DAY 1 ( JULY 20TH )
1:30am on July 20TH saw Sarah, Jamie and Ivor start their journey to Gatwick Airport to meet up with the rest of the University GB Squad for the European University Championships in Sarejavo . Firstly flying to Dubrovnic and then 6hrs by road to Sarejavo so after 16hrs of travelling they reached their destination.
DAY 2 ( JULY 21ST )
After a well deserved rest it was decided to have a light training session and then breakfast with the rest of the day used for relaxation and recovery. The evening was then taken up with a harder training session in preparation for the team events the next day.
DAY 3 ( JULY 22ND )
Male & Female Teams Kata & Kumite
Sarah was selected to fight for the women’s team at no. 2 against Montenegro. The first match was a win for GB. Second match saw Sarah lose her fight 2-1 and match three was also a loss so it was a wait to see if they would come back through the Repercharge but this was not to be . Also the mens team lost to Germany with no Repercharge position. GB did not enter a team for Kata.
Ivor who had been Refereeing all day was then selected to Judge the Male team Kata Final and to Referee the Female team Kumite Final.
DAY 4 ( JULY 23RD )
Male and Female Individual Kata and Kumite. The GB Squad did have 4 Competitors in the Kata and although they did progress through several rounds they were not successful.
Ivor was again selected to Judge the Female individual Kata Final.
Individual Kumite then saw Sarah and Jamie compeating. Jamie’s opponent was from Bosnia. This was a big step up for Jamie and he performed well but unfortunately lost 2-0. Jamie’s opponent went on to the Final which meant that Jamie was now in the Repercharge against an opponent from France where he again perfomed well but lost 3-0.
Sarah was now on the Tatami against a Turkish opponent whom she beat 6-1.Into the second round Sarah was against a Spanish opponent with another win 3-1. This now put Sarah into the Quarter Finals against a Ukranian and after a hard fought fight just lost 2-1. There was no repercharge position for Sarah but the Ukranian did go on to win a Bronze medal.
Ivor was selected to Judge the Female -50k Final.
DAY 5 ( 24TH July )
This was the last day of the Competition and a rest day for Sarah & Jamie. Ivor once again was selected to Judge the -84k Final.
This proved to be the best day for the GB Squad with a Gold Medal in the Female -61k (Alice Gouldie) and a Gold Medal in the Male +84k (Callum Robb).
DAY 6 ( 25TH July )
This was now the start of the return journey back to the UK for the GB Squad. A long trek by road to Dubrovnic with an overnight stay, a return flight on the 26th of July and Sarah, Jamie and Ivor arriving back in Bristol at 19:30 on the evening of the 26th July.
On summing up the experience that was gained by Sarah, Jamie and Ivor is invaluable, not only from a personal point of view but to bring back to the WKU. With 33 countries attending and 350 competitors, of which some are former and reigning European / World Champions, shows the high standard of this competition.
