Karate Kids Golden

 

Discipline and respect are foreign words in the vocabulary of a rambunctious tot.
    So when Kieran Givens first started taking karate lessons in the dojo at Gauthier's Martial Arts -- a sanctum ruled by respect where discipline is demanded -- he soon found himself in Sensei Gill Gauthier's clutches.
    "He wouldn't follow along and didn't do what he was supposed to do and was interrupting the class, so I had to take him out of the dojo and give him a talking to," recalls Gauthier with a chuckle. "I never had a problem with him again after that."
    In fact, Givens is now keen on karate and has become very good very fast. Late last month, he and Morgan Sloane represented Canada at the 2011 World Congress of Martial Arts World Cup in the Dominican Republic, each returning with multiple medals.
    "I won two golds and a bronze," said Kieran, 6. "It was fun. I liked the airplane ride the best."
    Sloane, 11, also mined gold in sparring while winning silver in kata and bronze medals in both weapons and another division of sparring.
    "I did better than expected," said Sloane, a junior black belt. "I think for me, getting called up to the podium was the high-light... it just felt so good to know that all the hard work you put into it paid off. I think it would have felt different if we came home without any medals. So, it was rewarding."
    The medals won in the Dominican are the result of toil and sweat in Gauthier's upstairs dojo on Mississaga Street and in the duo's home away from home in Bowmanville.
    "We took the kids down for training to a club in Bowmanville every other weekend (for nine hours of work over two days) and for 40 hours of training over the Christmas break," said Jackie Givens. "That really helped them get prepared for worlds."
    And while there was a lot of travel and sacrifice, Givens said she doesn't regret it. "It was worth every minute to see these kids with their medals, to see their hard work pay off... It's awesome," she said.
    But the medals are just part of the equation. Kieran, the youngest Canadian competitor at the international event, got to carry the Canadian flag in the opening ceremonies and both he and Sloane made new friends.
    "I became friends with Kieran. He was six, too," said Kieran of the boy with the same name from Great Britain whom he befriended. The English lad gave the Orillia boy his Great Britain training jacket as a gift.
    "This is an experience that these kids -- and us -- will never forget," said Givens.
    Rob Sloane agreed, noting that the sojourn south was a great getaway that taught all of them much about the world around them. He said they learned about a team from Venezuela that was supposed to be competing there; the whole team was killed in a mudslide. The event was dedicated to their memory.
    "It's a good experience for the kids because they get to meet people from other parts of the world and learn about different cultures, so it's great," he said.
    But it's not cheap. It cost about $5,000 per family for everything from flight costs to new gis (uniforms). With that in mind, the youngsters and their families had various fundraisers -- from garage sales to homemade bracelet sales to bottle drives to selling chocolate bars to hosting a dunk tank during sidewalk sales downtown.
    "When we had the dunk tank, (former councillor) Ralph Cipolla suggested we apply for a grant from the city and we got $750," said Rob Sloane. "The support we've had from the community has been fantastic."
    The backbone of that support is Gill Gauthier and his club, Slone said.
    "He has been a real father figure for Morgan and has just really influenced her and helped shape who she is today," said Sloane. "I am really grateful to him; he's awesome."
    Givens agrees. "Kieran is a pretty high-spirited kid and Gill has just made a huge difference in Kieran; it's like night and day since he started coming here."
    Gauthier deflects the credit. "I am so proud of these kids; they have worked so hard and to see them succeed is what makes it all worthwhile."

 

 

Karate Kids Go Global

 

 

 

The martial arts world will get a little taste of Orillia at the 2011 World Congress of Martial Arts World Cup.
    Morgan Sloane, 10, and Kieran Givens, 6, have been handpicked by the organization to represent Team Canada during the event, which takes place in the Dominican Republic in January.
    The pair practises at Gauthier's Martial Arts on Mississaga Street and Kyoshi Gill Gauthier said it doesn't surprise him one bit that his students have been invited to compete at the international level.
    "Kieran went into his first tournament and won all five of his fights. That's almost unheard of and Morgan dominates anybody she spars with. You'd have to see it to believe it," he said.
    Gauthier has been running the club in downtown Orillia for almost 30 years and has been teaching for 38. Over the years he said he has come across some very skilled athletes. But skill alone doesn't get you everywhere in karate and Sloane and Givens are well aware of that.
    "These two are disciplined and very well mannered and that is important when you are going to a tournament and you're representing this club," Gauthier said.
    Sloane started karate five years ago and has already earned her junior black belt. To get a full black belt, you have to be at least 16 years old, she explained.
    She spends four nights a week at the dojo and even helps to teach some classes.
    "I love this club because I feel like we are taught things properly. You can really notice it when you go to tournaments," she said.
    Givens has been visiting the dojo with his mother Jackie -- who sports her own black belt -- since he was a baby.
    "It is really all he has ever known," she said.
    He has been participating himself for about six months and has his yellow belt, she added.
    Gauthier said he thinks Sloane and Givens will have to take it easy on their opponents at the competition. He said at this kind of event, winning isn't everything.
    "It is really about getting the countries together and seeing what we can learn from each other. It is an amazing opportunity," he said.
    To help ensure that his students will not miss out on the chance of a lifetime, Gauthier along with Sloane and Givens' families, will be doing some fundraising leading up to the event to help cover the estimated $5,000 each it will cost to participate.
    "We have to pay for all new uniforms, tracksuits and equipment with the Team Canada logo on them as well as travel costs," said Sloane's father Rob.
    At Gauthier's Martial Arts, Givens is selling boxes of chocolate and Sloane is selling bracelets and necklaces she made herself. The jewelry, as well as special Team Canada bracelets, will be sold outside of Details Hair Care on Mississaga Street at the Leacock Sidewalk Sale on July 23 and 24.
    At Sloane's home at 238 Mary St., they have started a bottle drive, where people can drop off their empty beer and liquor bottles to donate to the cause. The crew will also be hosting a garage sale there this summer with all proceeds going to the trip.

