FARMINGTON, Utah — Team Pineda attended the Intermountain Karate Challenge in Farmington, Utah on April 2-3. This was the first karate tournament in over a year for the region due to COVID-19.
In spite of safety protocols, competitors welcomed the long-awaited opportunity to compete. The tournament was a huge success.
Pineda’s 2021 team consisted of 13 members and included first time competitors as well as advanced
competitors. The team was very competitive in all entries. As expected, the competition was very strong. The Utah events present some of the toughest competition in the country.
The team brought in 13 competitors for the event with some great results. The team placed 44 times with
Instructor Jim Dean bringing home the Grand Champion in Black Belt weapons.
Below are full results for the team:
Davey Pelham: 1st in padded sword, 3rd in flag sparring, 1st in first time forms and 1st in first time weapons
Chris McBee: 2nd in self defense, 1st in creative forms, 1st in creative breaking, 1st in first time forms and 1st in first time weapons
Vinny Robidoux: 1st in first timers forms, 1st in first time weapon and 1st in first time sparring
Devin Bobbitt: 1st in breaking, 1st in padded sword sparring, 1st in weapons, 1st in sparring and 2nd in forms
Cole Gilmore: 1st in breaking, 1st in weapons, 2nd in forms, 2nd in sparring, 2nd in padded sword sparring and 3rd in flag sparring
Garrett Gilmore: 1st in flag sparring, 2nd in breaking, 2nd in sparring, 3rd in forms and 3rd in weapons
Malakie Thompson: 2nd in self defense, 3rd in flag sparring, 3rd in breaking, 3rd in weapons and 3rd in padded sword sparring
Jack Gundersen: 3rd in forms, 3rd in sparring and 3rd in breaking
Zayne Rael: 4th in sparring
Pamela Rael: 1st in sparring, 1st in creative weapons, 2nd in forms and 2nd in traditional weapons
Jessie Kniep: 1st in flag sparring and 2nd in breaking
Karson Hansen: 2nd in traditional weapons
Jim Dean: 1st in weapons, 1st in self defense, 2nd in forms, 3rd in sparring and Grand Champion in Black Belt Weapons
The team’s next competition is May 15, 2021 in Green River.
