I 25 www.sport.ox.ac.ukAside from our team successes, there have been a number of individual achievements by club members. Rebecca Bayliss and Hugh Leonard were selected to represent England in the Commonwealth Championships, a part of the Commonwealth Games, in Singapore this January. Rebecca took a bronze medal in the event, and was subsequently named as OUJC Player of the Year. Several of our members have also completed the difficult task of attaining or advancing their black belts. This year's results speak volumes about the strength of OUJC in 2009-10, arguably our most successful year to date. The Club must now look to maintain these high standards of performance, and ensure a bright future for OUJC in years to come.KARATEOUKC has had a successful and eventful year, culminating in several competitions with outstanding individual performances. There have also been many successes at our tri-annual kyu gradings and national shodan gradings. Despite valiant efforts from both our Men's and Women's teams at the Varsity event, Cambridge managed to claim victory again this year. The eventual score, however, hides many distinguished performances from individual members, including victory by Christina Floe in the Women's kata and very strong debut performances in both kumite and kata from Kathryn Vickers and Patrick Dunn-Walsh, our Captains for 2010-11. The Women's Team kata also showed how members from three different styles of karate can successfully work together to put in an impressive performance. Distinguished individual performances in the year include Christina Floe's performance at the BUCS championships, earning her a bronze medal. The Club also sent four competitors to the Art of Movement competition for the first time this year, with a view to getting some competition practice and establishing better links with other clubs.All in all, 2009-10 has been a highly successful year for the Club, and all that remains to be said is that hopefully we will do even better next year; and of course, bring the Varsity title back to its rightful home!KENDOThe Oxford University Kendo Club has had an active year, expanding both in terms of its members and its presence in the field of kendo in the UK.This year has seen good retention of beginners and a much stronger competitive team. The increase to four kendo sessions a week, together with additional cross-training sessions, has also helped to strengthen the Club's players. Consequently, a strong University Team led to victory in the Varsity Match, as well as gaining second place out of over 80 international teams in the Mumeishi 3's competition, held in November.The Club has been visited by a number of high-ranking senseis, including Ozawa Hiroshi-sensei 8th dan, from Tokyo, and Honda Sotaro-sensei 6th dan of Fukuoka University of Education. We have also been visited by Japanese research bodies such as the National Institute of Fitness and Sports, interested in the development and spread of budo in Western culture. Closer to home, we have been building ties with other clubs around the country, with members visiting clubs in Liverpool, Newcastle, Reading and London. These clubs will be sending delegates for the first Oxford Summer Cup, to be held here at Iffley on 21st June. We have also recently been visited by Geoff Salmon-sensei 7th dan from London.The club also organised a trip to Japan, to visit the senseis who came to us in the last year. KICKBOXINGThis year, members of the OUKBC squad attended several kickboxing shows: the World Kickboxing Association British Open Championships in Birmingham, the Windrush Kickboxing Club Freestyle Open Competition, and the Chesham Kickboxing Academy Annual Semi Contact Kickboxing Competition, where OUKBC came away undefeated - a great achievement, particularly given that many of the fighters only began competing this year.The annual Varsity event was less of a triumph, with OUKBC losing 1-4, the first Oxford loss since the Varsity matches began back in 2007 - a crying shame as many of the fights could have gone either way. OUKBC is keener than ever to reclaim its dominance in the ring in Varsity 2011.The Club has made moves to encourage a larger, stronger squad by having sparring sessions twice every weekend and electing two squad Captains, one male and one female. A grading session in January saw many of the Club's members gain recognition for the hard work that they have put into their training in the last year. KORFBALLThe Club started the 2009-10 season having lost a significant number of players, including that mainstay of University korfball, Martin Bell, and coach Rich Sederman. In a stroke of good luck the Club managed to persuade Michiel Ten Hove, from Oxford City, to coach the Club for the season.Recruitment was quite successful this year as we had a good influx of new blood; we were even able to enter a third team into the League for the first time in many years. We entered the Keele beginners' tournament, and the BUCS Southern regional qualifier was hosted by Kent. The first team found the small hall less than optimal as a playing space and ended up placing seventh out of eight teams. January brought along the very enjoyable Edinburgh tournament; February saw the tournament at UEA where we played very well, only losing on penalty shoot-outs. Iffley Road Sports Hall hosted the annual Varsity Match where, unfortunately, we were unable to capitalize on our home advantage, with the Seconds drawing 6-6 and the Firsts losing 18-7. BUCS nationals took place at Graves Tennis Centre in Sheffield; in a repeat of last year we faced St Andrews in our opening game and lost. Another loss to Bristol meant that we did not end up in the final eight for the second year in a row. We were also injury plagued, which did not help matters, and ended up finishing 12th. With the departure of MK Bucks 1 from the OKL Division 1, the top spot was up for the taking, keeping the division very competitive for most of the season with no one team establishing early dominance. In the end honours went to Oxford City 1 with Uni 1 finishing third, having been beaten by one point by Isis 1. Uni 2 finished fourth in Division 2a and Uni 3, who appeared for the second half of the season, finished second in Division 2b. Both Oxford University teams also put in a good showing in the OKA Cup, which was played outside. Oxford Uni 1 won the Cup after putting in an impressive goal-scoring display against Abingdon, while Oxford Uni 2 got to the Plate final, though were unfortunately beaten by Reading.KUNG FUThe Oxford University Kung Fu Club became an official member of the Sports Federation this year. We experienced a dramatic success in our first term, struggling to fit all our new beginners on the court, nevertheless, some of the students managed successfully to learn both Hung Gar and Praying Mantis first sequence and basic principle.The Club was invited to perform at various events this year: the Chinese New year gala at the Sheldonian theatre, the Oxford International festival at the Examination Schools and the Asian Pacific Society's Oriental Ball at Freud's.

