Eros Paul V.

Estante

September 9, 2013

BS ChE II

Taekwondo as My Hobby

Hello everybody. A pleasant afternoon to everyone!!!

Today, I will share with all of you my sincere passion for Taekwondo. Taekwondo was
my favorite sport during elementary. You will know more about me as a sport enthusiast by what
hobby I engaged in. I will also tell you how I became member of the club and my personal
experiences in taekwondo. I would also like to share with you my learnings in this sport and
what my future plans are for Taekwondo.
First, let me tell you how I got involved into this contact sport and martial arts. If one
would ask me who passionately persuaded me to join, then I proudly tell that its my father.
Why? Because he himself was a former martial artist and a believer in discipline of martial arts.
Apart from that, he wanted us to be in sports in order to be physically and mentally active. In
addition, he wanted us to invest in sports not only for building strong body but also to widen our
social connections and relationships. Above all, he firmly adheres to the saying that, health is
wealth,
I started joining when I was in Grade Two and dedicated my time to practice in order to
master my craft together with my brother and other team mates. My first official and actual
encounter in Taekwondo competition was during the congressional district meet that was in
2004. As a neophyte player, I only got bronze medal despite my earnest desire to get the gold. I
was defeated by more senior and experienced fighters. But defeat in any competition is not a
failure or a lost but a lesson learned. It was a take-off point for me to further hone my skills to
gain gold medal in the next competitions. I was very competitive then desiring to be the best
player in my category.
As years passed, with more experience and practice, I handily got gold medals in many
competitions. Modestly, before I graduated from elementary, I was a three time congressional
gold medalist, two times Iloilo province gold medalist, and one time integrated meet champion. I
qualified for the Western Visayas Regional meet competition. I lost a point from the regional
champion and only won bronze medal though my goal is the Palarong Pilipino.
Another highlight in my Taekwondo career was the promotion. Promotions are done to
increase the rank of the player. The rank of the player corresponds to the color of his/her belt.
During my first test in promotion, I had butterflies in my stomach but in the end, I got promoted
from white belt which is the lowest rank in taekwondo to yellow belt. It encouraged me to reach
for higher belt and rank in this sport. Before I graduated from elementary, I was officially

promoted to junior black belt by the Iloilo Taekwondo Association. It was for me an important
achievement having been promoted to the highest belt an elementary pupil could reach.
Certainly, Taekwondo imparted a lot of experiences, sometimes even tough. Promotions
were also a remarkable event for me because I would not have been a junior black belt if I was
not able to pass the rigid screening and test. Competitions greatly helped me become more
seasoned, hardened and a tough fighter. I was a really then an opponent to reckon with during
competitions.
Lastly, I will talk with you about what Taekwondo taught me in life and what my future
plans are. In Taekwondo, I learned to develop the habit of self-discipline and patience. I think
one cannot continue in this sport if he or she has no discipline. Taekwondo taught me not to be
lazy in practice or I might lose in the competition. My instructor often hit me straight in the ass
with a kick pad every time I was lousy or failed to execute the correct steps or did something
wrong. This sport taught me how to remain strong and never give up especially when things
turned rough. To think that Taekwondo competitions were hard that I got bruises after every
competition, I never had the thought to quit. My love for this sport pulled me hard to stick
around and never leave. This sport taught me to accept defeat and strive harder next time. In the
competition, its not always you who win and have a shining and shimmering gold medal. Each
time I lost, I took it a challenge to win and strive harder next time.
Unfortunately, I quitted my Taekwondo upon entering PISAY because academics
demanded too much from me. It was very hard to balance my extracurricular activities and
academic life. However, if given the opportunity and time, I will resume this sport, perhaps be an
part time instructor someday My passion for Taekwondo will never fade. It runs deep down my
veins, mind and in my heart.
Indeed, I learned a lot of things in sport. I learned how to discipline myself, not to
succumb to every challenge that life has to offer and how to become sport. I will continue my
Taekwondo career if chance allow because it has become my identity.
Being in Taekwondo, I experienced a lot of remarkable events which I will always
treasure, one that money cannot buy. This sport taught me a lot of values like discipline and
dedication that I will forever keep in my heart. Taekwondo, undoubtedly, molded me the kind of
person of who am I today.