Beyond the Belt: The Meaning of Community in Martial Arts

The current episode of the ATA Nation podcast features an engaging and insightful interview with Karin Av, a distinguished athlete hailing from Goodyear, Arizona. As a third-degree black belt training at Kick University, Karin shares her experiences and emotions as she transitions from the 15-17 age division to the adult category. This episode delves into the emotional complexities of leaving a familiar competitive landscape, where deep bonds with fellow competitors have been cultivated over the years. Karin reflects on the significance of these relationships, emphasizing that the essence of being an athlete transcends mere competition; it involves forging meaningful connections that endure beyond the dojo and into life’s pivotal moments, such as her recent graduation ceremony attended by her martial arts family.

The discussion further explores Karin's aspirations within martial arts, highlighting her achievements and future goals. With a wealth of experience, including multiple world titles in extreme and traditional weapons, she articulates her ambition to continue excelling in competition while also aspiring to become a level three or four instructor. This dual focus on personal achievement and community contribution underscores the episode's core message: that martial arts is not solely about accolades, but about nurturing the next generation and sharing one's passion with others. The conversation leaves listeners with a profound understanding of the athlete's journey, marked by resilience and camaraderie, as Karin prepares to embark on new challenges at Arizona State University.

Listeners are invited to reflect on their own martial arts journeys through Karin's narrative, which evokes a sense of community and shared purpose within the ATA family. The podcast adeptly captures the spirit of dedication and the importance of support systems in achieving both personal and collective success, reminding us that every belt earned is a testament to the relationships built along the way. As we anticipate the upcoming world championships, this episode serves as both an inspiration and a call to action for athletes at all levels to embrace the bonds that make our martial arts community vibrant and enduring.

Takeaways:

• This episode of the ATA Nation podcast features an athlete from Arizona who has achieved remarkable success.
• Karin Av, a third degree black belt, reflects on her emotional transition to a new competition division.
• The discussion emphasizes the importance of creating meaningful bonds beyond competition in martial arts.
• Listeners are encouraged to support junior brand ambassadors who are highlighting outstanding athletes of the week.
• The podcast highlights the significance of music selection in dynamic martial arts performances.
• Karin aims to pursue her ambition of becoming a martial arts instructor while attending college.

Episode Transcript

(00:01):
This week's athlete of theweek comes right from Arizona.
Welcome to the Ata Nation podcast.
Welcome back.
This is episode 159 of the AtaNation podcast.

(00:23):
I'm your host, Senior masterZach Hayden, and it is a pleasure
to be back with you again.
Again.
I don't know if you guys knowthis, but we usually don't have shows
in June and July.
We're off.
But we're.
We're here because thesejunior brand ambassadors have done
such an amazing job ofhighlighting athletes of the week.
This is such a cool thing thatthe brand ambassadors are doing.

(00:44):
And I think pretty soon, Ithink at World Championship we're
going to get to hear who issome of our new brand ambassadors.
Pretty exciting stuff coming.
Don't miss world championships.
Anyways, so junior brandambassadors have been picking these
awesome athletes of the week,and though we don't necessarily have

(01:05):
time sometimes this summer forour full shows with lots of extra
content and things, we do wantto continue to bring these awesome
athletes week to you.
So let's get to it.
ATA Nation, we are superexcited to have another awesome athlete
of the week with us.

(01:25):
Ma', am, can you introduceyourself for us?
My name is Corinne Ave, andI'm a third degree black belt from
Goodyear, Arizona, and I trainat Kick University.
Kick University.
Now, okay, I didn't ask youthis before we got on the call, but
do you do team Sync?
I don't do team sync, but youmight be thinking of these two girls

(01:47):
named Abrianna Lopez andJacqueline Dagala Zamora, a part
of our annihilating Kick unit,which is our team Sync, our traditional
team sync.
Okay.
Okay.
I was just talking to MasterTurner the other day about extreme
and the team sync coming toregions and all that kind of stuff.
So I knew there was a groupfrom Kick University.