26 I OXFORD UNIVERSITY I SPORTS REVIEW 2010 Next year's challenges include improving our membership numbers and getting access to better facilities for our training. Contacts with other Kung Fu societies, in order to organize performances and special events, will also be taken into high consideration. The Club is also aiming to have the chance to bring Kung Fu into Oxford colleges, organizing seminars and performances, as the main target of an artist is to spread the art and make good use of it.LACROSSEOxford University Lacrosse Club has had an excellent season this year, combining growth and development off the pitch with continued success on.2009-10 saw an important development: the acquisition of a new pitch for the Mixed Team at the Marston site. The new pitch has meant that the mixed side no longer has to use Brookes' grounds for home matches and will serve as the centre of mixed lacrosse in Oxford University, giving the squad a real home ground.OULC is also expanding on an international basis. We have had yet more Americans join the Club from some of the premier US lacrosse sides, and the traffic is not just one-way: we continue to support Academy International, and our prospective Women's Blues Captain is off to America to coach for the summer. Back on home turf we've also introduced this very English sport to French schoolchildren and hope to continue this sort of outreach next year.The mixed lacrosse league and Cuppers competitions continue to be a great way to introduce lacrosse to the general University population, and it is great to see new colleges getting involved. LMH were eventual league winners, and St Catz were deserved Cuppers Champions. At a university level we continue to foster an atmosphere of excellence, reflected in a number of individuals who have been selected for various regional and international representation: Abdul El Sayed for South Unis; Alice Leach for England U21s; Leah Templeman for Midlands and England; and Char Houston for England.The Women's Squad has continued to grow in size and strength this season, finishing second in the Premier League. The Swifts, meanwhile, were slowly but surely making progress in the Midlands Tier 1 League, finishing fifth. Both teams made it through to their respective knockouts. The Blues were the first to be knocked out in the quarter-finals against a remarkably strong Durham side; the Swifts made it one step further to the semi-finals, but again Durham provided too strong. The Oxford Men began the season with a new influx of quality players from across the Atlantic, adding to the home-grown talent. It proved a magical mix: Oxford stormed through the BUCS league with a series of impressive performances, and by the end of the season were placed top of their division. Rapidly becoming Oxford's arch-nemesis, Durham knocked out the disappointed Oxford side in the semi-finals. Despite initial discontent at this result, the overall season couldn't have gone much better.Meanwhile, 2009-10 was another successful year for the Oxford University Mixed Lacrosse team. Oxford won the East league with an excellent 13/14 wins and averaging a score of over 13 goals per game, having shrugged off an early defeat to old title rivals Brighton, and exacting suitable revenge in the return match. Beating Cambridge twice also made for a very enjoyable season in the Mixed camp.Varsity was held at home in Oxford this year and, despite atrocious weather and pitches that ended up more suited to mud-wrestling than lacrosse, a large crowd gathered at University Parks to watch a day of well-fought lacrosse. The addition of a third pitch meant that, for the first time, the Women's Alumni match was incorporated into the day. Despite a well-fought battle and a few truly excellent individual performances, the Women's side could not quite put a lid on the Cambridge goal-scorers and eventually lost 4-6. The Men's seconds saw Raj Rout's much-anticipated return from injury and the experienced team delivered what can only be described as a trouncing: 22-1 to the Dark Blues. Mixed were up next and, with the home side having beaten Cambridge twice in the league already, hopes were high. What resulted was another crushing