No Limits Marital Arts in Jersey Village will be sending five students of various ages to the USATKD National Championships in Fort Worth.
JERSEY VILLAGE, Texas — Stepping onto the mats takes you to the limits of power and precision. Strength and athleticism are on full display at No Limits Martial Arts in Jersey Village.
“The most important thing is to believe in yourself,” says coach and owner Dara Gilliland, who herself has decades of martial arts experience.
Gilliland is preparing to send five taekwondo students, ages 8 to 38, to the U.S. Championships in Fort Worth.
“I see thousands of people around me, all screaming my name,” said 9-year-old Dani Saldivar.
Saldivar, like the other qualifiers from the Houston area, practices for hours almost every day.
“It's about seeing students reach their highest potential,” Gilliland said.
The tournament is scheduled to run from July 4 to July 7. 15-year-old Rasan Holub will be competing in his first national tournament.
“I'm excited. I'm confident. I'm ready,” Holub said.
Hayden Serrano, 16, knows what it's like to compete, but said the lights are definitely brighter on such a big stage.
“In the ring, everything goes blank. I only focus on my coach, myself and my opponent.”
Technique is important. Eight-year-old Ryan Hart is the youngest in the qualifying group. He talked about some of the tricks he's learned.
“If you practice your kicks, you'll get stronger and stronger,” he says.
The students said they took up the sport for a variety of reasons, but the oldest of the qualifiers, 38-year-old Eva Guell, may have had the best reason.
“I discovered taekwondo when my children started doing it,” she said.
Guell said she is especially pleased that her 6-year-old daughter, Eva, has taken up sports and looks up to her mother.
“It's never too late to start something and I think it has instilled in my daughter the feeling that she can do anything she wants to do,” Goel said.
As the group makes final preparations for the Olympic year, Saldivar looks to his own future and dreams big about where the sport he loves can one day take him.
“I believe I can go to the Olympics and I believe I can win a gold medal,” Saldivar said.
Zach Tawatari on Social Media: Facebook X | Instagram