(02:08):
So anyways, let's go back to you.
This season has ended.
We're almost at world championships.
And how did this season go for you?
It was.
It was an emotional season forme because it is actually my last
season in the 15, 17 ring.
I'll still be a third degree,but I'll be moving up with the adults.

(02:28):
So it was definitely anemotional time for me because I've
been in the little kids ringbasically for like all this time
and now I'm finally moving up.
So.
Yeah, and that, that 15 to 17ring, because it's three age groups
you're in there longer, thesecond, third degrees, you guys like
get some real good bonds in there.
I mean, there's a lot ofpeople in there that you know and
compete with for a long time.

(02:49):
So I'm sure that that is emotional.
How in your competition do youhave an event that is your, like,
this is my go to event.
I'd say that'd be either liketraditional weapons or creative weapons.
Okay.
Okay.
What.
What's your weapon of choice?
So I actually do two different weapons.
For traditional, I do BO staffand I've just been doing that for

(03:10):
a long time.
So I just.
It's kind of like muscle memory.
I love doing it.
And then for creative weapons,I do nunch.
Okay, very cool.
Are you.
You said creative weapons, soyou're not throwing up and stuff.
Do you do extreme weapons as well?
I do do extreme weapons as well.
I also use nunchucks.
Awesome.
Very cool.
So you're a big into thedouble Chuck.

(03:31):
You're throwing them, spinningthem, doing all that kind of cool
stuff.
Yeah.
Now I was, I was just askingMaster Turner the other day, Senior
Master Turner, about, youknow, creating your extreme and creative.
Do you have a song that you doto your creative and ext.
That really pumps you up?
How did you pick your music?

(03:53):
For me, it's just somethingthat I like resonate with.
I'm actually like a huge fanof like the K pop genre and I think
I like resonate that well.
So it's something that youjust connect with.
So I do use like that likevery like poppy goat, like almost
happy song for my like extreme weapons.

(04:14):
But for creative weapons, Iactually use a different song, which
is a more intense song.
So honestly, I feel like itjust depends on the.
The person.
Do you want to go for anintense look or do you want to go
for something fast andexciting and.
When you did yours?
Because I'm just curious aspeople do their extreme and creatives
a little bit differently.
Did you pick your music afteryou made your form and then just

(04:36):
adjusted to it?
Did you pick music first andbe like, hey, I'm going to build
out of this.
How did you process yours?
I. I created the form firstand then I like you kind of just
like look at the form and seelike, oh, like, what is the vibe
here?
And so I did pick after andI've actually had the same form for

(04:57):
creative weapons for a whileand I haven't changed it in even
the song.
I haven't changed it for a while.
So if you pick the right song,it goes a long while.
Yeah.
Oh, for sure.
Then that's nice that you getto stick with it.
Did you.
Are you got some Goals for theend of the season.
I know we just had district,but World champs.
You doing any tock ideas forthe new Super 20?

(05:21):
Now that you're going to be ina new division, what kind of goals
do you have?
I do want to win a couple moreworld titles this year.
I did qualify for TOC and Iactually qualified for an event that
I barely do, which was combat weapons.
So that was, that was fun whenI found that out.
Nice.
For new season for 1829, Ireally want to try to get into sparring.

(05:45):
I'm actually quite a shortperson and so I've been getting more
into sparring recently.
And so if I can at leastqualify for TOC next year or just
do well enough for to be ableto get into districts, that'd be
really cool.
So.
Well, I love that.
That's a great, you know,going outside of your comfort zone
a little bit, doing somethingthat's a little bit different.

(06:05):
I forgot to ask you earlier,what, what got you into martial arts?
I actually did soccer beforeit when I was a little younger and
then I had a career endinginjury of hurting my hand and so
my mom's like, you still needto do something.
And my mom signed me taekwondowhen I was six and I've been doing
it for 11 years now.

(06:26):
Nice.
Well, wait a second, I'm alittle confused.
You had a career ending soccer injury.
That was your hand.
Don't you not use your handsin soccer?
I know I was a defender.
Okay.
It was a little league, so itwasn't a career ending.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
I just didn't want to do it anymore.
But you were like, I got hurt.

