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Tough breaks win Charlie bronze
By Barry Rollings
Volume 49, No. 13, July 26, 2007 |
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| POWERFUL: SGT Charlie Van Beelen works on his swing. |
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| Inset: thrilled with his bronze medal at the World Taekwondo Championships in Canada. |
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Air Force Reservist SGT Charles Van Beelen went looking for some big breaks when he contested his third World Taekwondo Championships in Canada in May, but they did not turn out to be the “cracking good time” he anticipated.
SGT Van Beelen, from 382ECSS, discharged from the Air Force in 1994 after 11 years of service and before that served in the Navy for nine years.
He contested the power-breaking section of the titles in Quebec, where his quest for an individual gold medal did not eventuate and he had to settle for bronze.
But it was a case of third time lucky after competing in the 2003 event at Warsaw in Poland and 2005 in Dortmund in Germany without enjoying medal success.
“The individual power-breaking didn’t go as I expected,” SGT Van Beelen said.
“I missed three of my five techniques and was devastated because I was very confident of reaching the gold medal round.
“The annoying thing was that I broke more boards in training than we were required to in Quebec, but that’s the pressure of world championships.”
His bronze came in the senior men’s team power-breaking, where a mere six points separated them from the gold medal.
“I was ecstatic. This was my last world championships and all I wanted was to bring something, anything, home; so bronze was good too.
“The next world titles will be in Argentina in 2009. Hopefully, I will be coaching the power-breaking teams and I am determined to bring home more gold.”
For the 51-year-old reservist, the operative phrase is “big breaks” not “lucky breaks”. The key to success is in his own hands – and feet for that matter.
“Power-breaking is all about punching and kicking boards using two different hand techniques and three different feet techniques,” SGT Van Beelen explained.
He is a veteran of 11 years in the sport and is a third-dan black belt who hopes to pass his December grading for the fourth-dan. He trains with the ITF Sunshine Coast club. |
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