Karate school to send athlete to Pan American Games in August for third year in a row.
July 25, 2018, Westborough, MA – The Massdojo Karate School of Westborough, Mass., sent its national team of nearly 40 athletes to Reno, Nev., earlier this month to compete in the USA National Karate Championships & U.S. Team Trials. They returned with 95 medals and the honor of sending one of its top athletes, Arun Loganathan of Shrewsbury, Mass., to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in August to compete in the Junior Pan American Games as a member of the USA Junior National Team. Arun earned the spot by winning both his qualifying matches in Reno.
Arun is only the third Massdojo athlete to attend the Pan American Games, following Victoria Princi who earned a gold medal at the 2017 games in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Miki Azuma of Grafton and Matt Anderson of Shrewsbury earned alternate slots on the 2018 junior team by finishing in third place.
Massdojo lead instructor Eric Rossini of Grafton, Mass., attributes his teams’ consistent success to several factors. “Hard work pays off! It doesn’t matter if they are 6-year-old beginners or trying out for Team USA – they train from January to July, often giving up their Sundays to train for several hours,” he says. “We study video, travel near and far for competitions and never give up. These kids are warriors with the hearts of lions, and there’s nothing like seeing a child succeed against all odds.”
Massdojo’s 95 medals in the Reno competition exceeds the previous highest total by over 40 medals; the school’s team earned 54 medals in the 2016 competition. The 2018 medal breakdown was 28 gold, 30 silver and 39 bronze.
Each athlete can compete in up to five divisions and may have to win five or six rounds to secure a medal. The Massdojo team excels in kumite (sparring), with 17 of its 39 athletes successfully medaling in that event in Reno. Additionally, 30 out of 37 eligible Massdojo athletes successfully medaled in Team Kumite, which is a three-on-three competition.
Massdojo offers karate classes out of Westborough and Westford’s One Stop Fun.The school is a nationally recognized leader in karate, and all its national coaches are licensed and overseen by the U.S. Olympic Committee. For more information, see www.massdojo.com.
Massdojo’s medal results in Reno:
Individual Kumite: 17 Medals
Gold
-Laji Shanaz, Franklin
-Prayag Karthik, Westborough
-Laji Shanaz, Franklin
-Prayag Karthik, Westborough
-James Carlson III, Shrewsbury
-Ameya Kumsi, Westborough
-Vedant Kotnis, Westborough
-Leisha Gupta, Westborough
Silver
-Shivangi Das Gupta, Shrewsbury
-Arun Loganathan, Shrewsbury (Team USA)
-Surya Balaji, Westborough
Bronze
-Shriya Kumsi, Westborough
-Nakshatra Ramesh, Shrewsbury
-Tejaswini Pitchuka, Hopkinton
-Miki Azuma, Grafton
-Matt Anderson, Shrewsbury
-Nisha Balaji, Westborough
-Krish Chavan, Westborough
-Alex Forziati, Littleton
Team Kumite: 30 Medals
Gold
-Megh Patel, Westborough; James Carlson III, Shrewsbury; Surya Balaji, Westborough; -Prayag Karthik, Westborough – Gold
-Leisha Gupta, Westborough; Hansika Pitchuka, Hopkinton – Gold
-Shriya Kumsi, Westborough; Tejaswini Pitchuka, Hopkinton – Gold
-Victoria Princi, Westford – Gold
Silver
-Nisha Balaji, Westborough; Shambhavi Upadhyay, Westborough– Silver
-Ameya Kumsi, Westborough; Laji Shanaz, Franklin; Haripriya Tolety, Northborough – Silver
-Krish Chavan, Westborough; Vedant Kotnis, Westborough– Silver
-Dikshita Jain, Westborough; Srinidhi Tanuku, Westborough – Silver
Bronze
-Aagney Sinha, Shrewsbury; Veer Bhatia, Shrewsbury; Rishi Ramesh, Shrewsbury
-Victor Mujat, Acton; Henry Liu, Boston; Aaron Nodoushan, Shrewsbury
-Parth Chaudry, Northborough; Siddarth Balakrishnan, North Grafton; Alex Forziati, Littleton
-Matt Anderson, Shrewsbury; Rushil Bist, Shrewsbury; Arun Loganathan, Shrewsbury
Team Kata: 42 Medals
Gold
-Alex Forziati, Ayer; Henry Liu, Boston; Parth Chaudry, Northborough
-Doru Mujat, Acton; Srinidhi Tanuku, Westborough; Leisha Gupta, Westborough
-Henry Liu, Boston; Parth Chaudry, Northborough; Alex Forziati, Littleton
-Srinidhi Tanuku, Westborough; Leisha Gupta, Westborough; Doru Mujat, Acton
-Victoria Princi, Westford; Victor Mujat, Acton; Alex Forziati, Littleton
-Ashwin Balaji, Westborough; Nisha Balaji, Westborough; Surya Balaji, Westborough
Silver
-Dikshita Jain, Westborough; Shivangi Das Gupta, Shrewsbury; Nisha Balaji, Westborough
-Shambhavi Upadhyay, Westborough; Srinidhi Tanuku, Westborough; Hansika Pitchuka, Hopkinton
-Ameya Kumsi, Westborough; Laji Shanaz, Franklin; Haripriya Tolety, Northborough
-Krish Chavan, Westborough; Vedant Kotnis, Westborough; Shambhavi Upadhyay, Westborough
-Krish Chavan, Westborough; Vedant Kotnis, Westborough; Doru Mujat, Acton
Bronze
-Dikshita Jain, Westborough; Rushil Bist, Shrewsbury; Arun Loganathan, Shrewsbury
-James Carlson III, Shrewsbury; Tashi Rauf, Franklin; Megh Patel, Westborough
-Surya Balaji, Westborough; Seiji Takano, Shrewsbury; Prayag Karthik, Westborough
-Haripriya Tolety, Northborough; Surya Balaji, Westborough; Prayag Karthik, Westborough
-Shriya Kumsi, Westborough; Tejaswini Pitchuka, Hopkinton; Nakshatra Ramesh, Shrewsbury
Individual Kata: 6 Medals
Silver
-Krish Chavan, Westborough
-Laji Shanaz, Franklin
-Surya Balaji, Westborough
Bronze
-Megh Patel, Westborough
-Prayag Karthik, Westborough
-James Carlson III, Shrewsbury