Two young martial artists presented with black belts

Two young martial artists have recently been awarded with their black belts at the Matrix Martial Arts club in Glossop.

Mia Fairhurst who is twelve and Max Sheldon who is fourteen, have both been involved with the sport since they were five years old. Both are extremely passionate about martial arts and have worked extremely hard to get to where they are today.

As mentioned, Mia started the sport when she was just five with the ‘little ninjas’ group and was awarded with her junior black belt aged eight. Now, aged just twelve, she has her adult black belt, which she was presented with last month.

Mia’s mother, Lyndsay, outlined how Mia first got involved with martial arts, “She has always hated dance so that was never an option, and she wanted to try something a bit different.

“From the first session she just fell in love with it, her coach, Jake Johnson was the main reason she loved it so much, he is amazing with kids and he really inspired her.”

“Martial arts is something Mia is very passionate about, when she got her black belt she cried for over an hour, she was just so overwhelmed with what she’d achieved.”

Another reason Mia took up the sport was for self-defence. Mia’s mum Lynsday said, “It is very important that people can protect themselves nowadays, just having a knowledge of martial arts stops you from worrying, and if anything does happen, you have the tools to look after yourself.”

As well as practising martial art, Mia is also passionate about teaching it, and she loves showing others her skills and seeing their development. She is hoping to teach martial arts voluntarily when she goes on a school trip to Kenya next year, but she will need an assistant instructor license first, and she will have to wait until she is 13 to do so.

Max Sheldon, the other youngster who received his blackbelt at the Matrix Martial Arts Club in Glossop, has also been involved with the sport since he was five years old, and has been with the club since the very start. Max and Mia have both known each other for almost ten years and both joined the club around the same time, so it was quite fitting that they both received their adult black belts on the same day. Max also has a big passion for teaching, and was recently presented with his assistant instructor license.

Mia’s mum Lyndsay is very thankful for everything the Matrix Martial Arts Club has done for her and her daughter, and wanted to give a special thanks to the instructors, “It’s a really special club, the instructors are amazing, they really love what they do, and it is infectious on the kids.”

Lyndsay was also keen to highlight the great things the club are doing for the Glossop community, “They do a lot of community work, they offer free training for underprivileged kids, and for those who are at risk of anti-social behaviour. “They have also just started a programme where they provide one-to-one mental health meetings for young children, they’re just a very community-driven club and what they’re doing is great.”

If you would like to book a session, or learn more about the club, call 07526352724, or visit their website: matrixmartialarts.org