Young martial artists from The Combat Academy in Barugh Green, Barnsley, are celebrating after winning a series of prestigious title belts at their major home event, Kings. The talented fighters showcased their skills to a crowd of 1,500, with around 80 competitors from across the globe taking part in intense kickboxing matches. Members of the local team secured English, British, European, and world titles during the evening.
National and International Title Success
Among the top performers was 17-year-old Jack Alderson, who secured the English title after training with the academy for nine years. Alderson said: “It’s a high-pressure environment; you feel under pressure to perform well so you turn on the pressure on the opponent. The strategy works as I was awarded the win after the five two-minute rounds; you must push yourself because I’d lost my previous fight so was absolutely determined to win this time, helped by being surrounded by encouragement from teammates.”
Another student, 17-year-old Mason Decaro, bounced back from a previous defeat to win a British title belt after a challenging 10-minute battle. Decaro said: “I felt under a lot of pressure before Kings, as I’d been scheduled for two bouts in April; it didn’t go to plan largely because of a late change in my first opponent, resulting in me losing to a heavier, older and somewhat more experienced opponent. On Kings I defeated Lincoln’s Jozef Mach to win the ISKA 64kg British title; it was a challenging fight and lasted the full 10 minutes, but I kept my distance, but moved in with hard punches, setting up winning kicks.”
The club also celebrated a new world champion after 16-year-old Taylor Bowen secured her eighth career title. Bowen said: “This was my third Kings, and I won the ISKA 55kg world title; I’ve trained at TCA for eight years and now have eight British and world titles. I was in fight camp up until March and then back in quickly with two hours training daily plus lots of long runs and strength and conditioning, so there’s fortunately never a dull moment.”
Young Prospects Look to the Future
The youngest title winner of the night was 14-year-old Jake Allott, who took home a European title after five rounds of competition. Allott said: “This was my third Kings, the biggest and the best, and so smoothly run; taking part gets a junior fighter known on the national scene. I won the 44kg ISKA European title by decision over five 90-second rounds; I love the family atmosphere in our club, and if I’m ever feeling a bit down, a training session soon sorts that.” Fellow students Ian Anderson and Matthew Robinson also performed exceptionally well, helping build their fitness and competitive confidence.
The successful athletes are now preparing to travel abroad to represent their country at an international tournament later this year. The squad will travel to the European championships in Spain in November 2026. Club leaders are currently appealing to local businesses for financial help to fund the upcoming trip. Coach Tommy Crossland said: “This is our major home show; it was our fourth Kings. There were about 80 fighters in kickboxing bouts with some from overseas, such as Ireland and France, and our fighters all love the opportunity to showcase their skills together in front of an enthusiastic and supportive home audience, especially when they win title belts from official bodies such as ISKA.”
