NEW ZEALAND TEAM  12th ITF Taekwon-Do World Championships.  Rimini Italy - 3-8 July 2001

The Louis and Steve Morris at Pisa after the tournament
 

20.7.01  Vacation Update from Mr Jake Pearson, III Dan

17.7.01  Vacation Update from Mr Paul McPhail, VI Dan

14.7.01  Vacation Update from Ms Toni Moki, II Dan,  and Mr Mark Trotter, II Dan

Hello to everyone in New Zealand and the rest of the team still travelling.
Its good to hear what everyone has been up to since they left us so Mark and I decided to tell you what we have been up to.
We went to london from Bologna to stay with Mark's aunt for a few days.
The shopping in London sucks but we found better things to do to entertain ourselves, such as figuring out how to use the subway. After three days in London we managed to get a really cheap flight to Germany. The trip turned out to be very cheap because we didn't  have to pay for a hotel, I'm sure you can all guess where we are staying!!
Anyway, the German girls are really nice and are showing us a great time in Germany.
Anyway Mark wants to say: 'hows it going Aaron, you're missing out buddy'  hahahaha!!
So ... hows everyone doing? What else is going on around the world? By the way Lawrence I have some A grade gossip to tell you and something important to discuss, just wait till you get back mister!! Mark says: 'Hi kylee, I'm keeping it real, if you know what I mean!'
Mark: For those of you that don't know Toni was also 'keeping it real' with the Italians.
But on a serious note we are having a really good time, anyway I have to go so I will pass u back to Toni.

Yeah, okay, I have no idea what he's talking about! But, also on a more serious note, I would like to say thank you sooo much to all the people who sent emails to the team while we were competing. We all fought over who was next to read the emails that Mr McPhail handed out over breakfast, they were fantastic for our team morale and spirit.
Anyone can email us at markatrotter@hotmail.com but we are flying home on Wednesday, I can't wait. Otherwise, it's really good to hear how everyone else is doing on their travels so keep the updates coming in.

14.7.01  Vacation Update from Mr Graham Patterson, IV Dan

I'm currently in Glasgow, just arrived this afternoon.

After the tournament Barb, Alana & I caught the train to Florence & spent 2 nights there. We inadvertantly managed to jump the first class of a "Euro- star", which is some sort of flash train. Apparently you have to pay extra, but when you have no more money, and no stops to throw you off, there isn't much the poor guard could do.
Thought that the sights of Florence were fantastic, and well worth the visit. Saw Steve, Vanessa, Hong, Lisa & Lewis in the street, just as they were off to Pisa.

Then caught the train to Venice, where we spent the last couple of nights. We were staying in a hotel just off of St Mark's Square, so it was handy to the main attractions.
Venice is novel, no cars or scooters as per the other Italian cities, but plenty of boats.
The sights are also impressive, but I found that Venice is an over- commercialised and over-priced tourist mecca - not somewhere I'd return to on subsequent trips.

After a delay trying to catch a water taxi to the airport this morning (everyone in Italy is in cruise-mode - 15mins regularly stretches to 30mins) we managed to make the check-in just in time.
Caught up with the Loois again in the boarding queue, who were off to London for a few nights.

Barb & Alana got off in Gatwick and are staying with family in London. I'm on my way over to the Isle of Islay (off the west coast of Scotland) tomorrow morning.
This small island has 8 currently active distilleries, so I'm planning to spend the next few days attempting to out-drink the Scottish.

Wish me luck.

Gray
 

13.7.01 Steven's Log Vacation Update from Mr Steve Morris, I Dan

We are sitting outside a cafe in Venice, already ordered... forgetting that the price has already tripled because of it.
Here we have just met some fellow backpackers looking for cheap accommodation. It's nice to be the ones able to help others out for once: "What goes around ..."
We have had some photos developed; some are really good, others not so, but if they were all good what would we have to look forward to?
When we can get them onto to the computer we will send some across.

We figured we have seen as much of Venice as we can in a couple of days and are heading to Verona, then Milano, then some place starting with 'T' (Tureno, I think. When you're not sure you just put "INO" or "NA" on the end), then Manaco, down to Genova, and Cinquera Tera... well that's the plan.

Well, that's enough for now and I'm not sure when we will get on the net next so...

Ciao (for now) Stefano and Venizia (Vanessa)
 

13.7.01  Safe Arrival Update from Mrs Lena Walton, III Dan

Hi Team!

Just to let you know that Jaime, Nikki, Sherylene and I have made it safely back to NZ.

Keep those emails coming through as it's neat hearing about your travel adventures.

Ian says to have a wonderful trip to our touring Kiwis and it looks as if I'll be coming back to Poland!!! I have some unfinished business!

Signing off now.

Lena (Your Royal Queen.....heehee)
 

13.7.01  Safe(ish) Arrival Update from Mr Daniel Jackson, II Dan

Hi there,
Well our trip home was somewhat of an adventure. We woke up at about 9:15 to the phone ringing in our room, with Hong telling us (Luke and Dan) that we had just missed the bus that the rest of the group was on to get to the train station.

We - in our state from the function the night before, about 3-4 hours sleep - were now in panic mode, packing our bags and rushing to get a taxi to catch our train that left at 10:03. We got to the train station just in time to catch up with the others and catch the right train to the airport. We had about 4-5 minutes to spare, which gave us enough time to catch our breath, settle my stomach and catch the train to Bologna.

Little did we know that this was not the last of the drama home. Bologna to Heathrow, sweet. Heathrow to Singapore, no worries. Singapore to Melbourne, well...
About 20 mins out from Melbourne the captain comes across the speaker and tells us that we can't land in Melbourne because of thickening fog, with visibility too low to land. Then he tells us that we will have to turn around and go back to Adelaide and wait there 'til the fog lifts. An hour and a half later we land in Adelaide and wait for about three hours.

The problem there, the captain told us, was that the pilots have a set legal amount of time behind the wheel, and if the fog did not lift in three quarters of an hour we would have to disembark in Adelaide and wait 12 hours until they could fly us back to Melbourne. 15 mins later, all the engines running on full throttle, we're on our way to Melbourne... what a relief that was! We landed in Melbourne and were rushed through customs to catch a flight to Auckland, which had been delayed an hour waiting for us to get to Melbourne.

We finally arrived in Auckland to find family and friends that had been patiently waiting for a grand total of 5 hours in the arrival foyer.

But enough about that.

