Recently, two Lapeer High School freshmen competed at the World Karate Commission (WKC) World Karate Championships in Niagara Falls, N.Y.
Kara DeMink and Riley Woodruff, both who train at Dragon Karate in Lapeer, were among eight from the school challenging for gold on Oct. 30. DeMink and Woodruff were making their debuts on the world stage.
DeMink, a second-degree black belt, has been practicing martial arts before she turned six. She qualified for the world tournament this year on the heels of becoming a seven-time national champion. She emerged from the world championship with bronze medals in Musical Weapons and Freestyle forms and three fourth-place finishes in Korean forms, Traditional Weapons and Creative Weapons. The top four finishers after the first day of competition advance to the championship.
While training for this event, DeMink also competed for the Lapeer Freshman Volleyball and JV Cross Country teams this year.
Woodruff qualified for Worlds in Extreme Forms, Freestyle Forms and Team Traditional forms. He made it into Day 2 in Freestyle and Extreme forms and took home bronze in Freestyle and fourth in Extreme.
He is also a second-degree black belt and has been practicing Karate since age five. He’s a multi-year MSKC state champion. Woodruff’s other extracurricular activities include Robotics and Marching Band.