By Inna Kartunova, Community Center Coordinator, CHS Dept.
Photography by Mike Tribby,

Three students of Pelican Community Park’s Karate Program represented the City of Sunny Isles Beach at the Florida 2009 Youth Traditional & Open Karate Tournament. The contest took place on Saturday, November 14, 2009, at the Miami Dade College Kendall Campus. More than 200 students, 4 to 17 years of age, from different schools of South Florida took part in this prestigious annual tournament.

The tournament consisted of two contests: Kata competition (Choreographed patterns of movements and stances) and Kumite match (Sparring contest). Sunny Isles Beach team, with the guidance of their Karate Instructor, Sensei Demian Bermudez, performed with great results: Mikaela Holthaus won First Prize in Kata contest and Third Prize in Kumite, Lisa Hanimov took Second Prizes in Kata and Kumite, Mateus Borges had Third place in Kumite match.

Kudos to the Pelican Community Park Karate team, the winners of this challenging Tournament!

Cultural and Human Services Department of the City of Sunny Isles Beach offers various recreational and sports programs for youth, such as Ballroom Dancing, Karate, Lego Robotics, Fine Art, Chess, Drama, Guitar, Soccer, Basketball, Baseball, etc. We also offer various recreational and educational programs for adults and free services for senior residents. For details about all the activities with the description, schedules and fees, please look for a catalog of programs on the city’s website www.sibfl.net, or tune into Cable Channel 77. For more information please contact CHS Department at 305.792.1706.

Pelican Community Park Karate Instructor Sensei Demian Bermudez, Recreation programs coordinator Inna Kartunova, Sunny Isles Beach Karate team with their trophies from the Florida 2009 Youth Traditional & Open Karate Tournament.