Bright karate future predicted for local athlete
Without discipline, an important component in this art form, Morgan believes he would not have achieved what he has in karate or become who he is today.
Morgan Moss, captain of the national karate team, Karate South Africa’s Sportsman of the Year for the fourth time and winner of numerous national and international titles, has his eyes set on winning the World Karate Federation World Title in November this year.
Morgan opened his new dojo in Krugersdorp in 2012.
During 2013 alone, Morgan won the Basler International Open (Switzerland), Korean International Open (Busan, South Korea), Botswana International Open (Gaborone, Botswana), as well as the Zone 6 International Championships hosted in Namibia.
To top it all, he won the World Goju Karate Federation (WGKF) World Championships for the first time and also regained his Commonwealth title, a title he has won four consecutive times now.
These efforts did not go unnoticed by the karate fraternity as Morgan was awarded the Gauteng Sportsman of the Year award by the Gauteng Karate Federation as well as the South African Sportsman of the Year award by Karate South Africa for the fourth time.
This year already, as the captain of the national team, Morgan has led Team South Africa to individual and team gold in the first South African Open International Championships. Another noteworthy achievement was his recent top-eight finish among 94 competitors in the WKF Karate 1 Premier League event that took place in Almere in the Netherlands.
Morgan is currently in Europe getting ready to represent South Africa at the WKF World Cup that takes place in Lasko, Slovenia. This year Morgan will travel to Japan, Indonesia, Senegal, Zambia and Austria as he finalises his preparation for the WKF World Championships to be hosted in Bremen in Germany early in November.
Morgan currently is ranked 21st in the world and hopes to bring home the coveted WKF World Title.
Without discipline, an important component in this art form, Morgan believes he would not have achieved what he has in karate or become who he is today.
“Karate allows me to remain focused and motivated throughout daily life,” he says.
He believes that his international exposure has a positive effect on his students.
“Many of them want to travel the world to represent not only their club, but their country,” he says.
Morgan is hoping to have a few of his students joining him at this year’s WKF World Championships. As it stands in 2013 his club, the Wildcats, produced 13 members of the Junior (10-17 years) National team and two members of the Senior National team (18+).
Morgan is planning a series of fundraisers to help pay his tour expenses as the government does not contribute to funding these costs.
These include a Born to Be Wild show at the Barnyard Theatre in Cresta on 2 May. For more information, contact Morgan Moss at morganmosskarate@yahoo.com or phone him on 076 336 5351.
