A 13-year-old Brighton schoolgirl who started learning a martial art aged three so that she could always defend herself has just picked up three medals representing England.
Charlotte Montier, a pupil at Roedean School, picked up a silver and two bronzes when she competed for England at the Four Nations Championships in Haywards Heath which saw around 200 competitors gather from across England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales.
The young black belt, who lives in Clayton, was selected for the England team last September and has had training sessions ever since during which coaches assessed performances and selected competitors for each of the event in the contest. Charlotte was chosen for patterns, sparring and power breaking, winning bronzes for the first two and a silver for the last.
Said Charlotte: “I was really pleased to be picked for all three events. I am immensely proud of the work and effort that our team put in.I was delighted to be able to win three medals, although I had hoped for a better result than bronze in patterns. But the other teams were very good, and it was a close competition which is always fun, and nerve wracking! It was also fun cheering on our other teams in different categories.”
She added: “I have been doing this since I was three years old. My father wanted me to learn how to defend myself especially since I am a girl. So it feels great to now be competing at this level. Now I’m teaching Taekwon-Do every Sunday too.”
Charlotte now aims to start studying for her second degree black belt (there are nine degrees of black belt to aspire to through your life) and has her sights set on her next competition – The Black Eagle Open in Finland at the end of March.
Categories: Roedean School School News