 

Best Foot Forward   

Orillia karate master honored as World Instructor of The Year

 
    After 40 years in the martial arts, Orillia Shorin-Ryu karate instructor Gill Gauthier is finally getting some recognition.
    The head instructor and owner of Gauthier's Martial Arts and Self-Defence Ltd. was named Instructor Of The year by the World Karate Union hall of Fame this past weekend at their ceremony in Pennsylvania.
    The honor, coupled with his induction into the Global Martial Arts Association Hall of Fame last summer, has re-kindled Gauthier's passion for the sport - something he admitted was beginning to wane in recent years.
    "It's renewed my faith in the martial arts", he said. 
    "I'm going to keep on teaching"  I love teaching now that I'm being recognized for the achievements I've made.  When you keep doing it and you don't get any thanks for it, well....."
    In addition to the personal accolades, Gauthier's interest in the sport was also renewed via his associate with Global Martial Arts.
    For years, he has searched for an organization with which he could associate his academy, but was constantly put off by politics and business focus displayed by most groups.
    "We're not about money", Gauthier said of his philosophy concerning his academy.
    "We're about teaching people that everybody should have a chance to learn martial arts".
    "I have people here (in the dojo) who can't afford to pay.  I'm not going to tell a 7 year old, "Get out of here, you can't afford to pay".
    "(Global) is the first organization that I've found that is people for people", he added.  "That's the most important part.  There is so much politics in the martial arts these days, and this affiliation isn't about that".
    One of the unique ways that Global Martial Arts is attempting to help is by taking on students with special needs.
   

Paul Mumford, left and Tawnya Gauthier-Romniuk earned their third dan black belts in Shorin Ryu karate on Tuesday. Gill Gauthier, far right, gained master status as fifth-dan black belt. The trio was tested by grande master Ed McLachlan, second from right, at Gauthier's Martial Arts and Self Defence.

 

 

 

 

 





 

Orillia Blackbelt Tickled Pink
Students nominate instructor for spot in World Martial Arts Hall of Fame

 
Martial arts instructor, Gill Gauthier knew what he was doing mattered, but he didn't know how much until 100 of his students nominated him for a place in the World Martial Arts Hall of Fame. 
    The Orillia blackbelt was touched by the gesture and rendered speechless when he learned his name would be added to the same list as such masters as Bruce Lee and Chuck Norris.
    "When you've been doing something for this long, you always wonder where its going", said Gauthier 58.  It's the ultimate to be inducted into a hall of fame as recognition for your work. 
    Gauthier's wife Lisa, daughter Tawnya and several other friends and family members will travel to London on August 12th for a banquet and a Lifetime Achievement Award presentation by the World Martial Arts Federation.
    Gauthier who grew up in Toronto started practicing karate 40 years ago.
    He earned his blackbelt in 1972, and moved to Orillia, opened a dojo at the Y.M.C.A. and started teaching. 
    Seven years later, he moved to his current location on Mississauga Street and Gauthier's Martial Arts and Self Defence was born.
       "I started doing karate because I was bored in the evenings", said Gauthier, adding "it quickly became more than just a pastime.  I played lacrosse before but I wanted something that would benefit me in the future". 
    Since then Gauthier has graded more than 85 black belts and touched the lives of countless karate students. 
    "There is no challenge to great for my father" said Tawnya, a karate student since the age of four.  "He's even taught students with all sorts of disabilities.  He just figures out a different way to incorporate moves to their specific need".   
    In addition to spending 20 hours per week at the dojo, teaching classes and overseeing operations, Gauthier also performs his own katas and weapons training each week.
    Although he enjoys honing his own abilities, Gauthier said its the chance to help change the lives of a younger generation that gives him the most joy.
    "To teach somebody, to watch how they develop, you feel good knowing you had a hand in it", he said. "I wouldn't trade my students for anybody", he said.
    Lisa agrees, saying that her husband is not only a great teacher, but also a great role model for his students.
    "They see this fella who walks up these stairs, day in and day out, who believes in what he's doing with his head and his heart", she said.  "The look on his face when they accomplish something is like he's won a lottery".