My daughters: Black Belts in Taekwondo!

Last month, my 11 year old daughter, Mia, joined my 14 year old daughter, Ruby, and became a black belt in taekwondo. It was a momentous occasion in our family and I felt so overwhelmed with pride I did a few high kicks and air punches myself!

My 13-year-old daughter, Lyla, is one belt away from becoming a black belt and 8-year-old Ivy is steadily working her way up through the belts too. It’s my dream to have my own four-daughter, black belt security team! No messing with us!

Ruby started taekwondo back in the days when we lived in Fiji. Her Korean teacher offered a small class with just Ruby and three other children from the same family. I quickly realised what a great extra curricular activity it was; it promoted co-ordination, focus, strength, fitness and self-confidence.

When we moved to Qatar, we were thrilled to find that private taekwondo classes were offered in the school gym, after school on Thursdays. In time, all my daughters enrolled and continued making progress.

Ruby then moved to a secondary school that didn’t offer taekwondo and for a while her training lapsed. However, in a moment that epitomises Ruby’s motivation and drive, she decided that she wanted to continue towards her goal of becoming a black belt, and asked us to enroll her in classes again, wherever they might be.

We sought out a highly qualified and skilled teacher who offered a twice-weekly training schedule. Without hesitation, Ruby jumped right in. Even though she didn’t know anybody in the class and most of the other students were boys who spoke to each other in Arabic, she was determined and focused, never losing sight of her ultimate goal. It’s something that will always remind me of her self-discipline and integrity, which I admire enormously. I couldn’t have felt a deeper level of pride for my eldest girl.

In June 2016, she finally got her black belt and we were all elated. It represented years of hard work and commitment. All those times where she was exhausted from a busy day at school, usually followed by school sports team practice or other extra curricular activities, with a pile of homework to plough through, she diligently mustered the energy to get to her evening taekwondo class and persevere in pursuit of her dream. And it had all paid off beautifully.

Mia, meanwhile, had given up taekwondo because the teachers at the gymnastics class she had enrolled in quickly recognised what they described as ‘a rare combination of strength and agility’. She was fast-tracked through the programme and, soon after, was offered a place on the Qatar National Squad. The training was intense and she found herself having to drop other activities she loved in order to fit it all in. When she started to win gold medals it bolstered her enthusiasm, but after a few months, the late nights started to take their toll. She began to feel that the vigorous level of training required had eroded her level of enjoyment in the sport. So she decided to give it up in order to focus on becoming a black belt in taekwondo. It took us all by surprise because she was excelling at gymnastics, but we respected her decision and she was resolute.

She joined Ruby’s classes and, like her older sister, gave it her all. The strength and flexibility she had shown in gymnastics translated well into the taekwondo context and she immediately impressed the teacher with her contortions and high kicks!

Lyla, meanwhile, had also started secondary school and left taekwondo behind. When she saw her sisters doing so well, however, she decided that it would be cool to be an expert in a martial art, and chose to continue her training with them.

Ivy’s initial foray into the sport was short-lived. She thought the taekwondo teachers at her primary school were too strict and intimidating. When she saw her sisters excelling in their new class, though, she was inspired to join them too. So now all four of my daughters make the twice-weekly journey to their martial arts training and it fills my heart with joy to see them so enthusiastic and committed.

Too often, extra curricular activities come and go, kids dabble with them then decide to move on to something more exciting. It’s thrilling, however, when your children find something that they love and stick with. I’m particularly pleased because, as well as being hugely beneficial to both the body and mind, taekwondo trains them to be quick-thinking and reactive, which would be imperative in a self-defense situation.

So taekwondo appears to have become a family favourite, and sometime soon my twin boys will join their sisters' classes too. As you can probably imagine, I’m already daydreaming about having six black belts in the team! So watch this space!