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Training Taekwon-Do and working in London, UK
The mention of the name London conjures up a myriad of different images: An old
colonial power where people enjoy high tea at four a clock in the afternoon, a modern
city where black is so last season and where black is the new black, a stuffy underground,
black taxi’s, Big Ben standing sentinel over the Houses of Parliament, red busses…However,
having spend almost three months in London, I realised that none of these stereotypes
nearly match the reality and the privilege to work, live and train Taekwon-Do in
the largest city in Europe.
The first thing one notice in London is the diversity of people and cultures that
inhabit this magnificent city on the Thames. It seems to be the melting pot of cultures,
communities and different ideas. Each day one is confronted with a new point of
view, whether it is on politics or religion or morality and one quickly realised
that respect for one another in such a diverse society is of the utmost importance.
I arrived in London carrying a huge suitcase of black clothing, eagerly anticipating
a new experience. Using the internet I contacted a couple of ITF schools but only
one of the instructors replied, Sabum Thomas Denis, 6th degree and the ITF-England
National Team Coach and ITF Instructor. He invited me to train at his two clubs
in Docklands and in Pimlico, free of charge.
What an experience! I trained with European champions and World Champions, people
who can do a reverse turning kick quicker than you can utter the word “dolyo”. I
was welcomed into the club and the diversity of people and nationalities was amazing,
a truly global village: People from Japan and Kyrgyzstan, Poland and Ireland, the
Ukraine and Scotland, Latvia and France, white belts and European and World Champions,
youngsters and those who are not so young… and all were united by their love for
martial arts.
The training itself was very physical and the contact at times quite hard. We did
a lot of sparring training as the club was preparing for a tournament in Benedorm,
Spain. Some of my British colleagues, who are usually extremely polite and diplomatic,
wondered about the bruises on my arms but I quickly told them that I was not in
an abusive relationship but that I merely enjoy a very physical kind of sport. Not
everyone understood the concept though.
An important paradigm shift took place and I realised that the ones physical and
emotional boundaries are mere mirages, ghosts born from our own insecurities and
which we continually feed with self destructive criticism. Strange though how quickly
these monsters dissipate when we are faced with new challenges. When sparring against
a European champion one does not have the luxury of concentrating on ones weaknesses,
one has to rise to the occasion and concentrate on one’s strengths and the words
“I can’t…” also magically vanishes in the face of adversity, albeit friendly adversity.
Once again I realised that martial arts is a physical and metaphysical journey,
the opportunity to better oneself, to become a more a stronger person, a more balanced
person, able to defend the tenets of our art to create a more peaceful world where
freedom and justice reigns.
On a lighter note I must add that I made amazing friends in London. One should never
expect to find the mundane and the ordinary because it is only when we are prepared
to experience the extraordinary that we open ourselves up to new experiences which
enables one to grow.
To Sabum Thomas Denis I am grateful for the privilege and the opportunity to train
at his dojang, for his endless support and patience, for his invaluable instruction
and his ability to make one see that one is capable of so much more than what one
give oneself credit for. Most of all I want to thank him for his friendship.
To the other students at Docklands and Pimlico: I will carry your unconditional
friendship in my heart back to sunny South Africa and I hope to see you either in
Europe or South Africa sooner rather than later.
Ronel Rust
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