USA Medalists
Gold Medalists
Andrew Adams
Yohan Alvarado
Armando Anselmo (2)
Troy Binns
Ira Brown
Michael Bouyea
Ody Castillo
Chris Chastain
Chris Collins
Harris Edwards
Bernard Frost (2)
Vincent Johnson
Justin Jones
Kevin Kowalczik
Ross Levine
Horace Morgan
Katie Murphy (2)
Ricky Murray
Daniel Napolitano (2)
Cameron Okubo
Reginald Perry (2)
Kris Pilgrim (3)
Morgan Plowden
Kyle Reed
Charles Rice
Ethan Simmons
Carlos Tearney (3)
Jadi Tention (2) **
Tyler Titus (2)
Robert Wallace
Marcus Williams
Chance Zurub
Silver Medalists
Alexandra Adams
Yohan Alvarado
Armando Anselmo (2)
Avery Behr
Troy Binns
Austin Bryant
Gamal Byfield
Ody Castillo
Michael Cofer
Timonthy Dalrymple
Lynne Degroot
Chiara Dituri
Vincent Johnson
Kevin Kowalczik
Dakota Krol
Ross Levine
Daniel Matveev
Marisa Murray
Daniel Napolitano (2)
Justin Nowakowski
Deborah O’Nail
Jordan Okubo (3)
Cameron Okubo
Reginald Perry
Kris Pilgrim
Brandon Pizarro (2)
Jared Roberts
Charles Rice
Will Sandstrom (2)
Carlos Tearney
Jadi Tention
Cheyenne Titus (3)
Susan Wackett (3)
Robert Wallace
Nathan Weaver
Jermond Wiggins
Marcus Williams
Tyler Zecchino
Chance Zurub
Bronze Medalists
Alexandra Adams (4)
Andrew Adams (2)
Abdul Aziz
Avery Behr
Austin Bryant
Gamal Byfield (3)
Tyler Davis
Lynee Degroot
Chiara Dituri (2)
Harris Edwards
Harris A. Edwards
Emily Fedie (3)
Rain Fredericks
Bernard Frost (2)
Christopher Gorham
Corey Holzman-Crazz (2)
Vincent Johnson
Justin Jones (2)
Cory Kowitz
Noel Loveless (4)
Arian Martin (2)
Daniel Matveev
Horace Morgan
Katie Murphy (3)
Marissa Murray (2)
Kennan Myers
Nick Nowakowski
Deborah O’Nail (2)
Kyle Petrosky (3)
Kris Pilgrim (5)
Morgan Plowden
Kyle Reed
Jared Roberts
Will Sandstrom
Ethan Simmons (3)
Rocky Steel
Mason Stowell
Ricardo Taylor
Cheyenne Titus (3)
Tyler Titus
Marquez Vargas
Susan Wackett (2)
Nathan Weaver (2)
Jermond Wiggins
Tyler Zecchino (2)
** Overall Champion of Champions
The Cadiz Story: 2011
“A man is not old until regrets take the place of dreams”: Living the Dream
As one ages, the mind begins to play tricks. While it is true that the body changes, the
mindʼs ability to pick up on and recognize those changes can be a battle all to itself. At
the WKC World Championships in Portugal, Iron Woman Kris Pilgrim fought a valiant
light contact match against Englandʼs Jade Hicks, a match that Pilgrim lost. Pilgrim is
20 years older than Hicks, a fact that did not deter her. Immediately after the match
in Portugal, Pilgrim set her sights on a rematch in Spain. Practically every conversation
about Spain involved a comment about Hicks. When Team England posted their roster,
Pilgrim made sure that she was there. In Spain, not only still 20 years younger, the
British fighter had lost some weight. But Pilgrim was determined. “Whatever happens,
donʼt let me quit”, she told her corner. Quit? That was not even part of the equation as
Pilgrim defied the odds, found the fountain of youth, and put on the performance of a
lifetime en route to a gold medal finish. Tough? For sure. Inspiring? Without doubt.
Classy? Yes. Congratulations to Kris Pilgrim, the most decorated athlete in WKC USA
history. A person who walks the walk.
Parents Know Best
Nathan Weaver had qualified to go to the first WKC World Championships in Ireland for
forms and weapons. Because of the team structure by weight for sparring and the fact
that slight would be a great way to describe Weaverʼs physical stature there was an
opening in his weight class for semi contact sparring. However that was not a
component of the martial arts that Weaver had an interest in. His parents tried, but
Nathan had no interest. His dad however mentioned to WKC USA president Richard
Plowden, that if Plowden asked, Nathan might change his mind. At a local event after
conversing with Mr. Plowden, Nathan ran to his dad, “Mr. Plowden asked me to spar in
Ireland,” he said. “And I said, ʻyesʻ.
This year Weaver fought what many thought was the match of the event against World
Champion from Canada Sebastian Couture. After regulation time, the two fighters were
tied. The WKC model is that the first overtime of the match is a one minute extension.
