Richmond black belt Iveta Griffith to lead self-defence course for young girls

Richmond taekwondo black belt, instructor and national competitor Iveta Griffith will lead a self-defence seminar for young girls on Sunday, Sept. 20, from noon to 1:30 p.m. at Richmond Martial Arts. The event will pair confidence and positive-mindset training with introductory self-defence instruction, while raising funds for Griffith’s competitive trip to Spain later this month.

Griffith, 23, has practised martial arts since age four. She said she wants to teach the value of confidence in daily life and performance, and offer strategies for maintaining it in difficult environments. Girls aged 10 to 17 will learn proper striking and techniques for responding to grabs, evasive manoeuvres and other basic skills that can be used in different situations. No martial arts experience is required.

Later in September, Griffith is to compete for Team Canada at the 2026 ITF Taekwon-Do World Cup in Spain, where she expects to take part in six or seven matches. She said the event is expected to be the largest ITF World Cup in history, particularly after COVID, with competitors travelling from across Europe. The trip and other high-level competition costs total nearly $5,000 and are entirely self-funded.

The seminar has a minimum requested donation of $20 and will be held at Richmond Martial Arts, 150-11780 Hammersmith Way. Online registration is available through Griffith’s web page.