I would like to thank everyone for all the support from home while we were away. It was awesome that every morning everyone would be queueing up to read all of the emails from family, friends and supporters. I have to thank everyone who was involved with the net and communications between the team and home. [Welcome :) - Web Team]

The tournament was by far one of the most awesome things I have ever seen. The level of skill from some of the other countries is something that you have to see to believe. The sparring is so fast and well executed. The thing that showed the most was the experience the other countries have with so many competitions and so much ring time. For example, in Europe you only have to cross into the next country for their nationals, interstate competitions, camps etc, as well as your own.

It was interesting to see the different styles between countries and their strong techniques. The Polish, for example, are really good with their hands, and the Koreans are just good with everything.

I feel that as a team, although we did not bring back any medals, we all did really well, and I would like to thank Mr Salton and Mr McPhail for all that they have done for us.

Thanks,
Dan Jackson
II Dan
 

12.7.01  Vacation Update from Mr Hayden Breese, II Dan

Hi everyone on the road and those safely at home
I went to Venice after the champs and... well, there is a lot of water there.

>I then travelled to Munich in Germany. It is a great city with a very good transport system. So much Beer!

I will be in Berlin staying at the YHA hostal on the 14 and 15th if anyone wants to meet up.

Keep up the fun Lozza and Paul.

Hayden on tour

Anyone can email me on tour at:

hayden@myth.co.nz
 

12.7.01 Steven's Log Vacation Update from Mr Steve Morris, I Dan

Well hi there again,
What's up with everyone? Any new news or gossip?

Today we had a look around Venice by Water Taxi, which was a little lighter on the feet than the walking we did yesterday! We have seen a lot, as Venice is small and we have been busy. The Basilica was I would say was the most magical place, with hundreds of people and pigeons to match. As you come through the entrance to the Piazza (Square) it just goes kablam!
Also today we saw the glass makers; this was impressive, as the dude making the pieces made a stallion in about one minute... and it was good!

Well, ciao for now.
Stefano
 

11.7.01  Update from Mr Lawrence Mantjika, III Dan

Bonjour au Paris... comment ça va?
Hi, here we are in Paris... what can I say? It is a fantastic place. Just what you expected it to be from those travel books and postcards. Beautiful architecture and great shops. Any team members who are still in Europe and doing the big OE, you must come to Paris, it is well worth the effort.
It is quite expensive, but not too much more than the prices we would pay in NZ. [Ed: What, you didn't watch "The $20 Challenge in Paris"?]
Today we went up the Eiffel Tower. It is massive! We walked up the stairs (no, we didn't count it), and the view... WOW! Tres incredible.
All the grand palaces, the River Seine, Place de la Concorde etc... We went to the Louvre, once the palace of the French kings, but now a museum. It is huge and very GRAND!
Paris is clean and exciting.
Walked in the Jardin, saw all the fountains, etc etc.
Wished that the team were still with us here. They would have just gone wild over the sights. Went to the Arc de Triomphe, then walked along the Champs Elysee. Saw a huge perfumerie, absolutely mind blowing.
Tomorrow we are going inside the Louvre, hopefully see the Mona Lisa and Venus de Milo. Apparently hardly be able to see it as there will be millions of people there. We will get there very early in the morning to get in first before the queues start.
Tonight we are going to have a typical French dinner! Then see Notre Dame at night, apparently it's spectacular.
Still wondering how the team are getting on, and eagerly open the webpage but no news from anybody, pour qui????
Will write again tomorrow... until then.... Au revoir.
 

11.7.01  Final Thoughts from Mr Steve Morris, I Dan

Well the tournament is over, for the Kiwis at least.
But we walk away with our heads held high, knowing those medals are within reach.
We just have to want them a little more next time.
All that's left to do now is a little swapping of mementos and doboks.
We leave a little more wise and a little more hungry than before we left, knowing that next time it's our turn for Gold!
 

11.7.01  Update from Mr Lawrence Mantjika, III Dan

Hi - I'm writing from Gatwick Airport in London.We have just arrived here from Venice and awaiting next flight to Paris. I am travelling with Paul M. We are wondering how the rest of the team got on with their travels. The girls (Lena, Nikki and Sherylene) should still be on their way back to NZ at the moment, and all others should be having great adventures. You will have to write in and keep us informed how you are getting on. Allan and Hayden if you are reading this we tried to look for your hostel but didn't quite make it. Hoped to see you at the Piazza San Marco.

Anyway just wanted to tell you all about our adventures in Venice...

We left Rimini at 6.20 am and caught the train, the rest of the team were still asleep after the party! Sorry didn't manage to say goodbye to all of you! Train ride was great, we travelled with Andrew, Cilla, and Cedar. They got off in Bologna, and we carried on to Venice.

Got off the train station and had to get a boat to our hotel... looked easy enough on the map, but when we got there we were totally lost in the rabbit warren alleyways of Venice. What an amazing place! No cars or motorised vehicles, everybody walked everywhere.

After one and a half hours of getting lost, we finally found our tiny hotel. Checked in and then explored the amazing alleyways that are Venice's roads!!

Girls you would have loved the shopping! We went to St Mark's Square where there are millions of people! Went up the tower and got a great view of the city. The houses/builddings were old but grand. The waterways clean, with gondolas cruising them. Romantic couples sitting in golden seating and enjoying the sights... just like the travel photos.

We bought our ticket to the airport (another ride on the boat that took us straight to the airport, it's cool!!). Gondola rides are £250,000 so we flagged it. Had a great grilled fish Italian meal with wine and the works, great! Then walked the waterfront, heaps of tourists. had coffee, and watched the gondolas on their evening cruises...one had a accordian playing and the man singing songs...(not quite 'o sole mio). Wait until you guys hear the plans that Paul and I came up with for NZ TKD!! You will hear some at the conference!

Gotta go now, so will write to you again from Paris... the rest of you team members... we want to hear your stories too!!

Signing off from Gatwick...
 

09.7.01  Some overall recollections from Mr Paul McPhail, VI Dan

Some of the team wrote stuff down, but it was hard to hear. Korea won most stuff... all the Individual Patterns except male 4th dan which went to Poland. (Mark Trotter's favourite little Uzbekistani kid lost to Korea in the final of 2nd dan patterns.)

Korea won Best Overall Country and had Best Overall Male and Female.
Poland would have come second but not sure. Male team sparring - Poland, Female - Korea, Team patterns - Korea and Korea.

Australia won its first ever gold medal in Individual Power Breaking. He was the only one in the whole tournament to break the forefist punch (3 plastic boards). The holders were rocking back like crazy!
Jamaica won its first ever medal in Womens' Power.
South Africa also first ever medal which was in Mens' Team Power.

