win. As a team, we went there to win and we won in dominating fashion. We really showcased the talent that we have. The Bahamian team took the most medals as a team and that really made a statement."
Pratt, who won the gold medal in the 155-pound division, specializes in Muay Thai, which is a combat sport from Thailand and uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. An International Wushu Sanda Federation's proposal for the sport's entry into the Olympic Games is currently on the table and is being reviewed by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for the 2020 Olympics. Pratt said that acceptance of the sport into the Olympic calendar would be great for the practitioners back here in The Bahamas, but he added that he probably wouldn't be eligible due to desire to turn professional.
"I would hope to be professional before 2020, and professional fighters don't compete in the Olympics. I am actually looking at becoming pro in the next few years, but to see the sport grow to that extent where it is in the Olympics, that would be great, just to put The Bahamas on the map," he said.
Dr. Bazard and his students train at the Nassau 'Nastics Gym four times per week, Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. A number of them have already qualified for the ICMAC World Championships in Orlando and they are looking forward to that event. Last December at the Bahamas Open Martial Arts Championships, foreign competitors came down from Chicago, Illinois, and competed in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) and Sanda. In January at the next national tournament, competitors from the World Sanda League and the World Combat Grappling League are expected to take part. That tournament is set for January 18-20, 2013.

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