It was an historic weekend when Silvio Morelli and the NAS brainstrust brought together an array of different countries to contest the inaugural WASO World Championships. From South Africa to Uzbekistan and New Zealand competitors from all corners of the globe descended upon the Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre for a weekend of martial arts demonstrations and battles to see...
Who was the best martial artist in the world?

We can call them the best because WASO doesn’t just incorporate one style – it incorporates all styles. That is what makes this concept so unique. It is a battle to find out who is the champion of champions from the most diverse of martial arts styles. In Silvio’s own words: “We bring together martial artists from many lands and many disciplines, to participate with Australian representatives in a championship of goodwill and good sportsmanship.”

1st WASO Championships: How It Came Together

The inaugural WASO World Championships was the culmination of three very solid years of work. And in the last 12 months that work took a very steep curve as the planning took shape and it was revealed there was still a great deal to do to get the participating countries’ organisations to send their athletes.

Over 25 countries were invited, then faxed to get their visas straight. Administration officer Julie Curtis, ran herself ragged to organise such a large scale event. Phone calls, faxes and correspondence was taken into to get everything right.

The tournament has grown from an Oceanic event to a worldwide tournament in just two years. It is testament to the people behind the scenes that they were able to pull off such a smooth and free flowing event.

The Arrival
It was clear that the whole thing had taken shape when the countries themselves arrived, dispersing to their various hotels including the Bayview and the Carlton Crest, the official tournament abodes.

A directors’ meeting was held on the Thursday and Friday to discuss details and brief the men in charge on exactly what was going on so they could report back to their athletes.

Friday was the official registration day and seminars were held to brief the athletes.
Then it was time for action.

The Opening Ceremony
The Melbourne Sports and Aquatic centre proved to be a great venue, with the stands accommodating the large crowd sufficiently and the facilities serving the competitors well. It was a sell-out crowd with over 2000 spectators enjoying proceedings.

The opening ceremony on the Saturday fired the competitors up for a weekend of hard sparring. Although Ric Birch or David Atkins did not mastermind the ceremony, it proved to be emotive all the same with everyone enjoying the music and celebrations. To kick off the ceremony a parade of nations was conducted. The pageant was full of great colour as the competitors displayed their own country’s shades. The excitement of the younger competitors was infectious and you could tell they were revelling in the glory of it all.

The tournament was officially opened by a member of Steve Brack’s department highlighting the support for martial arts by the Victorian government. Then Silvio Morelli gave an informal speech welcoming the crowd and competitors and thanking everyone for their support. Following Silvio’s speech was a brief word by WASO Tournament Director, Vince Busuttil and then it was on with the floor show.

The WASO tournament was a “moment to celebrate the camaraderie and spirit of the martial arts with other practitioners. With such a great number of competitors from so many diverse styles, the championships set the stage for extraordinary successes, great friendships and above all the spirits of good sportsmanship, “Whether they have travelled a short distance or thousands of kilometres to here, each person has travelled their own personal journey with their martial arts training.”

An aboriginal dance troupe full of colour and tradition mesmerised the crowd and purified the venue. The troupe was followed by an awe inspiring spectacle of traditional Japanese drumming. The timing and rhythm was something to behold and the performance itself something special.

The national anthem brought everyone to their feet and was sung in great tones by Virginia Golding then a representative from each of the participating countries walked in with the official WASO flag in a stirring display of unity.

By mid-morning the competition was underway as competitors from each country battled each other in forms, weaponry and continuous fighting to decide who would go through to the finals. The afternoon also consisted Synchronised Team Form and Musical Forms.
On Sunday, the event got serious.

Many titles were up for grabs and you could tell the internationals hadn’t come all that way for nothing. However, the Australians weren’t going to let the foreign correspondents ruin their party and they fought just as hard, if not harder.

There were in fact a great deal of Aussie winners on the day with Corey Burcher outsparring his fellow Aussies to take the Sparring Male/Female, 10th kyu to Black Belt, 1-7 years. Other Aussie winners were Brent Blackmore, Evan Williamson, Jarrod Beck, Lachlan Carr, Cameron Beck, Teena Ward, Mira Marinova, Pia Horsfield, Michael Giarusso and NAS stalwarts Des Murphy, Erin Forrest, Alex Pereda, James Casey, Paul Reid and Pania Casey..to mention just a few.
The South Africans also had an excellent tournament taking three gold, one silver and two bronze medals. New Zealand walked away with a gold and Uzbekistan came away with a silver.

