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Tadious Manyepo Youth Interactive Writer
WILFRED Mashaya (jnr) is only six but he has already won seven gold, a silver and three bronze medals in international karate tournaments.
That’s probably a record-breaking feat on its own.
But, there is no denying this young boy is the first African at that age to win a gold medal in any international tournament in kobudo.
But the versatile marshal artist who can perform eight karate katas including the difficult Sono San and use kobudo weapons has not taken just this country but the world by storm.
He is son to international Hall of Famer and kobudo star, Wilfred (snr).
He grabbed gold in the recently held Online Samurai World Championships in the weapons category performing Terukawa no tonfa weapon.
It was Mashaya’s third competition in his budding yet already blooming marshal arts career since he officially started the game last year.
The talented boy only got into the game when Zimbabwean sportspersons were in a Covid-19 induced lockdown last year.
His father said he didn’t want his son to become a karateka at that age but had to let him train eventually.
“His passion is something else. At first I didn’t want him to follow in my footsteps.
“But he would always go about imitating my moves since he was about three years and when I was down and felt unmotivated at the height of the Covid-19 induced lockdown, he would always wake me up.
“That’s how I started training him. I was surprised to see that he was up there. That also encouraged me to work on him,” said Mashaya.
“But I should admit that I am surprised at the rate in which he has grasped the normally difficulty moves.
“He is definitely one for the future all things being equal.”
His first tournament came in September 2020 in the Online OTW World Championships organised by Mediterranean Karate Alliance (MKA).
He won a bronze medal in the Karate Kata doing Pinan sono san and was number 4 in Kobudo.
He followed that up with another determined performance in December in the Online Q Challenge International Championships, again organized by the MKA.
The boy mesmerized and scooped a silver medal in the Karate Kata category before staging an all-round top-notch performance in the recent tournament.
In each of the tournaments he has participated in so far, an average of 60 contestants from an average of 24 countries have taken part.
Among his many attributes, Mashaya is able to perform several karate katas including the Taikyoko Sono Ichi, Sono Ni and Sono San. He can also do Pinan Sono Ichi, Pinan Sono Ni and Pinan Sono San among others. Mashaya is also a master in weapons who can do the Toma Bo Kata using Bo/Staff Weapon, the Terukawa no Tonfa using the Tonfa Weapon, The Nunchaku freestyle Katas using the Chuckle Stick weapon.
His versatility has as well seen him starting to take lessons in full contact Karate, boxing and gymnastics.
Online Reporter