Written by Busta Brown
10-year-old Ricardo Rivera Jr. was competing in martial arts competitions. He then had surgery and was sidelined for nearly a year. He was heartbroken. He could not play games with his cousins or walk alone during his family gatherings. It was a difficult time for the five of us.th Scorer. But Ricardo, known as Junior to his family and friends, has the resilience and rigor of the gladiator you see in the movies. he is a true warrior. Within a few months he was back competing and won multiple gold medals.
Watching Junior Olympians reminded me of old Bruce Lee movies. Like Lee, he is small in stature, but fast, strong, and focused. He has the heart and courage of a lion. Junior is in 100% beast mode during the match. Still, he's shy and one of the sweetest, most humble kids I know.
“When you watch Junior play, you don't even recognize him. He's like a different person. He's very serious, Dad! And I know Junior isn't that serious,” his son said. Nate joked. The two are cousins.
Learn about Ricardo Rivera Jr., son of Carla and Ricardo Rivera Sr., and see how martial arts helped him become a great son, student, friend, and Junior Olympian .
What made you start martial arts?
I remember watching the anime “Dragon Ball Z” with my father when I was little. My father watched Dragon Ball when he was still a boy and he liked it so much that he wanted us to watch it together. Dragon Ball is a Japanese anime that aired from 1984 to 1995. This is the story of a young boy, Goku, who trains hard in martial arts and becomes a world martial arts champion. I had a lot of fun watching Goku fight in a martial arts tournament when he was only 10 years old, and I thought it was really cool.
When I was 8 years old, I told my mom that I wanted to learn karate, so I started classes at Sensei Stephen Hewett's Nihon Shuukan Budokai in King, North Carolina. In addition to teaching, Sensei also competes in and serves as a judge in several competitions. He has won many medals himself and was just selected to the AAU-USA Karate National Team for the WUKF World Karate Championships in Mexico.
Take us on an amazing journey to the AAU Junior Olympics.
My first tournament was in March 2023 as a white belt. I competed in his AAU North Carolina State Karate Championships. I was very nervous because it had only been 9 months since I started karate. I won a gold medal in kobudo (weapon martial arts) and a silver medal in kata (kata means shape in Japanese). I was very excited and surprised because I played against a lot of experienced kids and I won. He then competed in the AAU South Carolina Regional Championships in April 2023, winning a gold medal in Kobudo and a gold medal in Kata. Sadly, I had to have surgery a few months later and was away from competition and karate for the rest of the year.
I returned to karate in January of this year. In March of this year, I competed again at the AAU North Carolina State Karate Championships as a green belt and won a gold medal in Kobudo. I was a little disappointed because I could only get one medal. My parents said I should be very proud. I had only been back for three months, so I needed to work harder if I wanted to win more medals. I was playing against Greenbelt now and they had more experience. He had only been a green belt for a month.
I competed in the AAU Karate South Carolina State Championships and National Qualifiers in April and once again won the gold medal in Karate. I was happy to be able to compete in the regional championships, but I wanted to do better and beat my score. At the AAU Karate Super Regional Championships held in Charlotte in April, I won three medals: a gold medal in Kobudo, a gold medal in Karate, and a bronze medal in Kimite. Everyone was so proud that I won medals in all my competitions. The teacher looked at me and said, “Let's turn this bronze into gold,'' and he hugged me. Well, the Junior Olympics are coming! The Junior Olympics will be held July 27th and 28th at the Greensboro Coliseum.
If you win, where do you go from there?
I don't know. I hope I can continue to do my best and go again next year.
The Junior Olympics is a huge accomplishment! What role has family support played in your success?
When I returned to the dojo in January, I fell behind. Other kids who started with me were promoted to yellow and purple belts, but I was still a white belt. I told her mother that I wanted to quit. Her mother said, “Good luck for two months.'' I know how much you love karate, and I'm sure you'll love it again once you get back on track. If you wish to quit after that time, we will sign you out without any questions asked. I thought about my dojo's motto. It's not about being better than someone else, it's about being better than you were the day before. I promised her mother that I would work hard for her and that I would tell her my decision in two months. Then 3 weeks after her, I earned my yellow belt and told her mom, “I'm not quitting, so forget it.'' I earned my purple belt last week.
My whole family motivates me and supports me. Her sister Case takes me to practice on Tuesdays and Thursdays. She waits at the dojo for an hour until I finish class. My dad helps me train at home and reminds me to practice every day. My mom works with my teacher to register me for the competition, get me to the hotel, get all my equipment cleaned and ready for the competition.
Let me introduce you to a day of preparation.
Before the competition, your teacher will provide additional training during the week. The day before, I train for 1-2 hours, get a good night's sleep, wake up early and warm up with my teacher before the match.
Tell me how you motivate yourself on days when you don't feel like practicing, doing homework, or doing housework..
My teacher says that a black belt is a white belt that never gives up. She remembers this when she doesn't feel like practicing. It can be very tiring for her, but she wants to become a black belt. When she doesn't want to do her homework, she closes her eyes and imagines herself getting a scholarship to college. I want to become a lawyer. Her mother says that if I work hard, I can get a scholarship to attend law school like her sister. I hate doing housework, but I get motivated when my girlfriend's mom threatens to take away her PS5.
Can you share one or two funny moments that happened during your competition?
This is already strange. It wasn't funny when it happened. I was asked to win a bronze medal at a competition in South Carolina earlier this year.rd place. I was happy because I thought at least I had won. Every competition becomes more and more difficult. While the judge was putting the metal around my neck, another judge came over and whispered something in his ear. He looked at me, took off his bronze medal, and said, “Sorry, Ricardo Rivera, 1 year old.”cent Place the gold medal. He accidentally gave me the wrong medal!
What other activities or sports do you engage in?
I belong to my school's marching band. We also hold parades and contests. I won a gold medal for Suspended Symbols in a contest held at Carowinds earlier this month. I also play soccer in the spring and summer. I won several medals and trophies with the soccer team.
What challenges has martial arts helped you overcome?
Last year, a few days before the South Carolina tournament, I felt severe pain in my stomach. It was so bad. I could barely walk. I had everything ready to go to South Carolina, so the day before the tournament my parents asked me if I wanted to go even if I couldn't make it. I told them yes, so we drove to South Carlina. That night, my doctor looked at me and told me that if I was in too much pain, I didn't have to compete, and that he didn't want me to get hurt. In the morning I was in pain. I was limping and my parents said it was up to you and you didn't have to compete. It's your choice. I remembered a story my father told me about how he won a soccer championship by playing with one leg because he was injured in the first half. That he could stand in front of the goal with a bandage on his leg and still prevent the opposing team from scoring. I thought I could do this because I am my father's son. I decided to compete and won two gold medals at the competition. This showed me that I can do anything I set my mind to.
Why do you encourage other young people to take up martial arts?
It will help you improve your concentration and patience since you need to be very focused when working on kata or learning new weapons. With sensi you can do it over and over again until you get it right. It makes you feel good and strong.
What did your parents instill in you that helped you become the great son and student you are today?
Always treat everyone you meet with kindness and respect. If there are new kids at school, make them feel welcome and talk to them, even if no one else does.
What are the top three things you like most about yourself?
They are dedicated to school and life and work hard to achieve their goals. I'm pretty funny too.
My Phenomenal Person of the Week is Ricardo Rivera Jr.
