Seven years of taekwon-do training have landed Brian Clyne on Team Canada.
Clyne, a 16-year-old Prince George resident, is about to fight on behalf of his country at the ITF world championships in New Zealand. The tournament runs from March 9-13 in Wellington.
Clyne, who holds a first-dan black belt, realizes he's in for an experience of a lifetime.
"It means a lot," said Clyne, who has developed his craft at Family Taekwon-Do. "I'm going, I'm representing Canada, I'm representing what we can be. I really want to show what I can do, prove to a lot of people that we're a lot better than we look at times. I want to come out strong and do great."
At worlds, Clyne will compete in sparring in the junior men's over-70-kilogram class. He'll also test his talents in power breaking, which requires athletes to punch their way through boards.
Clyne made Team Canada based on his results at the ITF Canadian nationals, held in Richmond in November.
"This came as a big surprise for him when he qualified in the first place so he hasn't had a lot of time to prepare for this event," said Jordan Boudreau, head instructor at Family Taekwon-Do. "He is nervous but I think he does realize that he has the school and the community behind him and supporting him. I think if he does keep that in mind and he can relax and keep a clear head he'll do quite well for himself."
Clyne, a Principal's List student at PGSS, is most excited about the sparring component of worlds. At five-foot-10 and 185 pounds, he packs a lot of power in his frame.
"To be honest, I don't like getting pushed around," he said. "I hope to be able to knock some people down -- just go for it."
Boudreau has gotten used to seeing Clyne manhandle his opponents.
"He likes to say that he's more of a counter-fighter but when we all watch him, after he does do his counters, he definitely likes to go after his opponent," Boudreau said. "He uses his size to kind of muscle his opponents back away from him and then he can use a little bit more of his range to score his points."
With considerable help from Boudreau, Clyne has been working to improve his speed and technique.
"They're pretty good," he said. "I'm not the greatest. There are people out there and you're just like, 'Wow, this isn't even human.' But I think I'm up there. I need to have hard, quick, fast kicks."
In power breaking, Clyne said his experience is limited. Still, blasting through boards is something he enjoys.
"It's an incredible rush when you do break them -- it also hurts quite a bit when you don't," he said with a grin. "It's speed, finesse, just everything at once."
Clyne's parents, Colin and Carolee, will make the trip with him. Clyne will compete in both sparring and power breaking on the first day of the championships. He will be one of about 50 Team Canada athletes in attendance.
