“Karate boy”. An 80's cult classic that highlights the complexities of martial arts. Years later, that same love for the sport continues to thrive within the walls of Wando. Senior Julian Mincey, third-degree Taekwondo black belt and Junior Olympic sparring candidate, proves this statement.
“It’s like I’ve been involved all my life,” Mincey said. “I started Taekwondo when I was 4 years old. They came to my Pre-K. I took lessons with them and have been doing it ever since.”
Mincy has been playing the sport for years and is such an accomplished martial artist that he has also taken on the role of instructor at Charleston Taekwondo, a local educational institution. As an instructor, Mincey has not only helped his students gain confidence, but also helped them grow themselves in the field.
“Now I'm teaching martial arts. So all of those experiences gave me the ability to talk to people more freely,” Mincey said.
“Martial arts builds discipline and is pretty disciplined. So it's just helped me become who I am.”
Unlike other sports, martial arts don't often involve teams. This can be difficult, Mincey said.
“It's just you. This is a contact sport,” Mincey said. “So you have to be comfortable taking a punch.”
However, Mincy believes that everyone should give martial arts a try because they might surprise themselves in the end.
“I believe everyone should try martial arts. It's not only a great way to relieve stress, but it's also a good way to get all your energy out,” Mincey said. “If you like competition, [it’s] Definitely a good place. If you want to do something competitive, it's definitely a good thing to try. But if you want to gain confidence, build discipline and lose weight, martial arts can help. ”
However, it is not only the upper class students who are realizing the benefits of martial arts. Sophomore Cash McKay is not only on his wrestling team at Wando University, but recently decided to try his hand at both Jiu-Jitsu and kickboxing.
“I got into wrestling just as a sport and just for fun. After that, [in the] “I started doing jiu-jitsu in the offseason, and kickboxing on the weekends…I started watching the UFC a while ago and I thought it would be a really great career,” McKay said.
Although all three are defensive sports, McKay noticed a distinct difference between them.
“Wrestling is a type of martial arts. You're basically doing takedowns, getting your opponent on their back and trying to keep them there,” McKay said. “Jiu-jitsu is pretty much the same. There are submissions, there are chokes, there are cranks… it's just more defensive… Kickboxing is boxing that also includes kicks, impressive grappling, or It’s a sport that is a fighting sport.”
But McKay is hopeful that his martial arts work during the offseason will help him when wrestling season returns in the winter.
“It will help with movement.” [and] aerobic exercise. It’s a great way to get your body flowing in the offseason when you don’t go to any other wrestling camps,” McKay said.
In addition to conditioning, martial arts has given McKay other valuable lessons that he can utilize outside of the sport.
“It definitely taught me to be humble, to be disciplined, to keep going even when you think you can't do it anymore,” McKay said.
Freshman Peyton Walters has similar experience in martial arts, specifically karate. Although she is no longer involved in the sport, she still talks about the impact her sport had on her own life, even though it was shocking at first.
“I remember being very nervous because obviously I had never done it before. Even though it's divided by age group, that doesn't mean there aren't some more advanced students in the class. ” Walters said. “So I was a little nervous to see the high belt.”
Eventually, Walters no longer participated in karate, but she believes it had a lasting impact on her.
“Ever since I started when I was really young, [it] It helped me grow as a brighter, more polite, more talkative and more confident young woman,” Ms. Walters said.