One of the highlights of the tournament was the Masters’ Showcase. This highlighted the enormous skill of the masters competitors and showed you can’t substitute for experience.

NAS Queensland Director Jim Casey put on a performance showcasing his Advanced Forms in Kenshinkan. This was a very accomplished display.

Golden Lion Kung Fu Academy performed their open handed Wushu forms and weaponry displays. The weapons demonstrations included: Staff, Wushu swords and an absolutely thrilling display of chain and spike - truly amazing to witness.

Sensei Chris Goodall brought on his advanced students from the Fudosh’n Ryu club to weave their magic with Iado (sword drawing), followed by a demonstration of a defence against a multiple attack with a sword.

Joe Thambu’s students then followed with a fantastic display of Aikido and Silvio Morelli showed his mastery with a traditional display of Advanced Seipai Kata and Bo/Staff forms. Silvio was in excellent form, with a free flowing and breathtaking display of martial arts mastery. It had been well over seven years since Silvio had performed a public demonstration and he proved that he has lost none of his excellence.

Kicking off the Masters display was a 64-year-old Chinese Tai Chi master Han Wen Zhang, who looked 20-years-younger as he effortlessly went through his Tai Chi drills begining in the traditionally soft Tai Chi style and exploding in dynamic motion in the same movement. The man didn’t have a wrinkle and moved like he was in the prime of his life. He generated an energy that the entire audience could feel. It was electric.

One man also who certainly did not go unnoticed was the legendary Benny ‘the Jet’ Urquidez. One of the great martial artists, he too had a presence and aura that filled the auditorium. The crowd lined up for autographs and for a chance to meet the martial arts king.

A tournament like the WASO championships is extremely important to all styles of martial arts. The enjoyment sustained from such a competition can be found in the words of the competitors.
“I thought that it was really great because a lot of people showed good sportsmanship, people from other countries gained new experiences about our country and about the way we fight. I have really enjoyed meeting other people from other countries and learning about their cultures and how they train . . . I thought the opening ceremony was really exciting, it got the adrenalin pumping with the great music,” said 15-year-old Fiona Dina from the Go Kan Ryu club in Queensland.

South African Ruan Joubert stated that, “this tournament is very important to develop everything. It’s been marvellous here in Australia. Everyone has been so friendly.”

“These tournaments are very important. It’s a good environment and it’s great for just everybody to get involved in. This tournament has been fantastic. The extension of three minutes on the rounds has been great, and especially the change of the points system from three nil to five nil has been fantastic,” said Australian Team coach and competitor Des Murphy.

Middleweight champion Renee Joyce, who defeated one of the tournaments toughest opponents Erin Forrest, said, “a tournament like this is phenomenally important. It’s great to see other countries here, you get see how they do things and everyone has been really good sports, which is great.”

In fact Renee Joyce’s performance earned her the title of Grand Champion. Renee’s victory against Erin Forrest, the two-time NAS champion and current Australian champion was an exhibition of great skill. This was a hot contest as neither girl gave an inch and each unleashed some superior techniques. In the end Renee had that little bit too much, but be sure that Erin will come back hard at the next tournament.

It was an exciting affair that decided who would be the men’s champion of champions. Current national champion Alex Pereda who was looking extremely strong was hit in the face by a spinning hook kick which broke his jaw for the trouble. His Uzbekistani opponent was disqualified in this semi-final and Alex went straight through to the final. However, the broken jaw was just a little too painful to compete with and it was Vedran Louric who was awarded the title of champion of champions. Vedren put in a strong performance. It would have been great to see the two fight each other to determine the result, but it was not to be. Congratulations to Vedren for a sterling performance.

It was a fantastic weekend and all who attended had a most enjoyable experience. The Olympic spirit had been carried through and the friendly atmosphere remained. WASO reached a new level during this tournament and is looking to grow further by establishing more circuits in Europe and North America and further develop the Oceania and Asian countries. There’s a lot of work to be done, but the tournament can only get bigger and better from here on in.

Special thanks to Tom Curtis for the awesome amount of work he put into the training systems and accreditation. He lifted the standard of judging to a new level. This is unpaid work and he does it for the love of the arts. To Julie Curtis for her tireless effort and to everyone involved including staff and officials, you know who you are. Also thank you to the sponsors: Bayview on the Park, Kefford Bus Lines, Sport Moves Travel, Blackburn Trophies and Blitz Martial Arts Magazine.

Click to view Tournament Results