THE DUNCAN® TEAM

1A Division

World Champion Janos Karancz has it all: competitive skill, supreme innovation, unbelievable difficulty. Primarily known for being the first European to ever capture a 1A world title. Janos is many things. Most of all though, he is a stand-out: he is a true anomaly. He may be a soft-spoken and humble man, but don't let that fool you. He is twice as good as the players throwing twice as long as him. Even though ranked as one of the most dominant players in the world, he somehow maintains the attitude of your neighborhood best friend. He is a great player, a great person, and a great competitor. Watch out for him as one of the favorites of this year's competition. A few words straight from the man himself: "I am János Karancz from Hungary. I have been playing since 2005 and I am a Duncan® Crew Worldwide member and part of the Backspin team. I love slacks, whips, lacerations, rejections and tension tricks. You can find me at yo-yo events both competing and judging. I really enjoy the atmosphere of yo-yo players." Read more here.

1A Division

My name is Javier Augusto Martinez. I was born on February 15 in Mexico City and am currently living in the state of Queretaro. I consider myself a cheerful person who's very committed to my work. I've been playing yo-yo from since I was 10 years old, and it has changed my life. Thanks to the yo-yo I'm the person who I am today. I have met many people from many places because the yo-yo surrounds you with people from all around the world. It has helped me to generate a lot of self-esteem and confidence over the years. I joined Team Duncan® 8 years ago. Ever since I joined the team, I knew this was my family. Read more here.

4A Division

No stage will ever be big enough for Sean. Affectionately referred to as "Coffee Boy" by his friends in the yo-yo community, his furiously energetic style of play is an amazing mix of creativity, accuracy and power. And he just keeps getting better. One amazing player to watch in action, Sean is definitely a key player giving offstring a new attitude. Read more here.

5A Division

One of the best 5A players on the entire planet, Bryan Jardin is the 2-time Asia Pacific Champion. Recently transplanted to the U.S.A. from his native Philippines, Bryan now works full time as a Duncan® Professional in Orlando Florida, honing his craft and inspiring thousands of new players. A note from Bryan: "Hi! I'm Bryan Jardin, a proud member of Duncan® Crew Worldwide. I was born and raised in the Philippines and now, I'm living the dream here in the US of A!" Read more here.

1A Division, 5A Division

My name is Chase; I've been yoyo'ing since I was in 7th Grade, and have been tied to it since. I really enjoy all types of yoyoing; some days I like it make some fun slack tricks, sometimes I'm all about the competition tricks. I do a lot of 5A, but I also really enjoy 1A! Outside of yoyoing, I enjoy graphic design, photography, videography, traveling, and late night car rides. Read more here.

Chris Makita is the type of person who always encourages people to try and play yo-yo. He has helped many national yo-yo champions shape their career. He's been playing for 20 years now and has no plans of stopping. He is now married to Mimi Makita, a former Team Duncan® member. Read more here.

I started playing yoyo at the Ladronka Fest 2009.By the time I started going to yoyo sessions too , I began meet all the Czech yoyo legends, like Korda, Axl and others. My first yoyo was the Journey. I had a little break with yoyo about one year in because I run out of strings :) My first experience with contests and competing on stage was in the Žonglparty 2011. For me, my biggest success was competing on World Yoyo Contest 2014 where the atmosphere was insane. Read more here.

1A Division, 5A Division

"I started yoyoing because it looks like an awesome sport, but the sport become a passion. My main play styles are 1A and 5A. I teach the next generation of yoyoers and I like to work to make the hungarian community bigger and better than ever before." Read more here.

5A Division

Yoshihiro Abe is one of the youngest members of Team Duncan®. He started competing at the age of 8. Every year, you will see improvement in both his trick and his smile. You will mostly see him playing 5A. With the enthusiasm and energy he brings to the table, Yoshihiro could become a world champion any year now! Read more here.

1A Division, 5A Division

"My name is Ian; I am from Singapore and I picked up yoyoing back in 2011. I got sponsored by Duncan in July of 2014 and I also managed to pick up my first national title that same year. I am able to play all 5 divisions but I focus primarily on 1A and 5A. I enjoy yoyoing a lot because it allows me to express my creativity as well as meet many new people from all over the world. I hope to entertain people through my tricks and introduce yoyoing to people all over the planet!" Read more here.

1A Division

Tal Mordoch started yoyoing in the summer of 2010. He got into yoyoing through a present from his aunt. Tal was passionate about yoyoing since he got his first yoyo and knew that this skill toy is just for him. After years of practicing, Tal became the first ever Israeli National Champion. One of his dreams was to join Team Duncan® and in 2015 it finally happened. Since then, he became the first Israeli player to win the European Championship and he has won more national and multinational contests as well. Tal is currently in high school, trying his best to take the next title while still maintaining excellent grades. Read more here.

5A Division

Marron first started throwing about 19 years ago with a Duncan® Wheels yo-yo. Since then, he has started a family, who he loves very much, but he hasn't forgot about Duncan®! Marron is also a skilled comedian, and juggling performer. He can juggle 7 balls, as well as 3 diabolos. Marron is also a skilled contact juggler. Of course, his favorite is still yo-yo. Marron's play style is stylish and unique. He incorporates his personality into his tricks, as well as the occasional counterweight! Very simply, Marron=Crazy! Read more here.

1A Division

Read more here.

Husband and wife team Ryuya Kaneko and Mai Kurihara travel the world playing, promoting, and performing yoyo, delighting tens of thousands of kids and families every year. Find them in famous tourist spots in Tokyo and all across the globe in the USA, Thailand, Vietnam, and more! Read more here.

