Having won a bronze medal in the masters team kumite event in the previous World Karate Championships in 2012, he set out to do one better on his previous performance to try and win his first ever medal for an individual event at the World’s.

David achieved this dream and was one of 14 Australians to take home medals in their respective events.

David won silver in the Male 50-54 years Individual Kata (forms), just 0.2 points behind three-time world kata gold medallist and previous Australian Coach, Sensei Brad Jones from Sydney.

But David exceeded his own expectations, also winning bronze in the Male 50-54 years Individual Kumite (points sparring).

He faced fierce competition, beating strong opponents from Switzerland, Romania and then Brazil. He lost his semi-final round to Sensei Pasqualino Mura from England who went on to win the gold.

Winning a medal at the world karate championships in either kata or kumite is a significant achievement, but to win a medal in both kata and kumite events represents an exceptional achievement in karate, something very few people accomplish.

David Rush and Lucas Vallejo (age 11) from Sydney who won gold in kata and kumite, were the only two Australians to medal in both individual events.

“I owe thanks to the people that have supported me including National Coaches, Senseis Peter Harth and Brad Watts, State Coaches Senseis Brad Jones and Abraham Harada, all of the Australian Team and my wonderful wife, Mayumi”, said David Rush.

Australia fielded a relatively large team of 45 athletes, three coaches, a team manager, four referees and about 20 additional supporters.

A number of other countries including Italy, Switzerland, Denmark, Japan, Russia, Ireland, China and Indonesia also fielded large teams although some of the smaller countries such as Kyrgyzstan and Azerbaijan although small in number, still sent some very good competitors.

“With our numbers we made sure that we were noticed by the rest of the world by chanting Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, Oi, Oi, Oi and getting behind all our competitors.” David said.

All of the Aussie competitors were strong medal contenders with most of the rest of the non-medallist team members either narrowly missing out on medals or making the finals in their respective events.

The opening ceremony included a stirring speech by Kancho Kanazawa, the [provide English title/position here] of SKIF, about the current state of the world and the need for compassion, patience and understanding in the light of various conflicts currently occurring around the world.

There was also a tremendous showcase of performances including beautifully costumed Indonesian female silat martial artists, traditional Indonesian music and the rare Indonesian martial art of debus.

Debus comes from west Java and includes martial arts moves and extreme performances including breaking concrete blocks across the performers’ back or stomach, belly and neck piercing with a spear or needled weapon, cutting the arm or tongue with a machete or pulling a curved scythe from the inside of the mouth all of which are performed without getting cut or hurt.

David Rush said “I was very impressed by the performances of the Australian team members which proved that we Aussies are a force to be reckoned at the World Karate Championship level”.

“With karate now an Olympics sport, I think karate will become even more popular and I look forward to watching the Aussies compete in the Tokyo Games in 2020.

“We also had a number of Australian team members and supporters  step up to assist Indonesia with the delivery of a very large and complex tournament, showing that we are always prepared to get up and help others when required”, said David.

“We earned the respect of everybody that attended the World Championships, especially the Japanese and Indonesian officials. People were coming up and thanking us.

You could say that we earned world respect both on and off the matts”, added David.

Now back home in Nowra, David is focussing on coaching his students in the NSW National All Styles State Titles this October and is starting a new introduction to women’s self-defence course on 19 September.

“Our club moto is Dream, Train, Achieve, and I hope my own success will inspire others to achieve their own dreams through focussed training with a purpose”, said David.

New members are always welcome at South Coast Shotokan Karate. Phone David on 0418 977 402 or visit: www.shotokankarate.com.au