Before taking on the world a group of western Canadian taekwondo athletes spent the weekend in Prince George.
There were 16 athletes, including Prince George's Destiny Dornbusch, and two coaches leading a series of workshops Saturday and Sunday. The workshops were organized by master taekwondo artist Kurt Ottesen.
"It started out as a weekend training session for athletes that I coach," said Ottesen. "As it grew we decided to bring out the two Canadian coaches so they can get to know the athletes better and the talent they have to work with."
The athletes are preparing for the World Taekwondo Championship in Spain, Oct. 20-30. Two of the Team Canada coaches, Brandi Merritt of Lethbridge and Donnie Smith of Saskatoon, where in town meeting some of the western members of the team.
There are more than 55 athletes on Team Canada that will meet in Gatineau, Que., July 18-19 for another round of training.
Dornbusch said she was thrilled to have had the opportunity to train with some elite talent.
"It was an incredible experience to work with athletes with this calibre of talent," said the 21-year-old. "It was nice to be pushed out of my comfort level and challenged by athletes at an equal level."
Merritt said it was a good idea to have the extra opportunity to get to know some of the athletes she'll be coaching and training with in Spain. The 29-year-old is a veteran of six world taekwondo championships. Merritt is adding coaching to her resume for the first time in Spain.
"The more experience we have with the athletes the better job we can do for them," said Merritt.
To learn more about Prince George's Destiny Dornbusch see next week's Citizen.
