BROKEN bones and blood blisters couldn't stop Grimsby Fudoshin Karate Club's latest black belt grading stars.
Three students – Kris Calthorpe, Sally Flynn and daughter Rebecca Flynn – have passed their black belt 1st dans.
Making the grade is an achievement in itself, but even more so given the drama that unfolded amid their preparations.
Two months before grading, Calthorpe slipped on ice and broke his wrist.
But he returned to training just two weeks later, compensating for the lack of use of his arm.
And after his wrist break successfully healed, more treatment was required – he had 16 stitches in his forehead on the day of the grading. For safety, he fought with club chief instructor John McLauchlan during the examination.
Rebecca Flynn, meanwhile, trained so hard in the week prior to the grading that she developed painful blood blisters on her feet.
But she battled on and, during the exam, went toe-to-toe with her mother Sally in a demonstration of fighting techniques.
McLauchlan said: "You can often tell which students that start karate, will carry on to achieve black belt level.
"Kris, Rebecca and Sally have always been consistent with their training and their hard work has paid off, not just in earning their black belt but in their confidence, health and in achieving something of real value."
Fourteen new grades have been celebrated at the club.
A beginners' course at the club – which meets at Toll Bar Academy, Station Road, New Waltham – starts next Thursday, at 6pm. Contact McLauchlan on 07767 637365 for more details or visit www.fudoshinkarate.com
