North Idaho karate team wins big at Pasadena tourney

The nine-person Universal Kenpo Kung Fu Association (UKKA) team from Spirit Lake and Sandpoint competed at the Pasadena International Karate Tournament in Pasadena, Calif., on Aug. 30-31, and returned home to North Idaho with 40 international titles which totaled: 23 first-place trophies, 12 second-place trophies and five third-place trophies.  

The tournament had hundreds of competitors from the United States, Canada, Chile, Argentina, Mexico and the United Kingdom.

60-year-old black belt Mike Siegfried (the team instructor) won three first-place trophies and one second-place trophy. 

14-year-old green belt Alannah Winland (team captain) won four first-place trophies and one third-place trophy. 

18-year-old purple belt Allilah Dykes won three first-place trophies and one second-place trophy. 

14-year-old orange belt Saydie Green won one first-place trophy and four second-place trophies. 

10-year-old orange belt Jesse Winland won two first-place trophies. 

9-year-old orange belt Jessika Winland won three first-place trophies and one second place trophy. 

13-year-old yellow belt Taylor Jenkins won six first-place trophies and one second-place trophy. 

9-year-old yellow belt Audrey Jenkins won one first-place, four second-place and one third-place trophies. 

8-year-old yellow belt Michael Jenkins won two third-place trophies. 

“Our little team came back to North Idaho with 40 international titles," Siegfried said. This is a truly stunning achievement. I am so proud of the team and their awesome parents and grandparents who have supported them from the beginning. During the event, the team worked together in the face of very tough competition. They performed in the weapons, forms, synchronized forms, and sparring divisions with skill, grace, beauty and fearlessness. More importantly, they treated their competitors, teammates, and themselves with dignity and respect which are hallmarks of a well-trained martial artist. United together, they worked tirelessly for a year to prepare for this tournament, and they exceeded all expectations. The team trusted each other, their skills and their training and they are now international champions because they put in the work and had a plan to win.” 

Team UKKA is sponsored by the Verbal Judo Institute, Inc., a verbal de-escalation training company based in New York. Team UKKA hopes to represent the state of Idaho in additional tournaments this year. If you are interested in supporting Team UKKA as a sponsor, you can contact Master Siegfried at Idahoukka@gmail.com. You can also support them by watching their journey on YouTube and subscribing at http://www.youtube.com/@idahoukka