Tomaz Barada and Bianca Tapilatu both won their respective individual sparring divisions - both from Slovenia and coached by Willy van de Mortel. Tomaz has a real cult following and when he beat the Korean the house came down.

That's about it from memory.

P

07.7.01 Photos from Final Day of Competition

wot's this then?
 

08.7.01 Final Day of Competition Valedictory Update from Mr Paul McPhail, VI Dan

The final day of the 2001 World Champs - and yet again we so painfully close to medals it was heart breaking. If fact, if the Power Breaking rules were the same was previous World Champs, we would have collected 2 silver medals and a bronze.

The Male Power Team scored the third highest score of the Champs (20), with sucessful breaks from Ry, Jake and Dan. In our group though, England scored 22 so went through to the finals. At previous Champs the three highest scorers got the medals. This time though the winner of each "Group" goes through to a final, even though in some groups they may have been only scoring 10 or 12.  Same with Lena's Individual Power - she got the second highest score of the competition, but the highest was also in her group.

We didn't qualify in the Female Team Power, completing only one of the three breaks.

The NZ Team sparring kicked off with NZ vs Bulgaria. Jake and Dan fought well but lost, Hong winning convincingly. The final bout was over to Luke - who faced a very tricky opponent who did a lot of running and side stepping. Luke did his best to catch him but alas...win to Bulgaria.

The Female Team Sparring as also against Bulgaria and put up a fight we did! Lena was unable to fight due to a foot injury from the power breaking, so Jeanette was up first against a very strong opponent. It was a close match - win to Bulgaria.  Bring on Toni Moki! Toni blitzed her opponent conviningly with a display of dodging kicks and fast punches. Win to NZ. Chantelle then fought well and showing heaps of courage, but the match was to go to Bulgaria. Nikki also put up a great tactical fight and the decision must have been close.

That ended our hopes at the World Champs.

The team are naturally disappointed with not being able to bring home any medals, especially after an extended period of time today when we led our group in Power Breaking. We have reminded ourselves of the positives... in that for the first time we had sparring success with Aaron progressing through several rounds, and with Hong, Kylee, Mark and Toni all winning matches. We went close in patterns with Lawrence, Mark, Nikki, Steve and Toni all winning rounds. Our power tests were well up to world standards with the breaks we achieved - only unlucky draws keeping us out of the medal count.

The Team wish to thank everyone from at home and also around the world for your support by way of emails. It was a highlight each day as we read through the emails at breakfast. Special thanks to Neil and Matthew Breen for spending so much time to keep the webpage updated and interesting. The Team now depart for various destinations around Europe, and they may well drop the webpage editors an email or two so watch this space.

From all of us here in Rimini - thanks and see you soon.

Signing out...

07.7.01 Photos from Fourth Day of Competition

07.7.01 Fourth Day of Competition Update from Mr Paul McPhail - VI Dan

Competition for us began with Hong versus Latvia.  Hong dominated the fight and progressed to the next round.  He then met Germany, who won the match and went on to take out the silver medal.  The fight was very close, fast and furious and Hong did us proud.

Cilla fought Bulgaria, and managed to be the only person we saw kick their opponent off centre stage.  Unfortunately Bulgaria got back on centre stage and won the match.

Kylee took Jamaica to a third round in what was an extremely close and hard match.  The Jamaican was also their power breaker who went onto win bronze in that event.  Kylee then fought Italy, dominated the second round but a final combo from Italy saw it slip out of her hands.  Italy went through to win silver.

Lena came second to England in group three in power breaking, scoring thirteen points with her knife hand and turning kicks.  England went on to the final and took silver.  Lena was the only female in the qualifying rounds to destroy the knife hand.

Gray also came second in his group for power breaking.  The Aussie was extremely strong and Gray missed out by just a few points.  The Aussie took out the gold.

In the afternoon we watched the finals of all the individual events. There was some fantastic matches and enjoyed just sitting and watching for a change.  Tomorrow we have female and male team power and sparring - so a big day for New Zealand.

07.7.01 Interesting Info *
  In the "Photos from the Rest day" you will see the New Zealand flag being carried in to the Opening Ceremony.
The flag bearers are medal winners from previous world champs.
Mr Graham Patterson, IV Dan, took a bronze for individual power breaking in Argentina, 1999.
Ms Jeanette Joe, IV Dan, Mrs Lena Walton, III Dan and Ms Kylee Cusin, II Dan were part of the Women's team which took bronze for team power breaking in Russia, 1997.

Other past World Champs medal winners for New Zealand, not in this Italy team:
  Jake Goldsmith, bronze for individual heavyweight sparring, 2000 Juniors, in Korea.
  Leanna McCartney, Wai Paraone, Julia Parker: also members of the Women's team which took bronze for team power breaking in Russia, 1997.
  Mark Rounthwaite, bronze for IV Dan patterns in Malaysia, 1994.

We believe there are 59 competing countries at this Italy champs. Four unfortunately arrived late, so couldn't compete.
There are over 500 competitors, with maybe 100 umpires and as many other officials riding herd.  (2 & a 1/2 times the size of our Nationals).
Gold Medals only will be counted to determine the overall best country.
The teams range in size from 1 or 2, up to the USA with we think about 30.
Ours, at 22 competitors, is considered a large team.
(there are 34 possible places in a team - Individual:  patterns 4,  sparring 5, destructions 2,  team event: 6.
That's 17 x 2 for Male & Female = 34. Of course, some team members will cover more than one event.)

We sent 13 competitors to Argentina in 99, and 15 to Russia in 97.  Our web page archives don't go back to 94, so maybe one of the ol' hands can email us with the Malaysian team size. We're told photographic evidence reveals a team of 13. (thanks to Phil and Angela Dunn.)
Longest standing competitors: Ms Jeanette Joe, Mr Lawrence Mantjika, and Mr Aaron McIlwee (all in the Italy team) competed in Malaysia in 94.

