She's only in it for the neckwear.
Joni Janis, a member of The University of Memphis Tae kwon doClub, qualified for Nationals in New Orleans after winning gold inthe Tennessee State Tae kwon do Championships in Lebanon, Tenn.
Janis and teammates Alex Willingham, Chris Hawk and clubpresident Tyler Rudd all qualified to compete in the 29th AnnualU.S. National Taekwondo Championships, May 21-25.
Everyone that qualified for Nationals won at state. Janis wonfirst in forms, Willingham took second in forms and first insparring, Hawk finished first in forms and third in sparring andRudd won first in sparring and third in forms.
Janis, who won gold in the Mid-Atlantic Championships last fall,said she felt anxious before competing in her second majortournament.
"I was nervous," Janis said. "I think we were all prettynervous, but it was an excited nervousness."
Janis has been taking lessons with the club for about a year andsaid one of the main reasons she continues to do it is because Ruddkeeps the sessions exciting.
"He keeps it really interesting. We're always doing differentthings," Janis said. "We're serious when we need to be, but we knowwhen to have fun.
"Some people would get burnt out if we did the same things everytime, but he changes things up."
Janis, Willingham and Hawk will be competing on the first day ofthe tournament and will have the rest of the weekend to wanderaround the Big Easy.
However, Rudd, a black belt, will have to abstain from thenightlife because he will not compete until the final day ofNationals.
"We are all looking forward to it," Janis said laughing. "Wewill be having a lot of fun, but Tyler won't."
Tae kwon do is an ancient form of self-defense that wasdeveloped in Korea over 2,000 years ago.
The ancient art has 11 creeds by which it is founded on. Theyare loyalty to your country, respect your parents, faithfulness toyour spouse, loyalty to your friends, respect your brothers andsisters, respect your elders, respect your teachers, never takelife unjustly, indomitable spirit, loyalty to your school andfinish what you begin.
In the word Tae kwon do, Tae means 'to kick', kwon meanspunching and do means 'the method of.'
Rudd and Willingham will have to use all those if they hope torepeat their gold medal performances from the statecompetition.
The club is open to all U of M students and meets Tuesdays andThursdays in the HYPER.
