Photo: Officer Cadet Pavlo Besedin (in red) throws a kick at his opponent during the gold medal fight at the 14th Raymond Mourad Taekwondo Championship in Montreal on 16 February 2013.
Photo credit: Officer Cadet Patrick Morgan
RMC Saint-Jean Taekwondo Team Strikes With a Nine Medal Victory
– an article by Officer Cadet Pavlo Besedin
On 16 February 2013, The Royal Military College Saint-Jean (RMC Saint-Jean) Taekwondo Team participated in the 14th annual Raymond Mourad Taekwondo Championship in Montreal.
The athletes of the RMC Saint-Jean Taekwondo Team arrived expecting to gain both valuable experience and victories. The tournament provided excellent opportunity for RMC Saint-Jean’s athletes to apply their training and prove their skills in Taekwondo combat.
Through sweat and tears, Taekwondo team stood victorious, having secured a total of nine medals. Gold medals were valiantly won by Officer Cadets Frédéric Tremblay, Charles LeBreton-Prévost, Barand Sahin, and Denis Huard-Houle. Silver medals were obtained by Officer Cadets Pavlo Besedin, Ricardo Garrido, and Gabrielle Archambault. And finally, Officer Cadets Ze Xi Chen and David Choiniere took home the bronze.
The experience is always surreal when in a fight. RMC Saint-Jean Taekwondo athletes train three times a week tirelessly in order to improve their skills, yet no part of their training compares to the actual experience of being in the midst of a fight. “It always gets the adrenaline pumping!” eagerly said Officer Cadet Besedin, as he walked to meet his opponent for the gold medal fight. No matter the bruises, sprains, sores, or even the occasional unavoidable injury, the members of the RMC Saint-Jean Taekwondo team are always looking forward to the next time they will stand on the training mat.
The Taekwondo tournament was both a wonderful and exciting event that helped strengthen the athlete’s fitness and performance in sports, one of the four components of the Royal Military College Saint-Jean program.
The success of the Taekwondo Team would not be possible if not for the guidance of the team’s coach, past Taekwondo and Kickboxing World Champion Darrell Henegan. Well done RMC Saint-Jean Taekwondo team!
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