Halifax youngsters hope to fulfil their jiu-jitsu dreams if fundraising allows

Two young brothers from Halifax are trying to get their hands on enough funding to compete in the biggest jiu-jitsu championship in Canada next year.

Noah King, 6, and his brother Christian King, 8, spend all their free time in martial arts and have already won over 60 medals between them, according to their mother, April.

Having successfully competed in events in Nova Scotia, they’re aiming to compete at the Ontario Open International Jiu-Jitsu Championships being held in Oshawa in May 2024.

The boys live with their mother who shares parenting duties with their father, Nick Doherty.

Train 7 days a week

She said the boys take Brazilian jiu-jitsu and judo classes at three different camps and train seven days a week.

“Our whole life revolves around them training, ” April said. 

“After school, they come home and eat right quick and then they go to training. Most of the time we don’t get home till like 7:45 at night. Enough time to have a shower, have something else to eat and go to bed and repeat.”

She said the benefits the sport brings to the boys is worth it despite the time and money needed to keep up with the training.

Training helps them to focus, tires them out and gives them structure, she said.

She said the boys are dreaming of attending the championship next year because it represents the highest level of the sport they can achieve in Canada and will allow them to compete with the best in their field.

Bottle drives

King said getting them to Oshawa for the games will cost about $3,000 and she and Doherty have been organizing bottle drives to help make it happen.

Doherty said their fundraising efforts have been helped by local business Beaver Enviro Depot.

He said he is also heavily involved in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, judo and wrestling and the boys picked up their love of martial arts from him.

According to Doherty, he has seen major changes in the children as a result of their immersion in martial arts, especially the younger boy, Noah.

“I have seen massive leaps in his confidence since starting martial arts,” Doherty said.

“He was always very shy and I would say even though he’s young, you could still see that he wasn’t confident and now he moves with confidence.”