KARATE - Mum's fighting fit and her boys think it's cool

CHLOE JOHNSON
It's not every day a mother follows in her sons' footsteps, especially when they are under 10. But if you're keen on sports and staying fit, as Kaya Dorward is, then it becomes an every-day occurrence.
After enrolling her sons, Ethan, seven, and Jacob, five, about a year ago into the martial arts class at the Flax rock adventure centre in Flaxmere, and watching them train hard (in addition to receiving a little persuasion from her sons' instructor, Jeremy Geddes) she decided she wanted to have a go, too.
"When I was watching the boys (Ethan and Jacob), Jeremy would say 'come on mum, jump in mum, come on', so I did," says Dorward, who is also a keen softballer.
After just a few months of training, Dorward has moved up from non-contact competitions, known as ippon, to her first full-contact fight last Saturday, at the Racecourse in Hastings, taking third place in the senior women's division.
"It went well, it was my first full-contact fight but now I'm very sore, and I've got the bruises to prove it," she says, emphasising the intensity of full-contact combat compared to ippon, where fighters gain points by demonstrating only technique, with no body contact.
When asked what she feels and thinks before going into a fight she says with a laugh: "I'm not scared just really nervous, going to the toilet every five minutes.
"Most of the time I try to think about what I have learnt, but when you get out there it all goes out of your mind and you're just blank."
Mum wasn't the only successful fighter in the Dorward family at the weekend. Frimley School pupils Ethan and Jacob were also awarded third place in their divisions - Ethan in the seven-year-olds and Jacob in the four to five-year-olds, both full contact.
Ethan wouldn't have it any other way: "I don't do ippon, only full contact. It's really good, like, because you get to kick and punch other people," he says.
The boys, also keen rugby players for Clive, have no trouble with contact sports and staying fit as they train on Thursday night for martial arts. After that dad Travis, a keen speedway driver, takes them to rugby training straight after.
Sharing their skills across both sports isn't a problem for the boys, neither is favouritism.
"I like them both the same, and some people at school think karate is cooler but then (friend) Stuart thinks rugby is better," Ethan said.
Five-year-old Jacob may have a future in martial arts after coming second in his division at the Solomon Purcell National Kyokushin tournament at Easter, where there were also a few competitors from Japan and Australia.
Juggling time for three competitors of different divisions before fights and for training isn't the nightmare it might appear. All three of them train on the same nights at the same time, and even do the same training.
"Often we will do fitness for an hour all together and then we will split into age groups to practice punches and kicking," said Dorward, who decided to sit training out due to injuries from Saturday's fight. With the New Zealand Kyokushin Karate 2007 Tournament three weeks away in Hamilton, martial arts is the focus for the Dorwards and trainings have bumped up from twice a week to four, or "every chance you can get".
Despite their dedication and success, Dorward said "it's just a lot of fun and I mainly do it to keep fit and healthy".
"What I really want is to encourage more mothers to get involved."
Ethan agrees, saying it's cool having a mum who fights.