“What the heck, I got nothing to lose, I’m going to give it a shot. “I’m lying in bed a couple days before the Toronto tournament and thinking how am I ever going to first of all even get there? Secondly, how am I going to do this one move where at the end of my routine, I pass the sword from my right hand, swing it around over my head and pass it off to my left hand quickly? I’m just thinking no, no I’m going to drop it,” Stick said to himself. After that, Stick pinched a nerve in his neck which severely limited his movement in his left arm. Before his final competition in Toronto, Stick contracted COVID, which wiped him out for a couple of weeks according to Stick. In the three tournaments, Stick grabbed three golds and two silvers that was enough to finish first place in two of his three divisions. Stick went to Minneapolis for the Diamond Nationals, Miami for the Pan-American Internationals and lastly in Toronto for the Toronto International Tournament of Champions. I thought ‘What the heck, I’m this close I might as well go to the last three tournaments.” “One thing led to another and it kind of snowballed and at the point of August this past year I was in a tight race, neck-and-neck for first place. “In the last two years, I had some more free time and so I thought ‘Well I’ll try my hand at it again’ and had some OK results,” Stick said. Stick originally began professional martial arts when he was in his 20s, competing in the NASKA circuit but eventually gave it up and began training karate in McKinleyville before getting back into the circuit over the past two years. Stick, who had never won a National Championship prior to this past year, won two in 2023 against competition 18 years and older, meaning Stick was going against, and bested, competitors much younger than himself. NASKA has monthly tournaments in different cities that all go towards a yearlong point system based on finishes at different events. Stick outlasted the competition over months of tournaments around the continent, fighting through injury, fatigue and even a bout with COVID. Stick also placed third in Creative Weapons. Stick, who’s lived in McKinleyville for several decades, captured World Championships in two different divisions of the North American Sport Karate Association (NASKA) in both Chinese Weapons and Hand Forms. At the age of 62 years old, Alex Stick is a World Champion.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |