Four athletes from Eagle Martial Arts in Bray and Arklow have returned home with two World Championship medals following an outstanding week of competition at the WAKO World Youth Kickboxing Championships in Jesolo, Italy.
The championships brought together approximately 3,700 competitors from 73 countries, providing a huge international stage for the young Irish athletes to test themselves against some of the best fighters in the world.
EMA athletes Adam Keating and Alex Whyte both secured places on the podium, with Adam claiming a World Silver Medal and Alex taking World Bronze.
Adam Keating produced a series of impressive performances throughout the competition before finishing with a superb silver medal in his older cadet Points Fighting division.
For Alex Whyte, a number of strong performances saw him battle his way through a huge kick light section with 40 competitors to take a well-earned bronze medal in the Junior -63kg division on the world stage.
Josh Keating also delivered a strong performance in his younger cadet Points Fighting -32kg division. Josh progressed through the competition before bowing out to the current European Champion following a very close and intense contest.
For Brody Mulligan competing in -42kg points fighting, the championships marked his first experience competing at world level. Brody showed great determination, securing a win against Italy during the qualification rounds before narrowly bowing out to Hungary in another closely contested fight.
For all four athletes, representing Ireland at a World Championship is a significant achievement and reflects the commitment they have shown in training and competition.
Speaking to Arklow News, Eagle Martial Arts coach Julie Mchale said was “extremely proud of all their performances, as they represented their club and country with determination, respect and pride.”