Note that I have video evidence of Mr Andrew Salton amd Mr Paul McPhail (the Coach & Assistant Coach) competing in an ITF regional champs about two decades ago - (so long ago they had to hand-crank the video recorders and light the stadium with burning torches :)

At this half way point in our coverage of the Competition in Rimini, and encouraged by the nice things that people are saying, I would like to credit some of the people who have battled the harsh Auckland winter (there was ICE on my car windows one morning last week!) staying here and contributing to the page and its upkeep.
(Mr Paul McPhail has of course, as always, been the backbone. But he and his apprentices in the team already have their piccies posted :)   )
 

Matt Breen - III Dan - Co-editor  Created most of the new pages and fancy stuff in the last two weeks, lots of photo layouts, tricky javascript clocks, calendars etc etc.	Thanks also to all the readers who bump up our counters, and say nice things :)	Neil Breen - II Dan - Co-editor  Spends much time digging up trivia - or just creating it :)
Debbie Trotter  Assistant manager of the team - providing background info on the team, and lots of moral support.  (along with hubby Paul)	Sue Breen  Proof reader and email watcher - a long standing web page team supporter.	Andrew Niven - III Dan  Keeping watch and providing suggestions and corrections.  There when it counts!

06.7.01 Congress & Opening Ceremony Update from Mr Paul McPhail - VI Dan

Today was rest day so most went shopping or lay about on the beach. Did I mention the ice cream here is just fantastic...we coaches are getting very fat!

Mr Patterson and I attended the 13th ITF Congress as the New Zealand officials this morning. Seems the official notification from NZ of who would attend the meeting didn't reach the ITF so no-one was on the official list. So unofficially we had Mark and Michelle (officials) do some behind the scenes work to officially get us in. Michelle had our ID cards all done and Mark waved us to the front of the queue and we were in sweet as. Luckier than the Canadians who had a big fight over who were "their" offical representatives ...bit of yelling and carry on - all very exciting.

Well that was about all the excitement we had for 7 hours crammed in a hot room with 100 other suited men and women with no sign of as much as a drink of water.
Big news though is that General Choi was elected as President of the ITF for another 2 years, then Master Choi Jung Hwa (his son) will take over the remainder of the 6 year term from then. In two years he will be promoted to 9th dan.

Next World Champs is in Poland in 2003, Junior Worlds confirmed as Argentina in November 2002.

Anyway - back to the Hotel, ice cream, coffee, dinner (more pasta) and off to the Opening Ceremony.

This was a great night - almost a party atmosphere - music, brass bands and some amazing demos. Italy and Argentina demonstrated the new "Traditional Sparring", which may become a World Champs event. It is a pre-arranged type sparring routine showing all the cool stuff. All on video.

The highlight though was Polish guy who started his demo at the side of centre stage with a held side kick. Then like a machine gun he shot across the ring firing a thousand kicks on one leg finishing with his side kick in the face of his assistant. He then performed some great kicks including a full speed reverse turning kick stopping an inch from his assistant's face (see photo). He finished with a blindfolded kick, a can off the head. Was really something else!

Tomorrow we are up early again and have a big day - wish us luck.

06.7.01 International Update : South Africa

05.7.01 International Update : USA

05.7.01 Photos from Second Day of Competition

05.7.01 Second Day of Competition - Results for NZ from Mr Paul McPhail - VI Dan

Another exciting day here at the World Champs - but unfortunately no medals for NZ. Aaron achieved the best sparring result of any Kiwi at a world champs by winning 3 fights, to be eliminated one short of a medal. The draw was mucked up meaning he had to do 3 fights in under 1 hour, making it even more of an achievement.

Jaime didn't fire in his bout against England but showed heaps of heart. Special techniques didn't go as well as we had hoped, but we are hopeful of good results in the power breaks later in the competiton.

We won a close first round in male team patterns - also a good achievement given the standard here.

Lena had to pull out of sparring today due to a bad migraine. Dr Weinstock from the USA helped out with the appropriate drugs..she now feels great!

The day goes to Aaron. He was just amazing and the team was right behind him.
Earlier finish today. Tomorrow is just more weigh ins, congress meeting and official opening in the evening (yes - strange to have an opening half way through.)

Sad to have no medals yet - but hey, could be worse...we could be China, who turned up today - 2 days late!

Paul McPhail

Results:
Jaime - loss to England 1st round.
Aaron - win over France, win over Wales, win over spain. Lost to Uzbekistan in Quarter finals.
Female Team pattern - loss to Uzbekistan.
Female team special techniques - eliminated.
Male Team pattern, win over South Africa, loss to Czech Republic.
Male Special Tech (Jon) - eliminated (got 2 out of 5).
Male Team Special Technique - scored 6 points
      Jon: Front kick - miss,
      Ry: Turning kick - 3 pnts,
      Hong: Mid air - hit target but foot wrong,
      Dan: Reverse turning - 3 pts,
      Jake: Overhead - hit target but broke tape.

05.7.01 Second Day of Competition Update from Mr Mark Banicevich - III Dan

Buona sera, Nuova Zelanda

Day Two of XII° Mondiale has finished nice and early, so we get an early night. Yay!

It was an exciting day of competition. I missed a lot of the Kiwi stuff, because I was security beside Ring 1 again. I got to see all of Aaron's bouts. He was fantastic! And to have the haka at full strength behind me made me proud to be a Kiwi.

In Aaron's first bout, he convincingly beat his French opponent. In his second, he beat Spain in a close contest. His third was also very close, but unfortunately, not our way. It was a quarter final, so he was just pipped from a bronze.

Male team pattern, team special technique and individual special technique were also today, as was female team pattern. I am not sure of our results.

I am staying in the staff and tournament committee hotel, the Admiral, which is on the corner of Via Pascoli and the road the Gentry is on.

I am being summoned out. Must do some work.

Tomorrow is the ITF Congress and Opening Ceremony. Should be an interesting day. I believe there will be a big announcement.

I was at the VIP drinks on Tuesday. Master Bos made the announcement in a toast there, that is why I am expecting the big news to be announced formally at the congress. The drinks were quite an event. GMs Choi and Rhee, more masters than you can count on one hand (maybe two), and legends from around the world.

Did I say I have to go? I do. Ciao!

Always

Mark.

04.7.01 Photos from First Day of Competition
 
 

04.7.01 First Day of Competition Update from Mr Hayden Breese, II Dan

04.7.01 First Day of Competition
Update from Mr Hayden Breese, II Dan
It was an early breakfast for the New Zealand team. While some members found last minute inspiration in the emails from supporters, those competing today eagerly anticipated the day ahead. Months of preparation would result in moments to remember for a life time; moments fuelled by the triumphs and tragedies of competition, neither did we know...

The teams arrived at the stadium and everything started according to schedule. Jon Sawden was the first to compete but he was not able to overcome his opponent.

