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12th FSKA Frequently Asked Questions - Basic Info -
Where and when is the Tournament being held?
This year's FSKA World Championships are being held 24th - 26th September in Karpacz, in Lower Silesia in Poland. Shihan Funakoshi (the head of our style) will be holding a seminar on 23rd September in the nearby town of Kowary.
What it is, and what it isn't
ese world championships are organised on behalf of the Funakoshi Shotokan Karate Association, to which our Dojo is affiliated. It is open to all members of the FSKA, and to other shotokan practitioners, whatever their age or grade. Participants come from all over the world, and it is a fantastic opportunity to meet other karateka.
It is not an official WKF (World Karate Federation) tournament, and participating in it will not give you an official ranking. Nor will success at the tournament mean that you will be selected for any events here in the UK, other than those that Sensei Debi's Dojo participates in.
What events will the tournament cover?
The tournament is open to all ages and grades. Last year in South Africa, the competitors ranged from 4 year old white belts to Veteran (over 40) Black Belts. The competitors from Sensei Debi's Dojo ranged from a 6 year old to a 42 year old.
The tournament will comprise 4 main events.Team Kata, Individual Kata, Individual Kumite and Team Kumite.
What should students, participants and families expect?
There will be a lot of competitors from all over the world, and the karate will be of a very high standard. Do not be intimidated - this will make participating an even more exciting experience!
The group from our dojo will very probably arrive at the competition venue together, and try and stay together as much as possible, it makes it more fun for the spectators! Sensei Debi encourages her students to participate in as many events as possible, so that they gain additional experience. Typically, each student will be offered the opportunity to compete in the team kata, individual kata, and individual kumite. This means that usually each competitor will compete in one event a day.
There will probably be a number of floors competing at the same time to allow for as many events as possible. About half an hour before an event starts, the competitors will be summoned to a staging area, and they will then be escorted to the floor on which they are competing. Sensei Debi or another instructor from the dojo will be there to provide help and support.
The precise details of the competition have not yet been released, and will be released nearer the time.
How long does it last?
The competition is scheduled to take place over three days (Friday - Sunday). Shihan Funakoshi will be holding a seminar on Thursday 23rd September. Attendance at this is optional (TBC).
Do you have to stay for the duration?
The schedule of the competition has yet to be released, but we are assuming that if it is like last year's competition, each day comprises a different event, e.g. Friday team kata, Saturday individual kata, Sunday individual kumite. If this is the case, you don't have to stay for the whole event, e.g. if you only wish to compete in kata, but Sensei Debi strongly recommends entering as many categories of competition as you can. We will after all have travelled a long way to get there, and the experience of competing is very good for your karate.
When do you need to get there?
Given that the competition takes place in school time, we would recommend arriving in Poland on the evening of Thursday 23rd September. This will however need to be confirmed nearer the time.
School Absence Given the timings of the tournament, it is likely that students may need to request time off from school. We would recommend asking for absence on 23rd and 24th September and possibly Monday 27th, depending on timings of flights.
Travel and Accommodation ^Back to top
Where is the Tournament being held?
This year's FSKA World Championships are being held in Karpacz, Lower Silesia, Poland. This means that for most UK competitors, travel to and from the tournament is relatively affordable and not too heavy a time commitment. It also means that our students will not require additional time before the event to acclimatise to time zone changes and/or altitude, as is sometimes the case.
The club typically aims to send participants to an FSKA World tournament every two years (at minimum). It is unlikely that the club will send any participants to the 2011 tournament in the USA.
Travel options
The Fundraising Committee is currently investigating a number of group travel options, including flights to Polish, German and Czech airports with coach trips from airports to the venue. We are also investigating the possibility of using continental coach travel from the UK to the tournament with dedicated drivers as an alternative to flights.
Accommodation
The venue for the tournament is between two towns, one of which has an industrial base and the other which is a ski resort. During September, it is likely there will be ample accommodation available in the area.
We are lucky enough to have Polish members of our club who are using both their local knowledge and language skills to help us find the most advantageous accommodation options for the team and their families. We will provide further information as soon as we are able.
Booking travel and accommodation ^Back to top
PLEASE don't book any flights or hotels just yet until we have confirmed the final tournament dates and also have confirmed the requirements from the club for students to attend pre tournament training sessions in Poland. We may also be able to arrange advantageous rates for team members if we can guarantee groups numbers. The club will communicate to all families intending to send students to the tournament by end of March with updates of travel arrangement options.
What are the requirements for travel?
The club requires any student under the age of 18 to be accompanied by at least one parent/assigned carer who will be the responsible adult in charge of the student. Where two or more students under the age of 18 from one family are travelling, then the requirement will be for there to be a minimum of one parent/carer to attend. Families are, of course, welcome to attend in support of any team member.
How much will it cost?
Typical return flights per person range from approximately £100 to £200, depending on the airports and carriers used. We are currently investigating both standard and budget flights from a number of airports in the greater London area to airports in Poland, Germany and the Czech Republic. There may be local supplements at each end for coach/taxi travel. The club aims to arrange group travel to and from airports to the tournament venue where this makes economic sense. However, families are free to 'make their own way' if they wish to.
Accommodation is likely to be in the range of £150 per night per double /family room. We recommend that families budget on the basis of a minimum of three nights accommodation. The club will assist families, on request, to arrange 'room shares' with other club members to minimise accommodation costs.
Families also need to budget for a daily subsistence allowance (food, etc) of approx £30 per day per person.
All team members and families are responsible for their own travel insurance arrangements.
