I had the chance to grab a quick interview with Elias to discuss his trials, challenges, overall experience with the competition, and his backstory with this martial art.
Elias shares that he has been doing taekwondo since he was 12 years old. He said that as a young kid, he was always extremely passionate about martial arts. So, at the age of 12, his mother decided to sign him up for a taekwondo academy. Fast forward to four years later, Elias is still exceptionally passionate about this martial art. He has many goals in mind that keep him motivated, one of these goals being going to the prestigious competition: The Olympics. He works very hard to be able to achieve his goals, which is what got him into the world championship.
This taekwondo tournament wasn’t easy. Elias had to give up many things to compete in this championship. He said he had to train six days a week for three to four hours, depending on the day. This meant that he spent most of his time outside of school focused on the martial art. He also had to maintain a strict diet to keep a specific weight, so he had to be careful with what he ate. Another major sacrifice was spending less time with friends. He had to miss birthday parties and other events to focus on training.
Training for the championship was hard, but Elias had a marvelous experience in South Korea. He loved meeting diverse people from all over the world and building relationships with coaches and national teams from different countries. He loved the country, the people, experiencing a new continent, watching the fights, and most importantly, fighting in this high-level championship.
Although Elias didn’t win any medals, he placed 30th out of 61 fighters in the tournament. This competition made him realize that he should give more effort and energy and step outside of his comfort zone. He said that when you think you have done enough, you actually haven’t, because your opponent has also trained and prepared a lot.
