Kids Karate After School Classes Upper West Side

Kids Karate After School Classes Upper West Side : From Igor Dyachenko’s early days

Kids Karate After School Classes Upper West Side : From Igor Dyachenko’s early days (3 of 7) As he trained, Igor quickly realized he wasn’t the most physically gifted child, or the strongest, but would soon develop his natural gift. In elementary school, he was usually the smallest boy and now the smallest in karate school. Igor knew he had to train twice as hard. He felt privileged to be a part of the first adult program to practice as a child in a Karate school, after the USSR ban was lifted. And in 1992, Igor won the Youth Kiev Karate Tournament fighting in the Kumite Division. Also fighting in an advanced older age group, he received second place along with a broken nose. He felt victorious. After the tournament, however, his parents quickly discouraged him from continuing a Kumite career.

The shift from Kumite to Kata

To please his parents and preserve his nose, Igor shifted his focus from Kumite to Kata. Kata, the forms and stances reminded him of his father’s first exposure to karate, the details of each anatomical drawing still etched in Igor’s mind. With a fondness to art, he would re-draw these illustrations using pen and paper, visualize the movement in his head, practice them in the light, then in the dark. He found Kata, complex but simple and rewarding. The reward was the National Champion of Ukraine in his age group, qualifying him for the 1995 Karate world championships in Mexico. At 14, he would go abroad for the first time to compete for his country. Igor increased his training regiment and felt ready to take on the world. Kids Karate After School Classes Upper West Side Continue reading