Taekwondo truly reflects the best of both worlds… at times gentle, at times wild.

Another alumna from East London Taekwondo (formerly known as UEL Taekwondo), Xhesi (pronounced as Jessie) missed out enrolling at the beginning of the academic year and was on the waiting list until Refreshers in the following January. She came, she conquered and now she's a 1st Dan black belt! One of the great examples of when you put your mind to it, you really can achieve many things.

Hello Xhesi! 1. Congratulations on your 1st Dan! Can you tell us about how you started doing Taekwondo? It all began with a strong feeling that characterises me in everything I do: grit! I love sport and I have been practicing and competing in so many different disciplines since I was 5 years old. I put sport on hold for a little after I moved to London by myself to study and I faced the multiple faces of independence realising, however, that hard work, perseverance and grit were the contributing factors to success in all aspects of life. Because of that, I had to go back to doing something I love and doing it well and that’s when I started my Taekwondo journey.

2. What made you join a martial art club while at university? I wanted to fully engage with the all university’s activities. I have been a student rep for 2 years as well as a social media ambassador so I would say I was pretty active in my university experience whilst working full time to sustain my studies and London’s lifestyle. UEL is popular for its sports clubs and I was sensing already a strong feeling of inclusion which it was perfectly matched by the Taekwondo club! 3. What was it about Taekwondo that you particularly like? I did some research about Taekwondo and I saw that flexibility is a key factor to perform well. As I mentioned I have practiced many sports including ballet which followed the English Royal Academy of Dance style and later on contemporary and hip hop dance for 15+ years and I can say I grew up stretching and improving my muscle strength since I can remember. I was hoping to regain that factor in my routine and Taekwondo sounded perfect for it. In addition, I’m an extremely versatile person and along with ballet I practiced other super competitive sports both with a team and individually and Taekwondo truly reflects the best of both world as I could work on different aspects of myself, at times gentle, at times wild.

4. What was the highlight of your Taekwondo career? I believe that I’m most proud of being one of the few girls to have reached multiple gold medals both in sparring and patterns and ultimately: the black belt! I competed every year in a different category starting from a basic C class to having the privilege to fight against senior athletes. At the end of the day what I hope for is to be better than my younger self year after year and the medals make me feel awesome but knowing that I improved every so fast with lots of practice and work is what really matters to me.

5. How has the COVID situation changed your approach to your personal training? The COVID 19 pandemic has hit quite hard on me. I rely very much on my Taekwondo coach and my team and being forced not to train with them was incredibly hard to accept. I was so close to getting my black belt but giving up is never an option for me. I got the essential safety equipment and trained in parks as often as I could. Stretching is a daily routine, but I needed to cover muscle strength and stamina too. The hardest part was combining it with my job. I work in the psychology department and I’m a key worker partnering with the NHS and COVID 19 meant go to work every day with daily challenges not only for the job itself but also for the uncertainty around the pandemic. Burnout could have taken away my passion, but grit is always stronger in me and I’m now a Taekwondo black belt!

6. What aspect of Taekwondo are you looking forward to training in again, once it’s safe to? My dualism should be clear by now… both poomsae (patterns/forms) and sparring! I truly enjoy patterns; this is my gentle side and I’m looking forward to learning advanced poomsaes and try to perform a good side kick with my new uniform. My wild side takes care of sparring and I miss those adrenaline outbursts. The confidence and empowerment I receive from Taekwondo is unique and I am beyond proud of being recognised as a Taekwondo 1st Dan black belt holder internationally. Thank you.

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Disclosure: The black belt examination was altered to comply with COVID restrictions in place and ensuring the examination standards set by Kukkiwon were met.