Junior Nikita Chaychenko has a hobby that not many can do. That is Taekwondo, a Korean martial art that differs from other forms of fighting. Taekwondo originates in 1940s Korea stemming from influences such as Karate, martial arts, taekkyeon, gwonbeop, and subak.

“You use your legs a lot more and you fight standing up,” Chaychenko said.

Chaychenko has been committed to this hobby for quite some time now, which like everything else takes a lot of commitment. A good challenge is always fun for Chaychenko along with going against other competitors and competing at a high level.

“I’ve been doing Taekwondo since I was four years old,” Chaychenko said. “I also have been to four tournaments which made me improve my skills as a fighter.

With learning many Taekwondo skills, breaking bricks is no problem for Chaychenko. He believes that the other intensive training that he does outweighs the ability to smash through brick and wooden planks.

“We just train in many different ways and breaking bricks is actually easier than you would expect,” Chaychenko said. “It’s really everything else that is hard.”

Other than fighting skills, Nikita has learned many important life lessons along the way that he has used to enhance his focus and make him the better person and fighter he is today.

“This whole thing has taught me self discipline most importantly, self-respect, patience, and just organization along with so many other life skills,” Chaychenko said.

Chaychenko hopes to encourage others to start doing Taekwondo. Though it is a pretty intense regimen, it is also a good workout and could be useful to know for basic self-defense skills. It is a progressive combat sport that only gets more difficult as you go on.

“It is a good way to exercise, we do a lot of different things and use a lot of different muscles that you may not be used to,” Chaychenko said. “In the beginning it’s fun, but it gets harder as you progress as everything does, but if you stick with it I guarantee you will enjoy it.”

The second-degree blackbelt also hopes to continue teaching what he has learned to the future students of taekwondo. He believes that the skills he has learned will help shape what future generations will come to know as Taekwondo students.

“I am currently an instructor and working part-time,” Chaychenko said. “I plan to continue to teach what I have learned to future generations of students.”