St. Anthony’s sweeps Karate tournament titles

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaAugust 20, 2023

St Anthony’s won two team titles and finished as runners-up in one at the 29th Inter School and 11th Inter College Karate Tournament 2023, which concluded on Saturday.

St Anthony’s Higher Secondary School were Boys’ School Team Champions, with St Anthony’s Lower Primary School as the runners-up in the same category. St Anthony’s College were also crowned College Team Champions.

Shillong College finished second in the college category, while the Girls’ School Team Champions trophy was claimed by OM Roy Memorial Higher Secondary School, who finished ahead of Providence School. 

The tournament, organised by the All Meghalaya Karate-Do Association and supported by the Directorate of Sports and Youth Affairs. began on August 17 and ran for three days at the Multipurpose Hall at the Sport Authority of India’s Shillong Training Centre on the NEHU campus. 

Once again, the level of competition was very high and a number of bright karate prospects were spotted while the more experienced karatekas have continued to shine, many of them having now graduated to the college level. 

The action was witnessed by a number of dignitaries, with Sports and Youth Affairs Minister, Shakliar Warjri, present on the opening day as the chief guest. Working President of the Meghalaya State Olympic Association, John F Kharshiing, was present at both the opening and closing ceremonies and he was accompanied to the latter by not one but two former Olympians – Ian Campbell, who is spearheading the Elite Pathway Programme to groom athletes with enormous potential, and Robert Kabbas, who has one Olympic silver medal as well as two gold and one silver from the Commonwealth Games to his name in weightlifting. 

Other dignitaries included MSOA General Secretary Finely L Pariat and Assistant Director of Sports and Youth Affairs Paia B War Nongbri, among others.

Around 500 karatekas from 70 schools and six colleges took part in the kumite (sparring) and kata (demonstration of form) events.