Date: December 5 & 6, 2025
Place: Greenfield Park, Quebec, Canada
Organizer: Canada Branch (Branch Chief Alain Bordeleau)
On Friday December 5th, four karatekas from the Greenfield Park Dojo were present for their grading; Elior Imanzi Pole Pole and Sami Yacoub, both for their 1st Dan. For his 2nd Dan; Guillaume Falardeau. For the 3rd Dan was Annabelle Lafréchoux.
From the Longueuil Dojo (Branch Chief Normand Bordeleau), Marc Hannan and Joël Bilodeau were present for their 2nd Dan, and Frédéric Boulet for his 3rd Dan.
All the karatekas began their Dan grading by performing their katas and they also completed and succeeded with the breaking exam with the hands and with their feet. The grading exam started at 8:00 pm and ended at 10:00 pm. The seven karatekas were well prepared and executed their katas with precision, low positions, strength, and energy.
The belt examination continued, Saturday December 6th, with a rigorous and demanding training, cardiovascular training, push-ups blocks, various sequences of kicks, the Gohon Geri and upper body attacks, which was then followed with the Ido, Shugi, Ido combinations, Ido Sokugi and the San-bon-kumite.
Finally, the most demanding part of the grading started, the combat portion. The combats are always a huge challenge; however, the students did their best to succeed. More than 84 brown and black belts karatekas came to cheer and fight with the 7 karatekas who were present for their grading. Also, parents and friends attended the event to encourage the candidates.
For Greenfield Park: Elior Imanzi Pole Pole and Sami Yacoub both completed 15 combats, Guillaume Falardeau completed 20 combats and Annabelle Lafréchoux completed 30 combats.
For the Longueuil Dojo: Marc Hannan and Joel Bilodeau both completed 20 combats and Frédéric Boulet completed 30 combats.
Like always, at the end of the day, everybody was exhausted but very happy and extremely proud of what they accomplished. The seven karatekas surpassed themselves and were able to demonstrate their perseverance and courage. Moreover, we are very proud of their accomplishment.
Best regards,
Shihan Alain Bordeleau and Sensei Christine Jagucki
*The photos of Tameshiwari are from the breaking class held in Greenfield Park Dojo in October.
