A KARATE school in Barrow has dozens of students in the Poland and England squads training towards international competitions.
NS Karate School based at South Row is run by fifth Dan sensei Derek Shields and his daughter Natalie Woodburn (second Dan), which operates sessions in schools across the region. They also run Barrow Budokan, which is the official karate club for children and adults.
"We've got eighty students training twice a week," Natalie said. "We've got three of our students competing at international level."
Iga Kucharska, Isabel Ginley and Paul Wojcik have been selected for Poland to compete at the World Union of Karate-Do Federations (WUKF) European Championships in Warsaw, Poland, in October 2024.
In the England squad, 21 of the students have been selected by three times world champion and 8th Dan sensei Christine Pullan training towards the World Union of Karate-Do Federations (WUKF) World Championships next year.
The students in the England squad are as follows:
- Natalie Woodburn
- Paul Wojcik
- Lisa Salton
- Amelia Carruthers
- Grace Towers
- Olivia Chambers
- Isabel Ginley
- Iga Kucharska
- Orson Sutcliffe
- Parker Woodburn
- Ella Anderson
- Nisha Lowcock
- Benjamin Calldine
- Alfie Rainford
- Beau Murray
- Oscar Burns
- Isaac Taylor
- Jun Yung
- Kelsey Yung
- Brook-Li Yung
- Lee Tyson
Oliver Chambers won the WUKF world championships and Iga Kucharska bagged silver in kumite in Dundee last year.
In the Ryukyu International 2024 Paul Wojcik came 3rd in kata and Isabel Ginley came 3rd in kata and second in kumite. Iga Kucharska and Ginley got gold in kata at the EKA Open.
Natalie and Derek started off teaching classes in two schools, and now visit 24 schools per term.
On why she thinks karate is popular, Natalie said: "I think with my schools I am introducing a sport that isn't traditional. I'm introducing a new sport. It's exciting - it does attract a lot of children with ADHD and autism because of the strict discipline. You're opening up a whole new sport world. Not everybody wants to be part of a team. It's an individual sport - people can think for themselves."
When asked what she thinks of her students getting to perform at an international level, she said: "I'm just really proud. My dad and other coaches have put in a lot of work."
She also thanked the club secretary Becky.
The club attracts famous instructors from within the scene such as YouTube karate star John Gardiner, who visited last weekend.
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