Continuing a long tradition, the month of May ended with one of the biggest
Martial Arts events in the Lower Mainland, the 31st Annual West Coast
Can-Am Championships. Participants
packed the BCIT gym all weekend for Japanese, Korean and Chinese Martial Arts
forms, and Sanshou fighting, as well as the crowd-pleasing Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu,
Pankration and Amateur Modified Muay Thai.
The Can-Am, proudly embarking on its fourth decade, is organized and promoted by
Ken Low, a Kung Fu/Wushu instructor who has been teaching in the area for 35
years. Low began promoting the first
annual Can-Am tournament back in 1979, and it has grown each year with the
support and efforts of members of the community, Martial Arts practitioners from
all over BC, as well as the assistance of all three levels of government.
“The original intent of the Can-Am,” says
Low, “was to provide a fun, safe and fair competition, to promote friendship and
exchange, and to provide an opportunity to showcase all styles of Martial Arts. I hoped that it would raise public
awareness and understanding of Martial Arts, and would also provide a viable
option for children and adults to participate.”
The continued success of this tournament makes it an excellent snapshot for the
changes and development of Martial Arts in BC.
“From 1979 to 1985, the tournament was largely attended by Karate and Tae
Kwon Do stylists. At the time,
fighting was mainly of the Sport Karate type, and Kung Fu, Wushu and Tai Chi
styles were rare,” Low reminisces.
“In the late 80s, continuous sparring became more prominent, and Kung Fu, Kenpo,
Wushu, and Tai Chi practitioners started to compete in larger numbers. It wasn’t until the 1990s that we
started to see a swing towards more contact and more realistic styles (in terms
of street-defence situations) such as Pankration, Sanshou, Muay Thai, Brazilian
Jiu-Jitsu. For this reason, we
strive to have a variety of different fighting and form competitions so that we
are inclusive of all Martial Arts practitioners.”
A special dinner gala was held Saturday evening, and Ken Low introduced two
teams from China, who were personally invited by Low to take part in the
tournament for the first time. The
Wushu teams from Shandong and Zhejiang delighted the crowd with demonstrations,
and Shandong fighters Du Guang Qiang, Li Wei, and Sun Jun Feng were recognized
for their participation, along with local favourites Wes Jaya, of Kai Sing Thong
Muay Thai and Ken Tran, of Franco Kickboxing, whom Du and Li would be competing
against in the Main Event the following day.
Sunday started early, with the younger age groups competing in Pankration, Muay
Thai and BJJ. Their proud families
cheered them on, with several young girls quickly becoming crowd favourites as
they trounced some of the boys.
“We need to provide equal opportunity for males and females in the sport of
contact Martial Arts,” says Low. “It
is great to see participation from the ladies of all ages in these sports.”
Adam Ryan, of Dynamic Mixed Martial Arts,
and Simon Posener of Posener’s Pankration oversaw events and assisted as judges. Vancouver based BJJ luminary, Master
Marcus Soares, judged and refereed the Brazilian Jiu Jitsu events, and Chris
Franco, of Franco Kickboxing, could be seen filling in as a judge, and assisting
his young charges in their warm-ups.
Toward the afternoon, the crowds cheered on the Amateur Modified Muay Thai
fighters as they tested their mettle against one another in dramatic fashion,
while others kept an eye on the fighters from Team China as they warmed up.
Local fighter Victor Wang, familiar with the Chinese style, explained what the
crowd was in for. “The Shandong team
is one of the best teams in China.
Sanshou fighters have a side stance, and will throw a lot of side kicks and they
will be very fast. They are used to
catching kicks and throwing their opponents to score points.”
When asked about his teammate’s chances, Shandong Team Wushu expert, Sun Pei
Yuan said: “No problem.”
Victor Wang disagreed. “The Shandong
fighters are experienced, and very skilled, but I think they might underestimate
our guys,” said Wang. “Wes Jaya has
been fighting out of Malaysia and recently came second place in the Z-1
Tournament, and Ken Tran is a slick fighter.
Since this is a fight under Muay Thai rules, I think Jaya and Tran have
the advantage.”
Du Guang Qiang and Wes Jaya were set to square off first, with many supporters
in the crowd cheering their countryman Du, reducing the hometown advantage. Jaya, a traditional Muay Thai
supporter, performed the Wai Kru, showing the diversity of Martial Arts.
