About

Welcome to the home of the Eclipse School of Tae Kwon Do where classes are always taught in a friendly atmosphere where the individual is respected regardless of age or ability.

We operate two clubs, one in Thornton and the other in Lancaster. Both schools are led by our Chief Instructor Grand Master Mick Lomax 8th Dan.

Classes are run from 5 years and above with many families training within the clubs. First lesson is FREE.

Thornton is taught and run by Grand Master Mick Lomax 8th Dan, assisted by Mr Kevin Crombleholme and Mr Paul Whyatt. Lancaster is taught and run by Master Gavin Holden 5th Dan.

All our instructors are fully qualified and DBS checked.

Affiliations

Eclipse School of Tae Kwon Do is a full member organisation of the UK Tae Kwon Development Council (UKTDC) - who are a member of the British Tae Kwon Do Council (BTC), which is recognised by the Sports Council as the only governing body for Tae Kwon Do in the United Kingdom.

Clubs follow the recommended ethical and safety guidelines set by the BTC, for which our instructors attend courses on a regular basis.

The UKTDC hold seminars thoughout the year on a regular basis to standardise techniques which members are encouraged to attend. There is also a yearly trip to Korea which allows students to train under the world's top Grand Masters in the home land of Tae Kwon Do.

Grand Master Mick Lomax 8th Dan

The most satisfaction I get from Tae Kwon Do is being able to pass my knowledge onto students that come into the school.

Even if that person only stays for a few weeks before they leave, hopefully they will have taken something from Tae Kwon Do away with them.

Seeing a student grading up to Black Belt level is always a feeling of accomplishment both for the student and myself - a feeling I have been fortunate to have many times over the years having taught over 100 students to Black Belt level and beyond.

For me the teaching of the true martial art aspect of Tae Kwon Do is very important not only for the self defence, but for the many things you learn from Tae Kwon Do.

Respect, perserverance, self control to name but a few - and that most things are possible with hard work and dedication.

These are the things that all students can take with them, and these philosophical values I always teach and install in all my students.

My Journey

My Tae Kwon Do journey started in 1979 at Thornton Sports Centre under the guidance of Mr Craig Waddington who at the time was a 2nd Dan, now a 9th Dan Grand Master.

I progressed through the coloured belt (Kup) ranks before passing my Black Belt 1st Dan on 19/06/1982 in Doncaster, being graded by Grand Master Tony Quigley 9th Dan.

Passing my 2nd Dan two years later again with Grand Master Quigley. For my 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th Dan Black Belts I was graded by Grand Master Kim Yong Ho 9th Dan, travelling to Korea to take my 6th Dan.

For 7th and 8th Dan I was graded by the Head of the World Tae Kwon Do Chungdokwan Grand Master Shin Byeong Hyun, again travelling to Korea for 8th Dan.

Over the years I entered many pattern (poomsae) and sparring (Kyorugi) competitions winning and losing some along the way, but at Preston Guildhall in 1985 I was crowned the British Tae Kwon Do Association Middle Weight Champion.

Teaching

I started my teaching career as a Red belt at Raikes Church Hall in Blackpool when the resident instructor had to step down from teaching because of other commitments, so thrown in at the deep end with no experiance and had to learn as I went along. Something that wouldn't happen today.

Over the years the club moved to various locations in Blackpool, producing many good students. While teaching at my club I also continued to train with my Instructor Grand Master Waddington.

I had to step down from teaching and running the club for a couple of years due to family commitments but carried on training on a regular basis.

I started teaching again in Lancaster with great success, again having many good students. Notably Master Gavin Holden 5th Dan who now runs the club at Halton in Lancaster, while I moved on to teach at Thornton.