Sam (14) won gold in the boys' under-15 black belt kumite (sparring) and silver in the same age group for kata (drills) at the world cup and now aspires to continue competing at an international level and even open his own dojo (school) in Wanaka.
Sam has been learning karate since he was five and was selected to join the New Zealand team to compete in Chennai, India, after winning the kata under-16 category at the Oceania Championships last year.
‘‘I was really lucky to go,'' Sam said of his selection for the world cup, particularly because he was the only South Islander in the team and the youngest by several years.
Before leaving for India, Sam spent an intensive week training in Auckland with the rest of the team and then another week training in Kuala Lumpur on the trip over.
Once in India, the New Zealanders joined forces with members of the South African and Indian teams for further training in the lead up the the world cup.
Sam was impressed by the skill level and dedication displayed by the international competitors and said the time spent preparing with them and the New Zealand team was invaluable in getting him ‘‘back up to speed,'' particularly after a mountain-biking accident last year left him with compression fractures in his back and unable to train for six months, he said.
The day before the tournament, Sam also attended a 12-hour seminar for the 450 competitors.
The team had some downtime on their trip which enabled Sam and his father, who accompanied him, to take in some sights.
This was a huge highlight, as was meeting so many new people and making contacts in South Africa and India, Sam said.
Of course, the biggest highlight was picking up the two huge brass trophies for his top placings, which had come as quite a surprise.
‘‘I was pretty much just going out there to do my best but I didn't know that I would come away with that,'' Sam said.
His success had been the result of hard work though, particularly the win in kumite, which he was not as strong in, he said.
The Crone family moved to Wanaka from Christchurch at the start of last year, where Sam had taken up the discipline and trained for several years.
Goju ryu karate is not practised in Wanaka, so since moving, Sam has combined trips to Dunedin as an Otago age-group hockey representative with karate training and his sensei (teacher) from Christchurch has also travelled to Wanaka to work with him on occasion.
Now, Sam plans to open up his own dojo so he can teach goju ryu karate to people in Wanaka.
He is looking into finding a suitable venue that he can hire for a reasonable fee and already has his first pupil lined up - his 10-year-old brother.
Sam was unsure how people would feel about taking instruction from a 14-year old but, with a world title now under his black belt, it is unlikely he will have any problems attracting pupils.
