When Kayden Cunningham was 10 years old, he was already planning the next 10 years of his life. It's about finding a good sport, a sport that will make you money, and a sport that will win you an Olympic medal. For some, it's a standard fantasy. For Cunningham, now 20 years old, that's a reality. He is aiming to win a gold medal in taekwondo at this summer's Paris Olympics. “I didn't understand how it worked or what my life was like now,” he says. That was it. ”
So he considered his options one by one. At first he thought of trying soccer, but soon realized it wasn't for him. Then came martial arts. His father was a champion kickboxer, so he thought he'd give it a try. But in reality, he just wanted to hit someone. “When we realized that taekwondo was an Olympic sport, as opposed to kickboxing, we decided, 'Okay, cool, taekwondo.' Then we set our sights on Paris in 2024. I did, because I did the math as a kid and thought I would be old enough by then.”
For Cunningham, thinking one, two, or even six steps ahead is a natural part of the brain. Once he makes a decision, he sticks to it. However, he doesn't really care about plans in his life and has a habit of throwing curveballs every now and then. “Whenever something goes wrong, my brain absolutely does his 10 backflips,” he laughs. “I suffered a major injury that went against the goals I was supposed to achieve at the time, but my real thought process is that this is just another story to tell my kids.” (Naturally) However, he is enthusiastic about the recovery plan provided by his trainer and physical therapist.
Given the nature of his work, being punctual is not that surprising. The ever-hidden concept of expiration dates often comes up in conversations with athletes about “what's next?” This is inevitable for professionals who will reach retirement age decades before the rest of us. However, Cunningham is still considered young for Taekwondo's heavyweight category, with many of his contemporaries being more than 10 years older than him. He could be years ahead in Taekwondo. For now, he's focused on bringing home an Olympic gold medal. “I'm not the guy who's in the Olympics. I'm the guy who can win,” he says. Still, true to his nature, Cunningham is already planning his next step.
“Even if you reach the pinnacle of something, for me, even if you feel like you're the best and you can prove it, everything after that is overwhelming,” he says. “[So] I'll probably look at another sport and see what I can learn next. Maybe I'll go into MMA, maybe I'll join the UFC, maybe I'll continue doing Taekwondo. I aim to be the best no matter what. ”
