There was no need for the University of Fort Hare to punch above their weight as they made it a hat-trick of semi-contact titles at the USSA karate championships.
Their dominance in the format in Vanderbijlpark led to a raid of 38 medals in total, surpassing their tally of 31 achieved at last year’s University Sports South Africa event in East London.
Four golds, eight silvers and 26 bronzes put the result beyond doubt, ensuring their name would be engraved on the trophy for a third consecutive year.
The team’s performance even caught the attention of national Goju Kai president Hanshi Peter Brandon, who sent a message of congratulations to head coach Xolani Thobela Ntsonkota.
Whilst Ntsonkota had been confident of pulling off the treble, he admitted that there had been moments in which he was “crossing his fingers”.
As it turned out, there was no need for Lady Luck to intervene with his students responding beautifully to the challenge.
Both Fort Hare’s men and women rose to the occasion, particularly in the intermediate and development level of the individual katas well as in the team kumite.
NWU and UCT proved to be strong competitors, but as the championships progressed, it became clear that UFH’s karatekas had their opposition’s number.
Fort Hare’s display of power was aided by an extended training camp held ahead of the tournament. This year the decision was taken to add a few more days to the usually week-long programme.
“When you push hard, you will be surprised how your level improves. The hours we spent not sleeping have paid off.”
In securing almost 40 medals, there was hardly a member of the team who made a misstep on the mat. However, there were some standout performances.
Philani Momoti and UFH student and assistant coach Anele Gqumayo shone among the men, while Nombuso Ndamane and Ukhona Libalele kept up their sensational form among the women.
Freshman Tamara Nodwengu was the breakout performer, pouching gold at her very first USSAs.
Ntsonkota described the UFH dojo as a “very special” place, where young people strove to excel and worked tirelessly to surpass the achievements of those who came before.
At the same time the sensei, who recently attained his Master’s degree in agricultural economics, placed a premium on his charges’ studies.
“The first thing we tell them is that if they have a test the next day, they should not come to training. They should not miss school because of karate, but they should also have the discipline to make sure they succeed in both.”
Ntsonkota believed Fort Hare’s achievements in the past three years would have been impossible without the support of Gqumayo, head of sport Loyiso Lange and sports officer Timothy Leeuw – all of whom never failed to deliver when “last-minute” issues came up.
He also paid tribute to Goju Kai Border karate administrator Pierre Cornelius for going above and beyond in getting their paperwork in order for big events.