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2014 UC Open Taekwondo Action
Many Local Medal Winners at Taekwondo Championships
Published: Wednesday, May 28, 2014
(NOTE: This article is reprinted with the kind permission of the MS Area Newspapers, www.MtShastaNews.com)
Eight Mount Shasta youth returned from the 45th UC Open Taekwondo Championships with 11 medals on April 26 at UC Berkeley.
“The effort and improvement these kids made in getting ready for this year’s competition was apparent in their results and their attitude,” said MSMAP head coach Chuck Buhs. “Honestly, I enjoyed their camaraderie and teamwork as much as the action in the ring.”
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2014 UC Open Highlights Slideshow |
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Chris in Action! (5:27) |
Three of the older team members had close competitions in forms, which are pre-arranged techniques judged on precision, balance, and power:
- Emmanuel Saryon, 12, went first and kept the highest score in his advanced blue belt division until the last competitor outscored him by just a few tenths of a point.
- Team captain Vitaliy Tveritin, 13, was also edged out of first place by just 1/10th of a point in his red belt division.
- Riley Witherell, 13, was tied for first at the end of her blue belt competition, then had to do her form again in a tie-breaker to determine the winner. She and the other competitor performed at the same time for a side-by-side comparison. One slight stumble on a sidekick kept Riley from the gold.
“I was so much more nervous during the tie-breaker than at the very beginning,” said Riley. “I expected others to be better than me, but I felt really good that my hard work paid off.”
All three competitors took home silver medals.
The surprise of the team was Vitaliy’s younger brother, Vova, 9. All of the MSMAP team members and families were struck by his lack of nervousness and matter-of-fact attitude in winning silver in his green belt division.
Explaining how he could appear so relaxed, Vova said, “I felt happy.”
The youngest member of the team, Chris Schrievers of Dunsmuir, 7, competed for the first time in both forms and sparring as a blue belt, which is an upper-intermediate level.
“I was very excited for a whole year about competing,” said Chris. “I worked really hard, and I was serious about my training. I wanted to be ready. At the competition, I was a little scared because everything was so big and there were a lot of people.”
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| Silver Medal Form | Battle for Gold | Bronze Medal Form |
Before the competition, Chris’ mother, Lourdes, “was concerned he would get beat up. But, I supported him all the way because he really wanted to do it.”
Chris ended up in a tie-breaker for second place in forms and earned a bronze medal. In sparring, which is full-contact kicking and punching with protective padding, he had an exciting three-round finals match that ended with a score of 19-17 and him winning silver.
“I learned I have to get more ready and use more combinations like fast kick-back kick,” Chris shared. “I tell my friends at school that taekwondo is really fun, and they should get on the mat.”
Rounding out the team were second-time competitors Lily Weaver, 12, Brynn Witherell, 12, and Elina Saryon, 16. They all won bronze in forms.
Vitaliy also won silver and Lily bronze in their respective sparring divisions.
“This is a very focused team,” added Buhs. “Their discipline, confidence, and respect will payoff beyond this competition. For Vitaliy, he gets to come back down to Berkeley in a week to take his black belt exam. Others will follow along when they’re ready to test for their black belts.”
Hearing that, Chris exclaimed, “I want to learn things to get my black belt now!”
MSMAP, a 501(c)(3) non-profit providing positive activities for youth, adults, and families in our area. They are located at 612-A S. Mt. Shasta Blvd.. More information can be found on their website at www.MtShastaMA.org, email ( ), phone ( 530.859.2024 ), and on Facebook (MSMAP on Facebook).
Read more: Other articles about MSMAP’s successful competition experiences.
Go to: 2017 UC Open Taekwondo & Yongmudo Championships
Go to: 2016 UC Open Taekwondo & Yongmudo Championships
Go to: 2014 UC Open Taekwondo Championships
Go to: 2013 UC Open Taekwondo Championships
Go to: 2012 UC Yongmudo Championships
Go to: 2012 UC Open Taekwondo Championships
Go to: 2011 UC Yongmudo Championships
Go to: 2011 UC Open Taekwondo Championships
Go to: 2010 UC Open Taekwondo & Yongmudo Championships
Go to: 2009 UC Open Taekwondo Championships
Learn more about Taekwondo Competition:
Go to: UC Open Information
Go to: Taekwondo Competition