(06:47):
I don't want to do this anymore.
Yeah, so let's do a sportwhere we kick and punch each other
instead.
Yeah, it was confusing, but Ijust ran with it and I'm still running
with it.
So obviously it seems to be going.
It seems to be going pretty well.
You've got some, you said yougot some world titles already.
What world titles?
You have 2019, I won extreme weapons.

(07:08):
And then 20, the weird season.
2020, 2021, I got traditional forms.
And then 2023, which wasactually my first year in the 1517
ring.
I won created weapons.
Nice.
Excellent.
Well, that's, that's pretty awesome.
So if you're looking at maybenot competition goals, but just martial

(07:29):
arts goals, as you lookforward to your martial arts career,
you're getting ready to gointo that 18 to 29.
Do you have any mid longerterm goals for just martial arts
in general, I do.
I recently tested for my levelone collar because I joined the legacy
program a little late.
I do want to be a level threeinstructor one day or level four.

(07:53):
It's been kind of a goal formine to be a school owner.
I am going to college soon,and it's not like my main focus,
what I'm majoring in, but Ialways kind of want it to have as
like a backup plan or just todo something on the side because
I really enjoy, like, helpingteach and teaching at the school.

(08:13):
So owning a Taekwondo schoolone day or maybe just being an instructor
at Taekwondo school,definitely be one of my bigger goals
now that I'm entering that.
That stage of my Taekwondocareer now.
Yes, ma'.
Am.
Oh, I love that.
That's awesome.
And there's lots of.
Lots of options as you go forward.
You know, owning a school,working for somebody, having a club,

(08:33):
there's just lots of options.
And we love to see peoplecontinuing their passion and sharing
that passion with others.
Fantastic.
So what's it mean to you to bean athlete, a champion?
That goes beyond the belt?
For me, I think it's creatingbonds that are meaningful and that
last.

(08:54):
And as I said, I'm going tocollege, so obviously I just graduated,
so I'm going to take anexample that happened so recently.
I had graduated, and I inviteda lot of the families from Cook University
that I'm close with, and Ididn't think too much of it when
I invited them to mygraduation ceremony, because my graduation
ceremony was, like, far fromthe school, so I didn't think anyone

(09:14):
was really going to come.
And then comes to the day ofthe ceremony, every single family
I had invited came to mygraduation ceremony to watch me.
And that wouldn't havehappened if I didn't create a bond
with them, something that'smore deeper than just instructor
to student.
So that's what I think beyondthe belt means to me.
And I think it goes beyondthan just instructor and student.

(09:36):
Could also instructor,instructor and competitor to competitor.
And it's really just up to youto want to delve, dive deeper into
those bonds.
So, yeah, beyond the belt tome means creating bonds and friendships
with people that last longer,that last and are meaningful with
each other.
Oh, that's so cool.
I love that example of thoseguys coming and checking out your

(09:58):
graduation.
That is.
That's, you know, the ATA family.
That's what that.
What.
That's what we do.
Where are you going?
Off to college?
I'm staying in State, so I'mgoing to Arizona State University.
Excellent.
So are you going to still beable to train somewhat regularly?
Are you close?
I don't know.
Arizona is where everything is there.
I'll still be able to train.

(10:19):
It definitely is a distance.
It's about an hour, like, fromKiku to the campus that I'm going
to.
And you got to focus on, youknow, grades and making sure you
stay up to things, so.
Excellent.
Fantastic.
I'm sure you will be in World championship.
You'll be at Worldchampionships just now.

(10:39):
What kind of your backyard?
How long does it take to getto the convention center there?
Like around 20 to 30 minutes.
It's quite close.
That's.
That's.
That's rough.
Oh, man, what a drive.
Well, we will see you downthere in Phoenix in just like a week
or so.
Thank you so much for yourtime and being an inspiration to

(11:01):
other athletes out there inATA Nation.
We really appreciate it.
All right, thank you, sir.
Thanks for another greatinterview from our awesome ATA Nation
podcast.
Be sure to subscribe and sharewith your ATA family.