TKD Tyrone members blaze a trail of gold

THE Tae Kwon Do athletes of the TKD Tyrone club, based in Omagh and Ballygawley, blazed a trail of gold at the recent South West Championships in Bristol.

The local club hit a high of fourth in the medal table out of 57 sports UK clubs starting off the year in stunning style. Led by local Instructor, Mr Martin O’Hare, the athletes claimed five golds, two silvers and two bronzes in the individual sparring events, as well as a host of medals in the ‘Tag-Team’ events.

Rhys Garrity led the way with a hard-fought gold medal, adding to his Northern Ireland 2019 title.

Nicole McElhatton continued her excellent form, adding another gold to her previous NI and Scottish medals.

Newcomer to the club Jack Kennedy had to overcome a strong field to make the final in the Boys Middleweight Division, where he remarkably had to face his very own TKD Tyrone teammate, Darragh Goodwin, in the final, with Jack coming out on top on the day.

Joe Moore, another newcomer to the club, claimed gold in his first championships, with some stunning headshots, making him unbeatable on the day.

Brothers Daniel and Liam Donnelly gave their family two reasons to celebrate with Gold and Bronze medals respectively.

Youngsters Daniel O’Hare and Ryan McCain also claimed Silver and Bronze medals.

Veteran Stephen McVarnock capped a wonderful day with a gold medal in the men’s heavyweight division, with daughter Chloe cheering him on after her own tough fight.

TKD Tyrone Head Instructor O’Hare was delighted with the medal success, but also was keen to highlight the achievements of team members who didn’t quite make the medal podium this time round.

“We had Oisin McCarron, who is one of our brightest prospects, make his debut at Middlweight Level,” he said. “Jack McCain, who has made huge progress in the last year, also stepped into the ring for the first time and did the club proud.

“We had team-favourite, Bernard Goodwin, who lives with Down Syndrome, putting in a wonderful performance in the Pattern Section and Anthea Warner leading the way for the women of the club.

“Overall we have come away from these championships with fantastic memories and club bonds that will continue to strengthen as we look forward to more competitions later this year.”

For more information on the club, visit the Tyrone TKD Facebook page.