3A Division

Jason Kao is the 3x Taiwan champion, one of the first yoyo pioneers in Taiwan, and he has run the Taiwan National Contest for years. Read more here.

Tylor started yoyoing with his best friend at a local toy store called A2Z when he was just six years old. At the store, he learned from some of the best yoyo players in the world such as Jack Finn, Andre Boulay, Eric Koloski and Nick Gumlaw. Being the competitive person he is, yoyoing stuck with him right away, because it was a challenging skill toy with so much possibility and a lot to learn. With the challenging aspects of the hobby and the positive atmosphere at A2Z, Tylor would end up taking a yo-yo with him everywhere. When he hit middle school and started taking yoyoing more seriously, he began to practice for multiple hours a day. With the extra hours of practice, he started to do better in competitions and eventually won multiple championships. Tylor loves complicated tech tricks to show how much practice and time goes into each trick. As of today, he is a multiple Mass State Champion and he spends his days teaching yoyo classes at the very store that taught him. He loves yoyoing for the creativity and the challenges it brings, but also for how many people it brings together. Read more here.

5A Division

He’s a prolific member of the yo-yo community, and boasts having a unique style and personality. In early 2017, Duncan took notice of that, offering him a position on the team. Naturally, he accepted. He has flourished with Duncan, being given the opportunity to help with Duncan social media, and even create some content for the company. He enjoys pushing the envelope of what it means to be good at yo-yoing, and doesn’t see any end in sight. Read more here.

1A Division, 4A Division

1-Time National Champion (Czech Republic 2018)

Jakub Dolejs is a very eclectic yo-yo player from the Czech Republic. His styles in both 1A and 4A, his dominant divisions, are incredibly unique and something that you could only ever see come out of the wonderful hub of yo-yoing that is the Czech Republic. Although his style is incredibly unique and interesting, his competition prowess is not hindered by this creativity. In 2018, he won the 4A division at the Czech Republic National Yo-Yo Contest, and that’s no joke. Jakub is at the forefront of a hot, new wave of young Czech yo-yo players, and he is always surprising us with his new moves and really crazy creativity. We love his tricks, we love him, and we’re overjoyed that Jakub represents us in the Czech Republic.

2A Division

1-Time 2nd World Runner-Up (World Yo-Yo Contest 2019)

Hajime is a strong yo-yo player coming from Japan. He is one of the newest 2A players to continue the rich tradition of 2A play, and he is really bringing a fresh perspective and style of tricks to the style. Already having made a name for himself on the world stage in Cleveland in 2019 where he placed 3rd, Hajime has shown that he is really both the present and future of 2A play. We are so excited to have Hajime on our team!

1A Division

2-Time Regional Finalist (Northeast Regional 2019 & 2017), State Finalist (Massachusetts 2017)

Dylan Ostrowski. He was on our Next Generation team until it became evident that he had higher aspirations in the realm of yo-yo. His tricks are simply next-level, they take you by surprise and you don’t expect them to be so good that you find yourself scratching your head when they’re over with. Dylan is that good. Dylan started yo-yoing in 2012 because all his friends from school were going to A2Z Science & Learning Store to learn how to yo-yo: it was just a school fad. Actually, it was just a fad to some: to Dylan, it was something more. All his friends quit, but Dylan stuck with it. He learned from our very own Tylor McCallumore, and also from yo-yo legends Andre Boulay and Eric Koloski, and now he has taken on the role of yo-yo instructor at A2Z, continuing the rich tradition of yo-yo instruction from that wonderful store. He consistently performs yo-yo demos in his area and is a model member of the yo-yo community. Outside of yo-yo, Dylan attends a vocational high school where he studies graphic design.

4A Division

1-Time National 2nd Runner-Up (USA 2018)

Christopher Chunn is one of the most positive yo-yo players. Seriously. Hailing from southeastern Michigan, Chris grew up around team members Owen and Chase, and has shown time and time again that the Michigan yo-yo scene is something to pay attention to. Chris is known for his crazy 4A tricks and super wonderful freestyles, and more recently Chris has been playing some great 1A. Chris is a really great guy, and we’re super happy to have him on board.

1A Division, 4A Division

Philip Pacific is one of those yo-yo players who will win worlds one day. He has that aura. He’s probably going to be the best yo-yoer in the galaxy, to be honest. He’s a strong competitor in both the 1A and 4A divisions, having performed exceptionally well at the 2019 World Yo-Yo Contest in Cleveland, and he’s still just getting started. He started out on our Next Generation team, but he made it clear to us that he deserved bigger and better things. He’s a nice kid, and he really loves yo-yo. He is the type of player we love to have as a part of Duncan and we cannot wait to see his future come to fruition.

1A Division

4-time Continental Finalist (Europe 2019, 2018, 2017, & 2016), 1-time Open National Champion (Czech Republic 2018), 2-time National Runner-Up (Poland 2016 & 2018)

Jakub Plader is the best, he’s just the best. He’s the best yo-yo player. OK, maybe that’s a bit subjective. But Jakub is one of the top yo-yo players in the world by our standards and we think you’d be hard-pressed to disagree. He has a prolific presence on the internet yo-yo scene, well-known for posting long, technical, and terribly difficult tricks to his Instagram (@kuubaa_), and is a bit of a competitive king, having finaled at a large chunk of major European competitions since he began his yo-yo career in 2012. His tricks are so slacky and creative and wonderful, and we are absolutely enthused about having him on as our first ever team member from Poland. We at Duncan are always excited to expand the network of Duncan family, and we’re especially excited to have Jakub on.