TEAM CANADA MARTIAL ARTIST ELI COOPER EARNS GOLD, TWO SILVERS IN FINAL COMPETITION BEFORE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS IN SPAIN
Eli Cooper celebrates gold in Weapons (Bo) at the 2026 Ontario Grand Nationals Martial Arts Championships in London, Ontario. Cooper also earned silver in Traditional Kata and Point Fighting in his final tournament before representing Team Canada at the W
Eli Cooper competes in Point Fighting at the 2026 WKC Canada National Championships in Ottawa, where he finished fourth in Boys 12–13 +60 kg Point Fighting and made Team Canada in both Point Fighting and Chinese Soft Style for the 2026 WKC World Champions
Team Canada martial artist Eli Cooper at the Niagara-on-the-Lake Court House following the 2025 WKC World Championships, where he earned silver and bronze. Cooper returns to Worlds in Spain in October 2026.
Ottawa-area athlete medals in all three divisions at Ontario Grand Nationals as focus turns to representing Canada at the 2026 WKC World Championships
The Sept. 26 competition in London, Ontario, marked Cooper's final tournament before the 13-year-old heads to Chiclana de la Frontera, Spain, where he will represent Canada at the 2026 WKC World Championships, Oct. 24–30.
Competing in the Advanced Boys 11–12 Weapons, Traditional Kata and Point Fighting divisions, Cooper reached the podium in all three events.
Cooper earned gold in Weapons (Bo). In Traditional Kata, he earned silver performing Chibana no Kushanku, an advanced traditional karate kata from the Kushanku lineage that demands technical precision, balance, rhythm, speed, power and control.
Cooper also advanced through four bouts to reach the championship match in Point Fighting.
He opened the division with three consecutive victories, winning 5–0, 5–1 and 5–0 and reaching the final having outscored his first three opponents 15–1. The gold-medal bout came down to a single point, with Cooper falling 5–4 to finish with silver.
Across four fights, Cooper posted a 3–1 record and outscored his opponents 19–6, finishing the tournament with a +13 point differential.
“This whole season, the goal has been to make it to Worlds and represent Team Canada in Spain,” said Cooper. “The Ontario Grand Nationals is an incredible tournament that gave me one final opportunity to compete in kata, weapons and point fighting before Worlds. I’m proud of the results, but now my focus is on training, improving and being ready for Worlds.”
The three-medal performance brings to a close a 2026 domestic competition season built around Cooper's goal of returning to the world stage with Team Canada.
Throughout the season, Cooper has competed across Ontario and Quebec in Point Fighting, Traditional Kata, Chinese Soft Style and Weapons while progressing through the WKC provincial and national qualification process.
At the WKC Ontario Provincial Championships in April, Cooper won gold in Chinese Soft Style and silver in Point Fighting, qualifying for Nationals in five divisions. At the WKC Canada National Championships in Ottawa in May, he earned silver in Chinese Soft Style and finished fourth in Boys 12–13 +60 kg Point Fighting with a 3–2 record, making Team Canada in both disciplines. Cooper also earned alternate positions in Classical Kata and Open/Musical Weapons (Bo).
Those results secured Cooper's return to the WKC World Championships, where he will represent Canada in Chinese Soft Style and Point Fighting in Spain.
The Ontario Grand Nationals provided one final opportunity to put months of training and competition into practice before the emphasis shifts entirely to preparation for Spain.
Cooper trains with Douvris Martial Arts Orléans, with his competitive development supported by Senseis Rose Rhéaume, Ben Clarke, Dante Lorusso and Justin Liu.
Spain will mark Cooper's second consecutive appearance at the WKC World Championships following a breakthrough international performance in 2025.
Representing Canada at the 2025 WKC World Championships in Niagara Falls, New York, Cooper earned silver in the Boys 10–11 +55 kg Individual Point Fighting division and bronze in Boys 10–11 +45 kg Team Point Fighting.
He will return to the World Championships a year older and following another full season of competition and preparation.
At the 2026 World Championships, Cooper will represent Canada in Chinese Soft Style and Point Fighting and is also preparing to compete in Point Fighting Tag Team, Mixed Doubles and 3-Person Team events during championship week.
The 2026 WKC World Championships will take place Oct. 24–30 at Pabellón Ciudad de Chiclana in Chiclana, Cádiz, Spain.
As Cooper prepares for Spain, a community fundraising campaign is also underway to help offset the travel, training and competition costs associated with representing Canada internationally. Details about Cooper's Road to Worlds are available through The House of Cooper.
For Cooper, the Ontario Grand Nationals marked both the conclusion of his domestic tournament schedule and the beginning of the final stretch toward the event that has shaped his 2026 season.
The next time he steps onto a competition floor, he will do so representing Canada at the World Championships.
About Eli Cooper
Eli Cooper is a 13-year-old Team Canada martial artist from the Ottawa area who competes in Point Fighting, Traditional Kata, Chinese Soft Style and Weapons. Cooper trains with Douvris Martial Arts Orléans and earned silver and bronze medals for Canada at the 2025 WKC World Championships in Niagara Falls, New York. He will represent Team Canada at the 2026 WKC World Championships in Chiclana, Cádiz, Spain.
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