The two fighters were still tied after one minute. Next was an overtime with the first
point winning. Weaver was given what was thought to be the winning point, but after
consultation the officials ruled that his hand touched the floor. The next point was given
to Couture, but Weaver had nothing to feel bad about. The martial arts is about
indomitable spirit and constant and never ending improvement. From being recruited to
fight in Ireland to world silver medalist, Nathan Weaver proves that he possess both
qualities.
The Determined Educator
For many the flights to Spain involved layovers that would try anyoneʼs patience. Many
athletes and family members had to endure unexpected hours in Madrid for a myriad of
reasons according to airline authorities. Luckily they had given themselves a cushion
before registration and competition. However USA team member Katie Murphy had no
such luxury. Because of her status as a school teacher in New York, Murphy was
alloted by her employers only so much time off. After all the thought is that educators
have summers and various holidays to recreate. Murphy however was determined.
She made arrangements to register for her forms and weapons divisions and hoped for
smooth travel. As fate would have it none of the challenges that affected her team
mates 24 hours before crossed paths with Murphy. She arrived literally just in time to
line up for her divisions, without any rest, fatigued from flying all night and placed in her
divisions. With a couple of days to rest before her finals she announced “now it is time
to get some rest”. On finals day, well rested with her legs under her Murphy moved up
the standings and captured two gold medals. Next year maybe her superiors at work
will understand now that World Champion Katie Murphy is teaching for them.
The Eleven - Eleven Revolution
All week Kevin Kowalczik of Revolution Martial Arts seemed on edge. In one realm he
had a plethora of students on the United States team so he was a mother hen making
sure that they were taken care of. In another realm he had his own competition
divisions to think of. And then it was his upcoming nuptials on November 11. With such
a talented crew it was easier for Kowalczik to manage and keep his personal goal in
mind. “I really want that Korean forms gold medal,” he would say to anyone in ear shot.
And once the dust settled Revolution Martial Arts of Colorado had a treasure trove of
medals, including the one that Kevin coveted, World Champion in Korean forms. The
only thing sweeter must have been his marriage ceremony. Congrats!
The Beast
Justin Jones is easy to miss. Yes he is a big guy, at close to 6ʼ0” and over 220 pounds.
However he is so unassuming and so quiet unlike many of his New York counterparts
that in a room full of people you might not notice him. Jonesʼ quiet nature however
changes when he is in the ring. In individual competition and team sparring Jones
showed glimpses of skills that put the world on notice. And then in continuous sparring
he repeated as WKC World Champion. Rumor is though that his best skills are
demonstrated when playing video games. But the world had better watch out. As he
gains experience Justin Jones is going to be a dual threat.
Like Father And Son
Years ago schools used to have father and son nights when anything from basketball to
chess may be shared. In martial arts circles and because of the nature of the WKC we
have many families that knowingly or unknowingly are creating memories that will last
generations, just like those aforementioned nights. In Spain Terrance Collins (father)
showed up with son Chris Collins to partake in all that the WKC experience had to offer.
The elder Collins is a traditional martial artist from a by gone era. However he, along
with instructor Carlos Tearney have been able to get Chrisʼ buy in to traditional forms in
a period where so many youth want to flip and trick. Chris, totally new to international
competition did not finish in the top two during run offs but performed well enough to
make the medal round of four. With a couple of days to work out identified flaws, Chris
showed up for the championship rounds with a certain confidence. And the
results...”when I saw them announce the silver medalist and it was not my son,
immediately the tears came,” dad said. “I am so proud that his hard work paid off.”
Perseverance
Although he did not demonstrate it in public, in 2010 at the World Championships in
Portugal, Tyler Titus had to be a lonely man. True he was there with the United States
team and his dojo mates from Kansasʼ “Tribe of Five”, but Titus was on the bench not
competing because of a broken leg from football. Demonstrating a no quit attitude,
Titus played football again this season working towards a desired college scholarship in
a few years. And he also came to Spain to claim what he was denied last year. In a
manner typically reserved for the cinema Tyler captured gold in traditional weapons and
free style forms getting a monkey off of his back whose weight only he could relate to.
Plan Ahead
Bobby Wallace had a problem. For some reason, only known to Wallace he had
booked his flight home from Cadiz on World Championship Saturday. It was the day of
gold medal match ups. This would not have been a problem if Wallace had lost in the
eliminations. However after the eliminations he found himself in two gold medal
matches. What to do? After pondering the situation for what seemed like hours,
Wallace worked the telephones with the airlines in an attempt to modify his ticket. No
one knows what it cost him, but Saturday, Wallace was on the line ready to go, his
return flight secured for a few days later. Rumor is that he took some time and went to
Africa with a team mate. If this is so, we are sure that he had in his possession his gold
and silver medals to highlight his world championship experience.
