Brown tops combined team line-up for 2016

Jamaica's combined martial arts team closed its 2015 season on a high at the recent International Taekwon-Do Federation North America and Caribbean Championships in Vancouver, Canada.

Richard Stone and Ackeem Lawrence won gold medals in sparring, earning valuable points in securing second and fifth positions, respectively, in qualifying for the 2016 team.

Topping the list of qualifiers is Kevin Brown, unattached karate fighter, who closed the season with an impressive 43 points ahead of Richard Stone on 40.

Brown dominated at local tournaments this season, winning the Jamaica Superstars Open in February; the Shai-Tai Open in March and Jamaica Taekwon-Do Open in April.

Stone created history by making the 2016 team from the second squad with impressive local and overseas performances, bypassing the normal invitee process.

Adrian Moore finished third on 39 points with local podium finishes before earning gold internationally at the US Open in July and the Las Vegas Open in October.

Scott Wright secured fourth spot with 34 points. Lawrence was his usual consistent self in posting 32 points for fifth spot.

Nicholas Dusard closed out sixth place with 31 points. Hampered by injury earlier in the year, he made a grand comeback with a bronze medal at the

highest level, the ITF World Champs.

Greagon Taylor placed seventh with 28 points, earning silver and bronze at the ISKA World Champs, Portugal and also at the US Open. Locally, Taylor won the Ningen Open in May.

Delano Francis finished eighth with 27. Olympian Kenneth Edwards competed strictly overseas to earn 26 points from victories at the Africa Cup in South Africa; Legacy Cup in New York, and United States Taekwon-Do Federation (USTF) National Champs and Invitational.

Veteran former captain Jason McKay ended on 23 points, competing mainly overseas, to remain the member with most qualifications to the combined team. Nicholai Reid qualified as the 2016 invitee with 20 points.