The Stadium erupted as the Haka boomed from the possessed New Zealand team. Mark stepped into the main ring to face his Greek opponent. The match was a close affair, eventuating in a third round, where Mark's professionalism and experience saw him take the bout with a flurry of flying punches. Unfortunately, Mark lost his next fight to Ukraine due to an injury. He was also impressive in 2nd Dan Patterns when, on returning from hospital, he defeated opponents time and again only to be stopped short of the bronze.

Steve Morris performed like a champion in 1st Dan patterns and also seemed unstoppable as he won match after match. He too fell just short of a bronze but his performance will be remembered, for years to come, by those who cheered by the ringside.

Nikki Mantjika, Lena Walton, Jeanette Joe, and Lawrence Mantjika also had commendable performances in their respective patterns competitions.

After a bye in the first round, and lucky to make her weight division, Toni Moki stepped up against Italy. She made her fellow team members proud with her spirit and spectacular arsenal of techniques but closely missed out on the result we had anticipated.

Sherylene's group repeated their attempts at the special techniques in order to qualify for the finals. Sherylene, though hitting the target, was unable to force the hinged board to the required angle in order to proceed.

The gruelling day left a few teary-eyed and ready for bed. Those who did not compete were left with the thought of facing their own hopes and fears tomorrow and the opportunity of glory for themselves, their team, and New Zealand.
 

More on Day One from Mr Paul McPhail - VI Dan Results today for NZ

Patterns
Steve Morris - vs Canada-win,England-win, Czech Rep-loss
Mark Trotter - vs Greece-win, Croatia-win, Bulgaria-loss
Lawrence Mantjika - vs Columbia-win, DPR Korea-loss
Gray Patterson - vs Czech Rep-loss
Nikki M - vs England-win, Poland-loss
Toni Moki - vs Uruguay-win, Germany-win,DPR Korea-loss
Lena Walton - vs DPR Korea-loss
Jeanette Joe - vs DPR Korea-loss

Comments on Patterns
I was extremely proud of all our pattern competitors today...they were fantastic. There were a few difficult decisions, but of course we accept them. As you can see if you end up striking the Koreans in your side of the draw then it's pretty hard to carry on through to win a medal. In all the cases above, 3 wins would have meant at least a bronze medal.

Sparring
Jon Sawden - loss
Toni Moki - Italy : loss
Mark Trotter - Paraguay (3 rounds) : win, Ukraine : loss

Comments on Sparring
Mark got a turning kick to the head in his second bout...well he kind of head-butted the guy's foot...and was stretchered off to hospital.
They wanted to keep him in for a few days but he declined their hospitality and returned to compete brilliantly in patterns.
Toni's fight was in the center ring and very exciting, full of action just like the photos show. (coming real soon now. Ed.)

Special Techniques
Sherylene-Group draw. Eliminated in the 2nd round.

Other tidbits:

General Choi, Master Choi, Master Park Joong Soo, Master Leong Wai Meng, Master Rhee Ki Ha, Master Tom MacCallum and others were there today on and off.

The stadium was VERY hot.

The way the system runs is quite simple once you get used to it, Unlike what we do in NZ, there are no Ring Marshalls looking for people etc... the country is simply announced one bout prior, then again just before the start. It's up to the coach to have a draw and get his competitior there on time. There are five rings running, so they are constantly announcing who's up next.

Special techniques were slow. I like doing all the breaks one after another...only trouble is they allow each person to have a practice run through which takes for ever.

Mr Nunez had his 4th dan student in patterns today...excellent patterns! He has been teaching him since he was 5 years old. Lost to Puerto Rico I think it was, just short of a medal.

Canada are noisy. Canada are good!

The Korean womens' patterns are very strong. Great Power!!

Patterns have been generally very SLOW.

Got chatting to some of the Aussies today, They have been generally well behaved. Seriously - their patterns looked very good.

Okay - it's 1.30 am and I need some sleep - another big day tomorrow.

Paul McPhail NZ-6-2

Competing Today :

---

Why is this girl smiling?

03.7.01 Midnight : The Draw is In Update from Mr Paul McPhail - VI Dan

Mr Salton and I attended the Coach's meeting this afternoon - some 4 hours in a hot room going over all the draws and how all the proceedings will take place. Names of each were printed for everyone to check, then the computer did a random draw, which were then printed and distributed to the coaches on the spot. Impressive organisation...although still slow.

NZ have good draws, all but one or two. Jeanette has a bye in 4th dan patterns first round, but meets Korea in her second. This is the 3rd time she has drawn Korea in patterns at World Champs. :0(  Lena also has a bye, but then faces Poland or Korea in her second. Apart from that, we are happy with the draws, in particular power and special techniques look good, as do a lot of the sparring divisions. The main thing is to avoid the big name Countries at our end of the draw, which we have done in 90% of the cases. Everyone is happy and ready.

It looks like the tournament will run very smoothly...each competitor is called from the warm up area in the second round of the preceding bout. They walk to the official at the edge of the floor (20 seconds) who checks the equipment. They have spare equipment for those without. The instant the bout finishes the next fighters enter. We'll see how it all works tomorrow!

The Jamaican Team gave us official invitations to attend Gen. Choi's Seminar in November today, which looks like it will be great. Also invitations to the Pan Americans were handed out. We have been sharing a bus with the USA Team which has been fun.

We watched some teams training this morning and we shared a focus pad practising flying high kicks with the Jamaicans. Julia Cross (Scotland - World Champ) was there, and Cilla meets her in the second round if she and Julia both win. Cilla is pumped and can't wait. The North Koreans looked good, but not perfect.

It was great to catch up with Willy Van de Motel, who came to our World Camp in NZ in 1992. He Coaches the Slovakians, which he says are a younger team this time. The USA Team closed the doors so no-one could watch their team training...must be something secret going on in there.  :0)

Okay - enough build up - we are ready for the competition to begin. We have Jon in the second bout of the day tomorrow, plus all his special techniques too, Mark and Toni are fighting and Sherylene is up for special techniques as well. Plus all eight individual patterns divisions! It will be a long full day.

Thanks for all the emails - it has been great and we really appreciate it.

P

03.7.01 Contact details for the Team NZ Hotel... click here!

03.7.01 First Photographs from Italy are in... click here!
 
 

03.7.01 First Weigh-ins... Update from Mr Paul McPhail - VI Dan

GREAT NEWS....TONI IS IN!!!

Well that was the most amazing weigh-in I've ever seen! The day started at 6.25am with Toni on the hotel gym treadmill, clothed in tracksuits, with about 2 kg still to lose. We were going well but at 7.15 got a call that the bus was coming early and we had to leave.

