There were some fantastic skills on show from the various different Marital Arts competing on the day. It provided a non-political ground where artists from all styles could come together to compete in a friendly, unbiased and mutually respectful environment. Our second year in England’s National All-Styles tournament circuit managed to capture the attention of the martial arts community for the second consecutive year like no other.

Queues stretched for hundreds of yards with spectators and anxious competitors outside the magnificent K2 Arena in Crawley on Saturday December 1st eagerly awaiting entrance and they were not disappointed with the days’ events.

When inside an array of trophies were on display and competitors were eager to get their hands on them.  A dedicated and enthusiastic group of officials were busying themselves making the final arrangements for what turned out to be a fantastic day. Whilst no crowd were inside to witness this, the spirit of NAS was already on show. Among the volunteers were a number of instructors and high ranked black belt students and senior instructors, yet while heralding from a myriad of styles, today they would be working as one team. For these men and women, after years of receiving so much from martial arts training, it was about giving something back to the martial arts community.

The trophies on offer were spectacular, as well as the possibility of winning one of the prestige National titles of 2007.  Competition was both fast, fierce, but most importantly, excellent control was still on show as contact was kept to a bare minimum. This illustrates that instructors are not only teaching students to be highly skilled, but of equal importance, to control their mind and emotions when nerves are at peak levels, something they should all be proud of.

Overall and like all competition worldwide, some winners shared tears of joy after winning with their respective friends and clubs, while other competitors who were less fortunate took away an experience that adds to their learning in competing at such a very high level that we offer at National All Styles tournaments.  This also gives all of us a time to re-set goals and move forward as martial artistes.

Black Belt Open Forms
One of the many highlights of the tournament must be the Black Belt Open event.  A lot of spectators and competitors were anxious to see what was coming.

In the Men’s Forms, Darren Chan of The Fight Factory best demonstrated his forms on the day and took the honours. He was followed in a very closely fought competition by Todd Reeves (Go-Kan-Ryu Karate) and Mark Atkinson (Go-Kan-Ryu Karate), who achieved second and third respectively.

Shortly after with protective gear donned for the Open Sparring, all Open competitors were divided into their weight category (Light, Middle and Heavy). Once the three weight category winners had been established, they would then battle it out in a Champions division with the winner being crowned the ‘Champion of Champions’.

Women’s Open Championship Draw
Sabrina Annon of Go-Kan-Ryu Karate had a tremendous start to her campaign winning the Women’s Open Black Belt forms and Open points sparring.  She later backed up her good form taking out her division for the second time, winning the Women’s Lightweight title. This left her as the favourite for the ‘Champion of Champions’ belt.

Someone who would prove that theory wrong was Caroline Smith, also of Go-Kan-Ryu Karate. Caroline showed her competitive edge and took out the Middleweight division in style. 

Stephanie Watson (Go-Kan-Ryu Karate) showed true grit and passion in her quest to win. Her determination paid off in the end, winning the Heavyweight Division in a close encounter with Christine Bates of Fighting Fit Kickboxing.

In the first Champion of Champions draw, a determined Sabrina came back from behind to beat Stephanie by one point.
Caroline and Sabrina went in to the final with confidence, but in the end it was the experience, skill and determination of Caroline that proved the difference as Caroline claimed the honour of being England’s second National All Styles Champion of Champions!

Men’s Open Championship Draw
Mark White of The Falcons Kickboxing Club opened the Men’s proceedings taking the Black Belt Open title, nudging out Darren Chan, Chief Instructor of Fight Factory. Both fighters held little back, stunning the crowd with an array of techniques and spinning kicks. Mark also went on to win the Heavyweight Division, beating Darryl Temple (Go-Kan-Ryu Karate) in a close contest.

Mark Atkinson of Go-Kan-Ryu Karate, who recently came from Australia and competing for the first time, was equally as dazzling.  He demonstrated quick hands and feet as he went on to win the Black Belt Lightweight division.

Elsewhere, the cunning and the experience of Richard Canton, of Canton Martial Arts Karate, helped him take the National Middleweight title.

In the Champions draw, it was Lightweight Champion, Mark Atkinson and Heavyweight Champion, Mark White who took to the floor first. A very loud crowd reminded them of the importance of the bout as each of them commenced their bout.

Mark Atkinson, backing his speed with confident attacks, displayed great application, but the reach and experience of Mark White prevailed in the end earning his way to the final bout.

In the other draw, Middleweight Champion Richard Canton was drawn against Mark Atkinson, the Lightweight Champion, but the cunning and experience of Richard Canton advanced him through to the final stage.
Only a few minutes remained in the finals to see who would be crowned Champion of Champions 2007 and have the belt put around their waist. Once again the crowd lifted the roof, both fighters enjoying great support and each giving the crowd more reason to cheer, as they brought everything to the arena.  As the final whistle blew the scores stood even. 
It was a storybook finish as both competitor’s experience and cunning were evenly matched.   At this point it came down to who wanted it most, first perfect technique to score wins.  As the extension of the bout was announced the crowd, holding their breath, fell completely silent for the first time. The bout was started with both contenders looking for an opportunity to score against each other.  After a tense few minutes it was Mark White who managed to score first and took the honours of being the UK’s second Male National All Styles Champion of Champions for 2007, defeating the previous years Champion.

A Great Success!
An epic, fever pitched, emotionally charged second NAS National Titles was completed and it was surely history in the making. All styles, all ages, all welcome to compete freely under a unified banner, our second UK Champions emerged and proved a showcase for the best of the best in UK martial arts.  We have many clubs from all areas of martial arts who have taken to our rules and beliefs in the spirit of NAS and have made our second year a memorable one, culminating in a day where like minded people coming together and expressing their love for their art and their respect for others.

A very special thanks goes out to all the Officials and Volunteers for their dedication and help in making our second year of NAS very exciting and successful.  Thank you also to all the clubs for your support, enthusiasm and spirit that you have brought to the circuit.  We are certainly excited to see you all in 2008!

Click to Download the UK Nationals Tournament Results for 2007