Tara Murray
A serious knee injury couldn’t prevent Nicholas Gavos from winning back-to-back medals at the karate Oceania Championships and the Australian Championships.
Competing at the Oceania Championships for a second straight year in the junior over-76 kilograms category, Gavos repeated his efforts of 12 months ago, winning silver.
He went one better at the Australian Championships, winning gold.
Gavos said for a while he wasn’t sure whether he would get the opportunity to compete this year.
“I picked up from last year,” he said.
“It was a great experience and I had a lot of fun. To get back out there after a big injury that put me out for half a year, I’m so proud of those results that I achieved.
“It’s a good incentive to keep training hard and keep up the good work.”
Gavos hurt his medial cruciate ligament and the adductor magnus in a fight at the start of the year when he copped a nasty blow to the knee.
With his recovery taking longer than he expected it was a frustrating time.
“It has been a long rigorous process rehabilitating the injury,” he said. “There were times I thought that I wouldn’t be able to compete to the calibre as previously.
My coach was always in my corner and made so much time for me to rehab and made sure I got back out there again.”
Gavos faced Paes Kemp in the final at the Oceania Championships for a second straight year.
The two have trained together at Kimekai Martial Arts and with the Victorian team.
It was the same result as last year, with Kemp coming away with the gold medal.
The two then fought off in the final of the Australian Championships.
“I reviewed the match overnight and then came out hungry the next day and beat him,” Gavos said.
“To beat the same opponent and win the Australian Championship was overwhelming.”
Gavos said he had been much more rigorous in his training in the lead up this year, training seven to eight times a week.
His work has seen him receive a world ranking of 27.
The hard work is now only just beginning, with Gavos moving into the senior competition.
He already has his first big competition lined up.
“I will be going to the Oceania Championships, this time with the senior team,” he said.
“I’ll be with the Australian national team coaches and I’m looking forward to that
“Hopefully I can share in some success as a team and have a good performance individually, I’m really looking forward to it.”
Gavos was quick to recognise those who have supported him in the journey, including his family, coach Marco Mazzanti and his school, Keilor Downs College.