She ran up and down the street while waiting for the bus, then once at the stadium she worked hard to try and lose more weight. Finally the women's turn came - at about 9.45 am. Toni was so tired and shaking. New Zealand were called...but 1 kg over.

We had until 10.30am to try and lose 1 kG! To be honest, Mr Salton and I thought there was little hope, and recommended Toni stop, as she wasn't looking well, and 1 KG seemed impossible - considering she had been at it for 3 hours.

On two or three occasions we suggested she stop - but left it as her choice. Two other teams had similar situations too.

Toni was amazing...she worked harder than I have seen her and showed a spirit that was inspiring to all of us. Those team members who were there joined in and helped, and she was near collapse at 10.30am. Finally Toni insisted that Carmen CUT HER HAIR, as it was so wet and heavy.

10.30 - she was called up - and YES SHE MADE IT! Everyone was hugging and crying - just amazing. Such excitement, tension, emotion and elation...and it was only the weigh-in!

So - our first real obstacle over. Toni is a happy girl - and her new bob haircut looks great!

Coaches meeting is this afternoon...and THE DRAW.

P

Rimini trivia:  Eds.
  Rimini has a population of just over 130,000 - about the size of Hamilton.  (Its latitude is 44.06 N, longitude 12.57 E, and it's the 30'th largest Italian city - you may not have wanted to know that - but it took so long to find the population info, we're giving you the rest from that page as well)
The site was occupied in 268 B.C. by the Romans. (so it's a couple of years older than Hamilton...... :)    )
It is the junction of the great Roman roads the Via Aemilia and the Via Flaminia. The latter goes all the way to Rome - it is also the street the sports stadium is on.
Now, we don't know what the street is that the team's hotel is on, but we now know it is the Hotel Genti (and it's one street back from the beach). We hope by the time the team starts winning medals, that we will have contact info for the congratulatory faxes and phone calls :)

03.7.01 Steven's Log Update from Mr Steve Morris - I Dan

Well the competition has started today, except it's just the weigh ins. I compete tomorrow, at about 2 o'clock (midnight your time).

The food is both good and bad! We're sick to death of pizza!!!! The hotel we are staying at is awesome, for about $NZ100 we get a double room with a good view of the beach which seems endless, 2nd hotel back from the Rimini beach. We get three meals per day and I mean meals - 4 course smorgasboard. Worth over $100 alone. Free push-bike use and a gym at the top.

We hired a scooter at both Roma and Rimini - it's so the way to travel, both because you see more in less time and it's just cool! We went to San Marino, the smallest independent country or state in the world (more like a village on a hill ... with 3 castles) although it was beautiful. And if you wanted to buy a Katana blade or automatic rifle/pump action shotgun/crossbow THIS IS THE PLACE! These along with the most amazing chess sets (also magnetic, one of which Toni turned upside down 1 too many times and we spent 20 minutes looking for the pieces.)

It's extremely hot over here. Every day is like the hottest summer's day in NZ, but it's good. Night time is amazing, singlet, shorts, no problemo.

There's a lot more but that's all for now.

Ciao Steven and Vanessa and the NZ team signing off.

02.7.01  Behind the Scenes at the World Championships. Update from Mr Mark Banicevich - III Dan

Buona sera da Rimini!

Things are going very well at XII° Mondiale. We have been slaving away setting things up, but the Italians have a very relaxed work ethic. No stress, but it takes two or three days to do a days work. Work a bit, rest a bit, work a bit...

Michelle and I will be assisting a girl named Silvina with the VIPs, so we get to rub shoulders with the General, GMs and Masters. ("You, juice, now!"?)

When we are not busy with that, we will be assisting in other areas, such as security (not letting folk go where they are not allowed).

Tomorrow, I hope to attend the umpires' and coaches' meetings, which will be very interesting.

Rings are down to 8m by 8m. General got sick of watching people running around the ring.

All five rings are decked out in jigsaw mats. (I am looking down on the centre presently. Oh, the privileges of position!)

I let the Boss in today to get video footage of the special technique machines, which are amazing. The power machines were not yet set up, but we will try to get footage of those too.

Bumped into Willy van de Mortel today. He is coaching the Slovenians again. (Some folk may remember Mr van de Mortel from our World Camp in '92.) He is very keen to come out to New Zealand again. I joked that I hope we can still afford him (now that he is famous), but he didn't seem too distressed. Hopefully we can get him out for a holiday.

Well, not much more to say. It is unreal dining with legends like the Tapilatu family, Master Sutherland, Sandy Dunbar, John McIlvany, Paul Wieler, ...

Must go and get some sleep. We have a longer day tomorrow.

Always
Mark and Michelle.
 

02.7.01  Photos Coming! Update from Mr Paul McPhail - VI Dan

Hi

Should have some digital shots up to you tonight.

We have finally found all the Internet places around, discovered the friendly ones, excluded the macs and other closed type systems, and settled for the discovery that our hotel has an internet connection at the front desk!!

Unbelievable. We had asked them about Internet on the first day and said they didn't know. Anyway...Carmen is going to sweet talk them into letting me plug in and upload each night.

All going well I'll be sending you an action shot from Rome, the Haka with Master Bos and maybe a shot of the board holder. Suggestions welcome.

P

02.7.01  More Training Update from Mr Paul McPhail - VI Dan

Hello all

Training this morning went well, although we had to squeeze into two small areas at the stadium as the Czech Republic beat us to our regular place. It's exciting seeing the other teams practising, everyone with their eye on each other. We ran through our team patterns, special techniques and other some more pad work. Our team look great.

We then performed the Haka for Master Bos and presented him with a team tracksuit and cap. He was happy and wished us all the best for the championships.

Mark Banicevich (who is working for the organisers) took me behind the scenes to video the new special techniques machines. I filmed close up as they explained how it works. Very impressive device, with levers that control a rotating board to any angle. Unfortunately we didn't get to see the new power breaking machines set up.

The rest of the day was free to lie on the beach (Mark, Aaron and Loz), or as most did, take a scooter or bus to San Marino - some 20 km away.

All the team are well. Cilla is down to her required weight but Toni is still a way off. We will give her a sweat session tomorrow morning at 6.30am, to have her ready for the weigh in at 8.30. Fingers crossed!

P

Rimini is an attractive seaside resort located by the Adriatic Sea about 350 km northeast of Rome and 155 km south of Venice. The city centre contains bustling street markets, lively pavement cafes, fascinating craft workshops and the harbour's fish market.
 