The first round went well for Jaya, as Du seemed to be caught off guard by the
skill of his opponent. In the second
round, Du turned it up a notch, and the two fighters showed lightning fast kicks
and heavy blows. Late in the round,
Jaya relied on his Muay Thai techniques, and landed a solid elbow that cut Du at
his hairline. Unfortunately, in the
confusion of styles and rules, the Chinese fighters were unaware of the use of
elbows, and the very competitive fight was ruled a No Contest.
Ken Tran and Li Wei were up next, each showing the strengths of their respective
styles. Li was able to land swift
kicks, and Tran proved to be very elusive, while delivering blows of his own. In the end, after a very even fight,
Tran earned the nod and took the win, bringing the Can-Am to a close.
Low, looking to the future, has indicated that he would like to change the name
of the tournament, as a reflection of the international participation of the
Chinese teams. “We have some new
ideas for the name of the tournament, but they are still under consideration. We hope to build upon our success,
and the relationships that we are building in China, as well as expand into a
truly international event, by inviting competitors from Japan, Thailand,
Singapore and Brazil, but we still want to keep the Can-Am name because of its
long history in the area.”
“I would like to
thank everyone who helped, attended or participated in the 31st
Can-Am. Only with everyone’s support has
the Can-Am become as successful tournament as it is today.
We hope to have everyone’s continual
support to make it a truly international tournament. I would especially like to thank the
Chinese Teams for their premier participation in the Can-Am, and also a special
thank you to Master Thomas Lok and Master Kang for their creation of the premier
Hapkido division in the Can-Am.”

Dear Masters,
friends and students,
Thanks for your
support to the 31st Can-Am Championships.
We had the best
ever Can-Am in terms of participation level and skill level of the athletes –
with well over 500 athletes attended, with 2 Wushu and Sanshou teams from
Mainland China, and with premier Hapkido divisions.
The awards
banquet was also a success with a full-capacity crowd at the Burnaby Delta Hotel
and Conference Centre Grand Ballroom, with representatives from the Vancouver
Chinese Consulate Office, provincial government and Burnaby City Hall, and
community leaders.
Please visit
the web sites below for some photos taken at the Awards banquet.
http://www.gcpnews.com/articles/2010-06-02/C1063_53378.html
http://www.gcpnews.com/ev/ViewPage.jsp?id=2010-06-02&pubid=0§ion=A&pn=6
The following
Muay Thai matches were a hit. Everyone enjoyed these super-fights on Sunday. All
would likely agree that re-matches of these bouts would definitely be worth
waiting for!
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VS |
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Li Wei”玉面蛟龙”李伟 |
|
Ken “The Hitman” Tran |
|
|
|
|
|
VS
|
|
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Du Guang Qiang”琅琊战阵”杜广强
|
|
Wesley Jaya |
Thanks again
for your support!
Best regards,

Ken Low
Promoter
Tournament Information Download
|
The West Coast Can-Am Championships
will soon be renamed
The International Can-Am
Championships
|
Premiered in 1979 as the First Annual West
Coast Can-Am Championships, this tournament has developed into one of the most
prestigious and longest-running annual tournaments in Canada, as it enters the
31st year in 2010.
The goal of this event remained the same
throughout the 31 years, to provide a safe, fair and fun competition event for
Martial Artists of all styles. The Can-Am is known for its quality 5 ft and 6 ft
trophy awards for both forms and fighting competitions, as well as handsome
awards for judging officials.
Over the years, many world-famous Martial
Artists from all styles such as Karate, Kung Fu, Wushu, Taekwondo, Hapkido, Tang
Soo Do, Tai Chi, Jiu-Jitsu, Kenpo, have competed and performed in the Can-Am.
The Can-Am has indeed become a showcase of Martial Arts.
There are over 700 divisions to compete
in, such as hand forms (Kata/Pattern), weapons forms, Karate Style
point-fighting, Continuous Fighting, Sanshou fighting, Pankration, and Brazilian
Jiu-Jitsu. Each category is further divided by gender, age, and ranking.
In this year’s 31st Annual, we
are again anticipating top competitors coming from China, the United States, and
other parts of the world, and of course, our own excellent Martial Artists of
Canada. To more accurately reflect the international level of competition, this
tournament will soon be renamed “The International Can-Am Championships”.
This historic name change will be announced in the 31st Annual Awards
Banquet, to mark the official entry of this quality event into the international
arena.
Greetings Letters
Posters
Competition Tickets