Youth Athlete Highlight - October

Veronica Bajo – Black Belt

What got you started in martial arts?  What keeps in involved?    Being the younger sibling, of course my sister started karate before me. I used to watch her do karate from the waiting area. I used to always try and copy the movies that I watched with my sister do in her karate class. Eventually when I was seven years old, my parents enrolled me in karate so I could defend myself and stay healthy, also partially because my sister did it too. Now I continue to do karate for the fun of it, and because it’s become a big part of me. Although training is hard, and tiring, at the end of the day it’s always fun. I learned respect and responsibility from sport, and it makes me a better person.

What's the most epic pre-competition meal you've ever had? I still remember during this year’s Pan-American NASKA tournament, I had the most delicious IHOP meal ever! The hash browns tasted so good in that moment, because I was so hungry! The crepes were sweet, just the way I liked it. The meal totally blended perfectly and kept me full the whole time!

Imagine you're giving a pep talk to your younger self just starting out in karate. What's the one piece of advice you'd give them?  If you keep on working hard, it will eventually pay off! There’s been so many times where I’ve cried and gotten frustrated because things weren’t going my way. Despite that I kept on going, and I did good at the next event because I kept on working hard. Now that I have more experience, I can confidently say that if you’re not doing good, keep on pushing through, because in the end you’ll have a good result!