Taekwondo journey a family affair

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 05/07/2019 (2591 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

She weighs in at just 125 pounds, but you wouldn’t want to mess with Skylar Park.

The Winnipegger is a third-degree black belt who recently won a bronze medal at the 2019 World Taekwondo Championships.

Later this month, she’s headed to Lima, Peru, to compete at the Pan Am Games. In total, eight taekwondo athletes across Canada were selected for the national team. Park is the only competitor from Manitoba.

“I’m super excited, it’s my first time going to a multi-sport event and being with Team Canada in that way,” Park said. “I’ve always been with Team Canada going to just taekwondo events. So the energy of these Games should be good.”

“The goal for Lima is to win the gold medal. This year, I got a bronze at the world championships, which was my first world medal, so that was very exciting. Then I got a Grand Prix medal, which was a bronze in Rome, just a month ago. We’re working hard and hoping for the best.”

While Park’s dreams are big, they’re definitely achievable. The 20-year-old finished on the podium in her first three international events this year. Last year, she won four gold, one silver and three bronze medals, reaching the podium in eight of the 11 events she entered.

Currently, Park is the top-ranked female taekwondo athlete from the Pan-American zone in the 57-kilogram weight class.

How did she get into competitive taekwondo? Even Park admitted that across Canada, the sport isn’t very popular.

But while it may not be widespread across Canada just yet, it’s definitely a big deal in her family. Park’s grandpa and dad opened the Tae Ryong Park Academy in south Winnipeg in 1993. Once Park turned two years old, she began training at the dojang.

“I couldn’t imagine doing it (taekwondo) without my family’s support. I think training is totally different because we have a better connection. It’s just easier to do it with these people, because you trust them 100 per cent and everything,” Park said.

“So my dad is my coach, my brothers are my training partners, my mom coaches me, too, and comes on all my trips with me, so yeah, it’s awesome.”

Park’s dad, Jae, is also headed to Lima on Team Canada’s roster. In June, he was named as one of the four taekwondo coaches to train and accompany this year’s national team at the Pan Am Games.

While Skylar’s grandfather doesn’t practise taekwondo as frequently anymore, she said she’s always willing to learn more from him — especially considering he’s a taekwondo grand master.

“After I fight, he’ll watch, or if it’s live, my brothers will help him watch live on his TV. Then after my fight, he’ll go over the videos with me and give me pointers,” she said.

“The only person in my family who doesn’t have their black belt is my grandma. She says she doesn’t need it,” Park said with a laugh.

While earning belts is an important part of taekwondo, Park says it’s very much a traditional part of the practice. There’s also the sport aspect of taekwondo, which is quite different.

“The traditional aspect is what everyone does when they come and take a taekwondo class. There’s the traditional patterns and sparring combined.”

Park will be competing in Lima in sparring — one-on-one combat.

Prior to each match, competitors suit up in electronic headgear, a chest protector and socks. Their fight is ranked by a point system.

A kick to the body is two points, a kick to the head is three, a spinning kick to the body is four and a spinning kick to the head is five. Athletes will face each competitor in three back-to-back matches. Each round ends after two minutes, or when a competitor is knocked out — whichever comes first.

Once the Pan Am Games are over, Park hopes to continue her training and qualify for Team Canada for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. But, win or lose, she’s excited to have her family along for the ride.

“A lot of people, when they’re on their journey to the Olympics or the Pan Am Games or certain things like that, they’re doing it with their coaches and teammates. But my coaches and my teammates are my family. It’s just super special.”

devon.shewchuk@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @devonshewchuk