When I was young, I have always loved taekwondo. I enrolled myself in Taekwondo when I was 8 and pursued it. I never skipped a training session and was always looking forward to the next one! Then one day my Taekwondo master told me that he wanted me to take part in a WTF Teenage championship. I was hell scared, but the idea of being in a championship was over whelming. Its was a mixture of feelings , happy and excited but at the same time I was scared and uncertain. The decision was mine to make and a gamble to take. I agreed and before I knew it, I was training everyday for a month. It was hard, non-stop training for 2 solid hours. I had to miss my favorite television programmes to go for the training. I had to spar with other black belts and senior masters. This was done to prep me up for the big day.
The day had come and I was more ready than ever to take down anyone who came my path. There were many knock out levels before one could go to the finals. I still remember seeing all the young eager teenagers looking forward to being the champion for the day!
We all registered and was given our opponents name and number for the 1st round. The time has come to put all my skills and my tough training to good use. I was ready to win this title and go home as the Champion. I manage to knock out everyone that came my path. Then I came to the semi- finals and I realised my opponent was twice my size and was much taller than me. I started to panic and my heart started pounding faster. I was extremely tired and almost felt like giving up. Then I realised, I have come this far and I wasn't going to give up without a fight. I knew it was a gamble I was going to take and the chances of me winning was slim as she was Black belt and I was only Brown 2. But, I was not ready to give up my dream of being the champion.
I got into the ring with my head up, blood rushing to my feet and I was ready to take her down too. I managed to score some points but she was beating me up nicely. Then she moved in and decided to step on my foot on purpose. She was penalized for doing so. I took a time out, my eyes were teary from the pain i was going through and i could barely stand straight. I was in enormous pain but my Taekwondo master rubbed my leg with ointment. He told me, " It was a gamble you took when you registered for this championship, are you going to just throw this Championship away because you're weak?" Those words rang loudly in my eardrums and I wasn't going to let the pain take over my emotions, so I went straight back to the ring and continued the fight with a limp on one leg. I was determined to bring this baby giant down and I did!!! I won that match and was now in running to be the crowed Champion!!!
In the finals, I was up against another black belt but only this time she was not twice my size but she was taller than me. That didn't worry me and I knew this Championship was mine!! I took her down with ease and was named the Champion!! It was an experience I will never forget. It was my very 1st championship and it wasn't my last! I have gone for 6 other Championships after that and I have never lost a single Championship!
Therefore, I see life as a gamble. It is how much you're willing to risk and how much you're willing to sacrifice to chase your dreams and goals. Take a gamble and change your life for the better!
Cheers,
Ishani
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