Funakoshi Karate instructor Peter Conroy was thrilled to see two students excel at the Australian Karate Federation State Championships at Wantirna's State Basketball Center on Sunday.
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Terang's Jill Cole won the ladies veteran kata and was first in ladies veteran team kata along with Maria Brown and Chiyuki Watada, who hail from other dojos.
"She's one of the people who has kept up her fitness regime and it has allowed her to step back into competition at this level," Conroy said of Cole.
Warrnambool's Garrin Williamson, whose instructor is Frank Mckenzie, placed third in the male under 21 kata division - one of his biggest achievements to date.
Conroy said Cole and Williamson were the only Funakoshi Karate competitors on Sunday.
"It was the first championship opportunity any of us has had since COVID-19 restrictions came in force this time last year and there were lots of modifications to how the event was structured for competitors and spectators alike," Conroy said.
"It's just great to see competition karate back in action."
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Conroy explained online competitions were held throughout last year.
But he said the online format was difficult for competitors and judges to manage.
"It's just refreshing that restrictions have lifted to a point where we're back in competition mode," he said.
The karate instructor said restrictions still meant spectators were only allowed to watch their competitor and couldn't watch all events on Sunday.
Conroy, who instructs at Terang and Camperdown, ran one-on-one strength and conditioning sessions with his students during the past year.
"I think that's played a significant part in how we're stepping into 2021," he said.
Conroy said Mckenzie and numerous students participated in a referee course on Saturday.
Warrnambool's Maddie Irving achieved state level b accreditation.
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