Inviting Seniors to this New Jersey Championship

An exciting new tournament is just around the corner, and, yes, there are separate divisions for Taekwondo seniors.  The First Annual New Jersey President's Cup Championship will take place on Sunday, April 19th, at South Plainfield High School.  And this could easily become one of the most important annual events on the New Jersey martial-arts calendar.
   One reason is that the tournament director is Master Kevin Vigneri, who is president of the New Jersey State Taekwondo Association.  If the name sounds familiar, that's because he's the same person who has successfully run the annual USA Taekwondo New Jersey State Championships.  In other words, we have here someone who knows how to organize a major event.
   Another reason is that the President's Cup will also serve as the official team trials for the New Jersey State Taekwondo Team.  Team members will represent the State in other 2015 tournaments.
   And finally, the President's Cup has made room for seniors.  In addition to all the usual younger age groups, the tournament features 41-50, 51-60, and 61+ divisions for older competitors.  And that's why I'm excited about this new event.  I'm tired of tournament directors limiting competition to the kids, so I will do all I can to support tournaments that acknowledge the value of keeping our most veteran Taekwondo athletes in the game.

                                                                     

   The President's Cup will feature competition in four areas:
          -- WTF forms (for competitors affiliated with the World Taekwondo Federation)
          -- Open forms (for all non-WTF athletes)
          -- Sparring
          -- Breaking
   Competitors will be grouped by age as well as belt color, from white to black.  And although the tournament will begin at 8:30 a.m., adult athletes won't have to check in until 3:00 p.m.  This, by the way, is a really big deal.  I'm sure that many of you have had the experience of showing up in the early morning, as required, and then not being called for your event until 5:30 p.m.  Thanks, Master Vigneri, for devising a better system.
   For more information about the First Annual New Jersey President's Cup Championship, you can click over to President's Cup online or email "MasterVigneri at aol.com."  [Use the @ symbol when emailing.  We don't show it here in order to deter spammers.]
   Hope to see you on April 19th!  Good luck, and good training.