Fundraising ^Back to top
Fundraising Committee
The club's representation at international tournaments is supported by a fundraising committee. This committee is largely constituted by parents of students and is entirely independent of the commercial activities of the club itself. Its purpose is to assist students to represent their club and country irrespective of the financial means of their family, through the provision of bursaries.
The fundraising committee is currently applying to the Charities Commission for its activities to be recognised and constituted as a small charity. This is a lengthy process that will allow students in the long term to become eligible for a wide range of sports grants and benefactions, We are currently drafting our constitution and would welcome any support that parents can provide (e.g. legal advice) on how to do this. If you are interested in being considered as one of our founder trustees, or becoming a member of one of our fundraising committees, please contact Eva West on evamwest@hotmail.com.
Bursaries
The primary purpose of funds raised by the Fundraising Committee is for the provision of Bursaries. The club wishes all eligible students to participate at International level, irrespective of their financial circumstances. To that end, the primary purpose of the Fundraising Committee is to ensure that there is an ongoing source of funds to permit all students to attend international competition through bursaries awarded to students for attendance at individual events/tournaments.
Bursaries are offered primarily on the basis of financial need. Full or partial bursaries are available to eligible students wishing to participate at International level. Where bursaries are offered to eligible students, these will cover, at maximum, the costs for travel and accommodation for the student and one parent/carer only. Any families offered bursaries will be required to have full travel insurance, a, at their own cost, will be responsible for paying for their own living costs while they are away, and will need to reimburse the club in the event that a student cannot attend the tournament after travel arrangements have been finalised.
In order to qualify for a bursary, students and their families must actively participate in the fundraising effort.
The terms and conditions relevant to bursaries are available on request from the Chairman of the Fundraising Committee.
Other uses of Funds
The Fundraising Committee may also allocate a proportions of funds raised to the club on the basis of needs for individual and/or team events. This may, for example, be to provide a team kit for an International or National competition that would otherwise be unaffordable by team members.
All funds dispersed in this manner will be identified in the annual accounts.
Income and Expenditure of the Fundraising Committee
These are available, on request, from the Chairman of the Fundraising Committee and also will be published in the annual accounts. No details of individual bursaries made and the recipients of them, however, will be disclosed.
Raising Funds
The Fundraising Committee is responsible for coordinating all fundraising activities in support of the club. However, it is expected that all students (and their families) who wish to take part in International events contribute to fundraising activities. Al fundraising activities undertaken by groups and/or individuals n behalf of the club need to be endorsed by the Fundraising Committee prior to them taking place.
There are a number of ways in which students and families can participate, including:
- Becoming a member of the Fundraising Committee or one of its sub committees accountable for specific activities
- Offering specific services in support of fundraising (advertising, printing, legal advice, premises for fundraising events etc.)
- Leveraging corporate sponsorship from own employers or Company
- Leveraging Company resources (e.g. advantageous travel deals, purchasing arrangements)
- Organising or running events e.g. car boot sales, cake sales
- Providing manpower - manning our fundraising stall at grading days
- Running campaigns e.g. corporate sponsors hip appeals or publicity campaigns
- Individual activities e.g. sponsored runs
- Lobbying schools to run fundraising and visibility events
The Fundraising Committee welcomes any ideas from families as to how funds can be raised. We also actively encourage families to become involved in raising funds.
Please let us know what you can do to help - even if your family is not expecting any financial support. We need all families to participate in fundraising so that we can raise enough funds for that small number of families who cannot finance an event themselves.
Contact Eva West (email evamwest@hotmail.com) to let us know what you can do.
Terms and Conditions for taking part ^Back to top
Who can participate?
Any student at the dojo can register to attend. There is no internal selection process. However, once a student has registered to participate there are certain things that we expect from them. There are detailed below:
All minors accompanied by at least one parent or guardian
The club requires any student under the age of 18 to be accompanied by at least one parent/assigned carer who will be the responsible adult in charge of the student. Where two or more students under the age of 18 from one family are travelling, then the requirement will be for there to be a minimum of one parent/carer to attend. Families are, of course, welcome to attend in support of any team member.
All participants have to attend extra training for the tournament
Additional training sessions (about 2 a month) will be organised starting from the beginning of February. These will be held in the Kew Dojo at the weekend - precise timing to be confirmed. These will need to be paid for, to cover the hall hire and the instructors' time and will not be covered by the termly subs.
Students must make every effort to attend these sessions. The standard at the competition will be high and we don't want to let ourselves or the dojo down. In order to perform at their best, we would expect students to be training for around 3 hours per week(this includes the regular karate classes) leading up to the tournament.
All participants and their families are expected to play an active role in fundraising
To ensure that it is not only those who are able to afford it who can attend the tournament we have a travel fund to give travel bursaries. Last year we ran a raffle, a couple of car boot sales etc. In order to qualify for one of these bursaries, students and their families must participate in the fundraising effort.
Budo Passes and AMA affiliation must be up to date
Please ensure that your budo pass is up to date with your current grade and that your AMA affiliation is up to date. This is your insurance should you be injured at the tournament. All parents and adult participants will be required by the competition organisers to sign waivers for any injuries incurred while competing.
Team Kit
The Fundraising Committee is currently looking into buying a team tracksuit to wear at the competition. Further details will be released as soon as they are known.
Behaviour
When in Poland the team will be representing the Dojo, Sensei Debi and their country. A high standard of behaviour and good sportsmanship is therefore expected of all participants. Off the karate floor, parents will be responsible for the behaviour of their children.
Other Tournaments ^Back to top
As part of the training for Poland, the team will be strongly encouraged to participate in tournaments here in the UK.
A list of tournaments will be published once the dates have been confirmed.
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