Students from Chinese Kickboxing Connection brought back medals from a mixed martial arts tournament in Sylvan Lake April 14.
The group won four silvers and three golds.
Sean Carroll placed second in sparring and first in grappling. Tyler Quinn placed second in sparring and second in grappling. Greg Caron placed first in sparring, David Ly placed second in grappling and Emi Sanada place first in sparring.
“We do have a pretty good track record,” said instructor Logan Bruneau, who said the club doesn't typically focus on competition.
“We focus mostly on self-defence,” he said, adding that competitions are voluntary for their 30 to 40 members.
The mixed martial arts school, located above Alberta Trailers, offers a bit of everything including karate, jujitsu, boxing techniques and weapon techniques.
“The main focus is self-defence but the benefits are endless,” he said of the spiritual benefits such as peace of mind.
“Martial arts is misunderstood. Some people think a person will become violent but we stress non-violence. People tend to come out more polite and disciplined. It develops character,” he explained.
The group offers classes to all ages of students. Currently the age range is between three and 56.
He said because each instructor is trained in something different, no two classes are the same.
“We're a mix so practice is different every class. You'll never have the same class twice,” he said, adding typically children benefit from the continuous changeup.
