National karatekas during a training session at the Indoor Stadium of the Hassanal Bolkiah Sports Complex. BT file
Four Dojo Studio karate students will be heading to this weekend's 5th Silent Knight Asia Karate Cup 2014 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia tomorrow.
They will all be taking part in the kumite event in their respective weight classes at the Olympic Council of Malaysia's Indoor Sports Centre.
Muhammad Abdul Amin Zainal will be competing in the Under-67kg weight class, Wan Nur Izzah Metussin in the Under-50kg weight class and Mohamad Faris Hj Daud and Amal Rafedah Zaidi in the Under-55kg weight class.
They have been training under Hj Eddie Jofriani Hj Johari for over two years and the former national karateka said he is using the competition to provide his students exposure - though he also hopes to bring back medals.
"They have been training since the previous tournament in February three times a week. Sometimes four times a week because they're all still studying," said Hj Eddie, a six-time Southeast Asian (SEA) Games representative.
"The students went through more intensive training in the last two months.
"The women's team managed to get third place in the team kumite last year and we were really proud of the team because they only had a couple of week's intensive training," added Hj Eddie, who competed at the SEA Games from 1999 to 2009.
The tournament will also host a kata event and as well as four different age categories; Children Boys and Girls, Cadet, Junior and Seniors.
"They are representing the dojo, but more than that, they are representing Brunei - though they are not the national team," said Dojo Studio manager Osveanne Osman.
"We're proud of the fact that Hj Eddie has been in the national team for 12 years, and although he retired due to injuries, he's passionately training people and passing on his skills.
"Hj Eddie is passing on that little extra to them which will give them a slight edge, but they will still be competing against really tough people," she added.
Last year's tournament saw participants pour in from 12 Asian countries.
