Bak Shaolin Eagle Claw takes 14 Medals at Chicago Pro-Am

The Bak Shaolin Eagle Claw Kung Fu Team added to their successful track record once again, this time by taking home 14 medals from Chicago's 1^st International Pro-Am All Styles on February 7th. The tournament consisted of martial artists of various disciplines, mainly Japanese and Korean, as well as Chinese stylists. A monk from the Shaolin Temple in China, Sifu Shi Yan Ming, put on an inspiring demonstration of his martial skill to kick off the tournament.

The Bak Shaolin Eagle Claw team consisted of members from the Chicago club headed by Sifu Pete Himargios, as well as members of the University of Wisconsin fighting and forms team. The tournament was an opportunity for national team members to tune up their skills as well as a chance for a few rookies to get their feet wet.

Team captains Noam Reininger (Madison) and Nate Sonnenberg (Oshkosh) took silver and bronze in the black belt Wushu forms competition. In the traditional forms division, which was heavily biased towards Karate stylists, Reininger tied for 4^th place with Sonnenberg only a tenth of a point behind. One of the offending biased judges refused to recognize Sonnenberg, a black belt, as he entered the ring. Sonnenberg and Reininger were the only stylists at the Pro-Ams who competed in both traditional and wushu divisions.

In beginner men's forms, Jericho Jansen (Oshkosh) and Dennis Stithos (Chicago) won 3^rd and 4^th places. Angelo Ladas (Chicago) took bronze in men's intermediate, and first time Chicago competitors, Aleka and Maria Georgas placed gold and silver in their respective age groups. George Patrinos (Chicago), one of the teams youngest members, took bronze in intermediate forms.

Dominating performances in the point sparring competition rounded off the day. In beginner middleweight, Dennis Stithos took silver and Jericho Jansen took bronze. Matt Morin, after a disqualification for drawing blood, fought again and took 4^th in the lightweight division. Chicago's Aleka Georgas and George Patrinos won 2^nd and 4^th places, and UW's first time competitors, Matt Kerno (Oshkosh) and Josh Polasky (Madison) made their mark in the heavyweight division by dominating their opponents.

In the Black Belt divisions, Sonnenberg (Oshkosh) landed 4^th after two rough matches in the middleweight division. Cyrnoff Cowan (Chicago) fought well in heavyweight, as well as Paul Villarreal (Madison) and Noam Reininger in lightweight. After the fights, one of the judges commended the team on their rough fighting style, a trademark of the semi and full contact fighting that the team is used to, which in some cases earned them more penalties than points.

The team would like to thank its non-competing members and parents who offered their support. The team would also like to thank Grandmaster Fu Leung and Sifu Dana G. Daniels, National Team Coach, for the hard work they have put into producing these victorious teams.

[Back]