The "Palasport Flaminio" sports stadium seems quite close to the centre of Rimini.         (Thanks to "Tram Rimini" for the map)   Far as we can tell, the Hotel Genty is about... X _  ... here._

01.7.01  Training Update from Mr Paul McPhail - VI Dan

This afternoon (Sunday) we had an amazing training session at the Sports Stadium. It was hot, very hot, and the team practised the haka which fired them up. We then did pad work and team patterns - great session.

The 80 strong US contingent arrived as we were leaving - great to see old friends like Mr Berkhard, Mr Nunez and Master Renee Sereff.

Kylee trained today - her foot is much better and on target to compete still. Toni and Cilla are nearly down to the weights they need to be, Toni still another 2 kg to go. We feel sorry for her as every meal is 4 or 5 course.

All the team are fired up and everyone is getting on so well! Carmen has been so valuable again with her knowledge of the language -  as we had some difficult situations when registering and paying for accomodation. Things are never simple!

Tomorrow (Monday) we will start with a 7 am session.

P
 
 

01.7.01  Shopping/Training Update from Ms Cilla Brown - I Dan

Greetings from Rimini!

This place is awesome! (the hotel. ed.) The food is different but good. They serve cake and sweet danishy thingys for breakfast...plus they have a coffee machine that you can help yourself to.

Ladies the shopping kicks a..! There are heaps of shops all along the stretch of road our hotel is on. Toni, Chantelle, Cedar and I stormed down a few blocks this morning for an early morning shopping fix.

We had a training session in one of the basements at Palasport after lunch. It was boiling and a lot of us were tired but after practicing the haka (it was so loud we could even hear it from Mr M's video camera across when he taped it) we all seemed to wake up and everyone got into the kiwi spirit. On our way out of the venue we bumped into Team USA and Mark and Michelle so we caught up with them for a bit before returning to the hotel.

After the session some of us went to the beach for a tan and a swim.
There are beach vendors all along the beach line selling cheap jewellery, bags, belts and henna tattoos etc...Kirsten and I almost got some ferns with TKD down the middle done, but the vendor wanted to charge extra, maybe tomorrow we will
have more luck.

Thanks everyone for all the well wishes. It's great to know everyone is thinking
of us.

Chow for now.

Cilla.
 
 

01.7.01  Shopping in Rimini Update from Mr Paul McPhail - VI Dan

Hi all

As Mark reported - Rimini is pretty amazing.The girls just can't believe the shops - and the boys can't believe the girls! The beach is...well - strange - in that you have to pay to use the deck chairs - there are thousands of them all in lines along the sand.

We have seen the Sport Stadium - smaller than expected, but they will get 5 rings in. We watched the Brazil team training and met Master Bos. Accomodation hassles reminded some of the Argentina problems - but the staff have helped us, we have spread into extra rooms and they are trying their best to look after us.  Rooms are SMALL, but the food is great.

Today is sorting out entry stuff at the stadium, some training and shopping.

Must fly - P

30.6.01  Livin' La Vida Roma Update from Mr Mark Trotter - II Dan  Hi from Rome

Got here last night and went out, it is an amazing city and I have never seen anything like it.  We went out dancing  ..there are soo many good looking females here...  It is really expensive here but it is awesome and I'm loving it.
Kylee has sprained her ankle and can't walk.
Miss you heaps but must go, it just cost me NZ25.00 for 15 minutes on the net.

Mark

29.6.01  Roaming round Rome Update from Mr Paul McPhail - VI Dan and Mr Lawrence Mantjika - III Dan

Hi all from Rome

We all arrived here in Rome after a mammoth 40 + hours since we left home. We made it to our Hotel by about 11pm and headed to bed. Well actually not everyone headed to bed. Loz and I went for a wander - and were propositioned within 2 steps of our hotel! Some of the other boys were also seen out and about - but all accounted for at breakfast.

We had all been warned about the pick pockets here - but we had no idea how blatant it was. Again within a few steps of our hotel a little kid sprang on Lawrence, darting hands reaching each side of him while his mother, baby and sister caused a distraction. We all just looked in stunned silence for a moment, then managed to get rid of them. The same family followed us, but gave up - and we then watched them in action time and time again against new groups of victims.
Unbelievable. Jon Sawden missed the original attack - and when we told him he got all excited and wanted to catch them. He opened his pockets and tried to get them to have a go. We advised Jon against this and went on our way.

We have now met up with Steve and Jaime, so the whole team are all together. We have been sightseeing - all except for Andrew who came down sick on the plane, and needs a day or two to come right.

We had major excitment in the St. Peters Square when Kylee tripped and hurt her already injured toe. The first aid peole were great, applied ice then took her away for an x-ray. We hope she will be okay.

We have an organised tour this afternoon and tomorrow, then it's off to Rimini to see the PallaSports Center when the World Champs will be held.

Hope to report in again soon.

Paul and Lawrence

Friday - being tourists Spot the Vatican City, and the Colosseum. Time is 10 hours earlier in Italy than in New Zealand. (Midday Saturday NZ is 2am in Rome)

The team is  staying at  Hotel Diana,  off to the  right of the  map round  here.

29.6.01  Little letter from London Update from Mr Paul McPhail - VI Dan Arrived in London after 12.5 hours on the plane - all tired.  Lawrence led Japanese songs with Japanese people - lots of fun. 4 hours until we hit Rome - then to bed at Hotel Diana.

28.6.01  Dateline Tokyo   Update from Mr Paul McPhail - VI Dan All arrived in Japan okay - most slept well. Loz, Nikki, Hayden and I went out and had a coffee with Kosoke Yamamoto in the Terminal - good to catch up with him.

11 hours of flying awaits us now - and it is day time flying so will be boring I guess. Feel a bit tired.
After London then another 3 hours I think to Rome.

