Two Aboriginal youths in Prince Albert have reached the pinnacle of the martial arts world.
Over the weekend, Austin Ermine and Grant Bird received their black belts in the discipline of karate.
Their instructor, Wolfgang Manicke, says the two have worked very hard for this moment and he is very proud of them:
“Over the years, they’ve competed in many tournaments. They’re both world champions and they’re the first two young men from the Native community to get black belts in my school. I’ve been in Prince Albert for 30 years and nobody ever went that far.”
Bird is 16 years old, while Ermine is just 14.
Manicke adds achieving a black belt involves a lot of pain and sacrifice.