By: Jamison Wagner, Staff Reporter
Scott Gampert, a former Engineering major, will head to the Amateur Athletics Union karate national tournament this summer.
The tournament, held in Cincinnati, Ohio June 26 through 30, will host thousands of martial artists from across the nation.
Gampert swept the black belt division of the regional Amateur Athletics Union karate tournament in March, winning five medals and securing himself a spot at the larger competition, he said.
“It feels good to win, but seeing all the different contenders; I wonder, ‘What did I do better than them? What did they do worse than me?’ I think about how I can compete better next time,” he said.
This will be the fourth degree black belt’s second national tournament; Gampert’s first was two years ago in Florida, he said.
Gampert gives much of the credit for his victory to his karate school and the advice the instructors have given him over the years.
“You have to learn to stay relaxed; don’t try to force a technique. Let the technique flow; you have to work on your speed and not on power. It does not matter that you hit hard; it matters that you make contact fast,” he said.
The main objective of the regional tournament is to promote friendly competition, Shihan Ray Barrera Jr., the tournament’s organizer, said. The AAU is a non-profit volunteer sports organization founded in 1888. For more information on the AAU competitions, visit aausports.org.