Cheers

Paul

                (approximate New Zealand times)

    5.30 pm Wednesday 27th June  -  depart Auckland
    9 pm Wednesday - arrive Sydney  -  depart midnight
    10am Thursday  - arrive Narita, Tokyo  -  depart 2 pm
    3 am Friday - arrive Heathrow, London    - depart 5 am
    7 am Friday - arrive Fiumicino, Rome        (9pm Thursday Rome time)

    Friday (Rome time) - Walking tour of Rome
    Saturday morning    - thrown to the lions in the Colosseum,
    Saturday afternoon - survivors bus to Rimini
    Saturday evening    - RIMINI
    Until the 9th July

25.6.01 EMAIL FROM MARK BANICEVICH Boun giorno, Nuova Zelanda!We are now in Napoli, and here ends our regular updates about the World Championships until we arrive in Rimini on 1 July. We will be tourists proper for the next week.Master Bos took Michelle and I out for lunch on Friday - to a lovely restaurant around the corner from Basilica di San Pietro. We had the chance to grill him for information about tournaments in general, as well as this World Championships. I am happy to say that in many matters, I was right. Can you feint low in sparring? No. Any kick below the belt is a low kick, and should get a warning. Whether it contacts, or is intended to contact, is not relevant. Special technique: as a number of us thought, each of the five techniques has a set height for the tournament, and each competitor gets one attempt at each height. If there is a draw, one technique is selected randomly, and the height or length is increased until a winner is decided. However, Master Bos had many more great things to say about special technique. They use a target, similar to that Mr Trotter is putting together (the target flips if it is hit). But here is the bit that will make Mr Trotter squirm: they have four of them set up in a square - one for each of the height breaks. The overhead kick is performed either down the middle of the four machines, or down one side. Each competitor does all five techniques in a row.Power works the same way - all five board holders set in a pentagon facing outward. Interestingly, each competitor performs the five breaks in a row, but after 1 has performed a technique, 2 sets the height he or she wants as 1 does the next technique. When 1 has done all five techniques, the heights are all ready for 2. It gets better: power and special technique competitors are separated into four equal groups, who perform the techniques at different times in the day. Maybe group 1 at 10am, group 2 at 11am, etc. The winner from each group goes into a final, so you have real finals for special technique and power. Of course, this works because there is no silver and bronze in these events (from memory). Master Bos bases his time on 10 mins per bout, 5 rings, and usually has about 60 umpires (40 working, 20 rotating) - 8 umpires per ring.At the WCs, all draws will be provided in hard copy to all coaches soon after the draw is created! Watch out for your copy, Mr Salton. This is why coaches are charged $50 each - because of the services provided for coaches.There will be a training area for the day's competitors. You need not stay there, but competitors will only be called from this room, so be handy when your bout is near. Overhead kick: uses paper tape (as used by counter tills) for each target. If it moves, it is okay; if it breaks, it is a failure. The target is a thin board (eg, green), and held by members of the competitor's team. Can't blame the tourn organiser for quality of holders then! They are presently working on a holder for this, but it will not be ready for the WCs. Must go, because our hour is up. A couple of things before I do: Coke is very expensive. Up to £6000 in tourist spots for a can. Don't pay it. Supermarkets and superettes charge about £1500 or £2000. If you want to see the Capuchin Monks - we ran out of time and didn't know where they were - they are found around P.Ta Pinciana, near Veneto and Via Bissolati. This is east of the Spanish Steps (Plaza di Spagna) and nor-norwest of Termini. WE have to go and rest. See you next week. Ciao! Always, Mark and Michelle. PS. Napoli is a dive. Get well away from the train station. It is very dodgy. There are a couple of backpackers off Via Toledo, near the old city. Ask for Six Small Rooms.Aye   M&M   22.6.01 EMAIL FROM MARK BANICEVICH Boun giorno, Nouva Zelanda. We arrived in Roma on 18 June, but fell asleep on arrival and I thought it would be too late to call Master Bos when we woke at 11:15pm. So we rang him from a phone booth at Piazza Venizia. Unfortunately we didn't know where we were, and we were late to our rendezvous with him. We got tickets to the Papal audience yesterday (well worth the time, and the tickets are free), and popped out for our first real Italian meal. We walked back over the bridge and stumbled onto a little restaurant where two lovely elderly Italian women welcomed us in. Unfortunately, there was no menu, so we just sat back and waited for what came before us. It was a lovely meal, beginning with penne pasta, and followed by a lovely chicken dish. We returned to the Vatican side, and took a long walk through Castel Sant' Angelo. We then returned to our hotel and rang Master Bos.  At 8:30, Master Bos met us at our hotel and took us around the corner to dinner. A wonderful restaurant, and Master Bos was very kind to shout. He said I can buy him dinner if he comes to New Zealand. (I will keep my fingers crossed.)  We spoke of a lot of things over dinner, many of which I cannot speak, but we did discover:  (1) At this stage Argentina is the only country that has offered to host the Juniors next year, so the offer is probably going to be accepted.  (2) Master Bos registered interest in our conference, but was not expressing commitment.  (3) As of last October, Master Bos is the only person in the ITF who can qualify ITF Umpires. (Sorry Tournaments Committee, we cannot have the power.)  We had a wonderful time, and we look forward to catching up with Master Bos again. Hopefully today.  Always Mark. 19.6.01 EMAIL FROM MARK BANICEVICH Bouna sera da Roma! It is midnight here in Roma, and Michelle and I just spotted this Internet café on our way back to the hotel with our panini. We caught up with a few friends in London last night, two of whom were Chris and Pip (from Wales / Scotland, who trained with us last year).  - Wait'll you hit these keyboards! They are QWERTY, but the punctuation is all over the place! -  Anyway, Chris said the lastest moves in Europe, lead by the Checz and Poles, is fast hands. Lots of JPs. It will be interesting to see. I hear the Scots are not sending a team, which I hope is a rumour, because I am looking forward to seeing Katja.  Oh, and the Euros this year: many countries sent B teams. Saving their A teams for the Worlds. Fancy having that sort of luxury! Do you feel like Rocky in V? (We train in the snow and stuff, while they have all the modern equipment!)  Weather is nice. Warm but not hot and sticky. We arrived about 5pm and had a nap, until 11pm. The restaurants were all closing, so we were lucky to catch a couple of panini. Time to catch some kip, then pop out to some sights tomorrow. We are literally a stone's throw from il Colesseo. Well, not literally. It is around a corner.  Anyway, I hope all is well at home, and I look forward to seeing the team in Rimini. Always Mark and Michelle.

Mr Mark Banicevich is the first Kiwi to leave for Italy, on June 16th 2001. Mr Banicevich is on the organising Committee for the World Champs, having been invited by Master Wim Bos to assist with the running of this massive event. Mr Banicevich had met Master Bos when travelling through Europe, and it is to his credit to have been asked to assist. It will also be of great benefit to New Zealand to have an insight onto the running of an international Tournament. Mr Banicevich is a 3rd dan, member of the ITFNZ Tournament Sub-Committee, the new Director of the Marketing Sub-Committee, and Assistant Instructor of the Papakura Branch. Good luck to him in Italy.