Two of Botswana’s accomplished Karatekas, Ofentse Bakwadi and Khaya Groth will head for a two week intensive training in the United States of America this coming week. The two will head out of the country on Thursday and will be expected back in the country on the 14th of December.
The two will train under certified personal trainer and a member of the USA Olympic team, Brian Ramrup. Speaking in an interview, Bakwadi expressed delight at the opportunity, saying it will give him much needed intensive work out ahead of what he believes will be a hectic 2015. After a disappointing year that saw him and other members of the Botswana Karate Association (BOKA) senior team fail to compete in at least one international event, Bakwadi said the training will afford him and Groth an opportunity to train and gauge themselves against some of the best karatekas in America.
He says while in the USA, they will get an opportunity to train and spar with the USA Olympic team which Ramrup is a part of. “This will give us much needed exposure as we will spar with different Karatekas from the team for most of our stay there. Competing with these guys daily will give us the opportunity to work on our mistakes and shortcomings over a lengthy period,” he explained.
“There are a number of events we would like to compete in starting from January like the French Open, the US Open, the Dubai Open, the commonwealth Karate Champions, Gaborone Open and many others. Should we get an opportunity to compete in these events, this training will serve as a good preparation towards such events,” Bakwadi opined. While Groth will be sponsored by the Botswana national Sports Council (BNSC) through the Zebra Fund, Bakwadi said he will be sponsoring himself with the help of the Hayashi Ha Botswana Karate family.
