FIGHTERS from Cowdenbeath Sport Karate Club, enjoyed success at the Edinburgh Kickboxing Open.

The local club had five fighters trained and ready, and none disappointed. The event was busy, with clubs and styles from all over the country attending.

First up in the men’s intermediate 65k was Grant Robertson. With good compact and strong kickboxing, Grant fought his way to the final.

Both fighters were evenly matched, and after some early tough exchanges, Grant took the upper hand in the final round, delivering some strong boot kicks to outpoint his opponent.

Allan Goodwin and Ben Smith both gave strong performances in their respective categories, with Alan progressing to the final, and taking gold after finally wearing down his opponent with some ferocious punching combinations.

Sammi Maxwell, in her first kickboxing event, found herself in a tough contest and was unlucky to lose, showing tremendous courage, with older sister Melissa taking gold in the points category.

Melissa then fought the fight of the day, to narrowly lose out in the final of the contact section to a very experienced and older fighter from Glasgow Kickboxing Club.

In an exciting, tough and ‘full on’ contest, Melissa lost on the points decision, but can be extremely proud of her efforts.

Coach, Neil Maxwell, was pleased with the fighters’ work saying, “This is an excellent, highly charged, and very competitive event, and I’m proud at how well we competed.

“We knew it would be tough, and had done our homework and prepared for it.

“Since the turn of the year, some of the kickboxing on show on the day was almost of a professional standard, and a great spectacle.

“We had to be ready, and I would like to praise our fighters who trained hard, and sacrificed a lot of spare time to prepare for the event.

“I would also like to thank our large group of supporters who travelled through to back the club, and to the invaluable support we have had from our sponsors - Smart Travel and Diamonds Bar.” The club is having an open day and junior tournament on Saturday 21st March at 1pm in their gym at The Fountain, Cowdenbeath.

All are welcome to go along and watch, and who knows, maybe join, and change your life!