Ivett Gonda is a bright star over the Canadian Taekwondo landscape. Training at Tae Geuk Taekwondo in Port Moody B.C., her international accomplishments include Gold at the 2004 Pan-American Championships (Dominican Republic) and participation in the 2004 Olympic games (Athens). An impressive record for one who’s just turned 20! Most recently, Ivett took Gold at the Senior National Championships (also scoring the female MVP award), and Gold at the World Cup Team Trials (Montreal, July 1).

Combat Canada (CC): In Halifax you took full advantage of the new 7-point spread rule by ending your matches quickly and cleanly. Finishing without a single point recorded against you, your total ring time for all four matches was under 10 minutes — hardly a warm-up by most standards! Would you say that was one of your easiest national tournaments?

Gonda: No, I wouldn’t call any nationals easy because each year you still have to prepare equally as hard. It shouldn’t matter who’s in your division or who you end up fighting. You still have you fight just as hard.

CC: In Halifax these new rules worked in your favour. Looking at the bigger picture, do you think the rules will make the game faster and more exciting as they were intended to do?

Gonda: Yes, I do think that the new rules have made the game much faster and of course more exciting. The game can shift one way or another… you really don’t know so its more exciting and keeps us athletes always aware.

CC: How have the new rules changed your match strategies? Do you feel they will generally benefit or hinder your style?

Gonda: For strategy the new rules make fighting more simple. First to get a 7 point gap or 12 points first wins. Before, the game used to be single shots but now we are forced to keep kicking and reaching that 7 point gap. I think as a fighter we should all take advantages of the new rules and use them as part of our strategy to benefit us. The only way the rules will hinder us fighters is if we don’t use the rules to the fullest.

CC: Please tell us about some of your goals in Taekwondo.

Gonda: My current goal is to get some medals at the Pan Am games and world championships next year and then make it to Beijing in 2008.

CC: Anyone who’s set foot in a dojang knows that tournament success is the result of tremendous training effort. What motivates you on a daily basis? Do you have specific goals that keep you focused?

Gonda: To be honest training gets harder and harder. I think it’s because through the past years of experience in international competitions I learnt what it really takes to get that gold medal. So the only way to motivate me to keep training is to focus on my goals, the steps I need to take to reach them, and the drive to perform well.

CC: How did you become involved with Taekwondo?

Gonda: I first got involved in Taekwondo when I was 8 years old. My dad made me try it because he noticed I watched too much T.V., so he put an end to that real fast. I was just like any other student that tries Taekwondo, I enjoyed it and stuck with it.

CC: Although Taekwondo is becoming more popular with women, some girls may not consider full-contact fighting as their sport of choice. For you, what makes WTF Taekwondo more appealing than other contact sports such as boxing, or even football?

Gonda: I think that because I got started at a young age I’m used to all the hits and bruises, but to me its more of a game and sport rather then full-contact fighting. Plus, WTF Taekwondo does have weight classes for all different weight ranges, so it doesn’t really matter how your body is built, you can always fit in.

CC: Are you currently in school? Tell us what your training schedule is like, and how you manage to juggle both school and taekwondo.

Gonda: Right now this summer I’m finishing up my last grade 12 course and then I’m planning to go to university (SFU) or college to study criminology. I’m training 2 to 3 times a day, 6 days a week, morning afternoon and night, or I go to school in the afternoon. It is very difficult to juggle both school and training, but certain things I had to sacrifice or go at a slower pace to gain in something else.

CC: British Columbia is producing some spectacular young competitors. What are you doing guys so well?

Gonda: I’m not doing anything well… I’m just training hard with my teammates and focusing on my goals. I have to admit that I have such a good group of people to train with. Excellent coach, great partners, so I can’t complain.

CC: Is there anyone in particular who’s been a role model or positive force in your development?

Gonda: My coach [Shin Wook Lim] has always been there to help when I was down and we’ve been through a lot the past couple of years, so I’m very grateful to be working with him. Also I’ve always looked up to Dominique Bosshart. I remember watching her in Sydney on T.V. and I guess that was the first time I really thought about my Olympic dream. So it was such a great learning experience to be her team mate in Athens. She’s great!

This article was published on Wednesday, July 12th, 2006. You can follow responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.