THE East York Tae Kwon Do Club, who have a base in Ryedale, have headed into the new year in great heart after enjoying gold, silver and bronze medal success at their last big event of 2013, the British Championships held in Cardiff.

The success in Wales capped off a fine year for the club, which is less than three years old but now boasts world, British and English champions at various levels.

Maxwell Griffin took gold in the boys’ green belt category, while Sarah Sharp won silver in the girls’ blue heavy class and Nathaniel Pilgrim and Ollie Richardson did likewise in the boys’ yellow tag team category.

Bronze medals were won by Richardson in the boys’ yellow light class, Brad Lightfoot in the boys’ blue peewee, and instructor Gavin Cook, a second Dan, in the men’s black light heavy class.

When asked about his pupils’ achievements, Cook said: “It was a fantastic result and I am very proud of all of them.

“They all worked extremely hard in the month or so leading up to the tournament and it’s great to finish the year with some silverware.”   The East York club hold training sessions at Helmsley and Stamford Bridge and is set to expand into Beverley and Bishop Burton next year as well as launching a new programme designed to teach juniors life skills.

Visit www.eastyorktagb.co.uk for more information on the club.