Mr Weston with his Instructor Master Zbigniew Kruk working out at Dong Hak Sa Temple in Daejon, Sth Korea. June 2012
Tasmania has its third member of the Australasian Martial Arts Hall of Fame (AMAHOF) and the World Karate Union Hall of Fame (WKUHOF) following the induction in Cairns of Mr Steven Weston (6th Dan black belt) of Southern ITF Taekwon-Do, Hobart. (18th August 2012)
Mr Weston joins the ranks of fellow Tasmanians, Mal Lomax (deceased) and Les Elliott in this prestigious body. The AMAHOF only inducts a few members from the Australasian region and is its membership is limited by nomination.
Mr Weston is a founding member and the current Secretary General of the ITF Taekwon-Do Australian National Association and was nominated by the President of the Tasmanian Martial Arts Council (TMAC) Mr Lionel Daley.
Mr Weston was nominated in recognition of his considerable and ongoing contribution to the development of Martial Arts in not only Tasmania but also Australia and worldwide. He said “it is a terrific honour to be inducted into the Hall of Fame, but much of the credit for my own success goes to the many students I have taught and to my own Instructors and colleagues who have inspired me to seek ever higher standards and understanding of this great art”.
As part of his induction Mr Weston presented a workshop explaining the mechanisms required to generate power in Taekwon-Do techniques.
The induction in Cairns recognised 10 new inductees from around the world including four from New Zealand and one from China. Perhaps the most notable was Mr Ken (Blue) Curran OAM, who at 87 years of age continues to contribute to martial arts. “Blue” Curran began teaching martial arts in 1945 at the age of 20 to Army personnel in military unarmed combat, after his return from service in WW2 in Borneo and Rabaul. Despite his age, Blue Curran spent an hour teaching unarmed combat to the very experienced participants of a seminar on the weekend demonstrating he still has the capacity to defend himself.
The awards were presented as part of the annual formal dinner held by AMAHOF to induct its new members. Next year the awards are being held in Hobart at Wrest point Casino and are being organised by Shihan Les Elliott.
Southern ITF Taekwon-Do
