Ryerson student makes history at Pan Am Games
AJ Assadian, right, made history at this summer’s Pan Am Games by being the first Canadian to win a medal in the Poomsae discipline of taekwondo.
Most students spend the summer between classes working, travelling and relaxing before the new school year is ushered in with papers, projects and tests.
This summer, AJ Assadian, a third-year urban and regional planning student, was busy making history. Assadian was the first Canadian to win a Pan Am Games medal in the Poomsae discipline of taekwondo. He took home bronze in the individual competition and silver in the Mixed Team Poomsae Freestyle event.
What is Poomsae?
If Poomsae doesn’t sound familiar, it may be because it’s a new addition to the Pan Am Games this year. It is an artistic form of traditional taekwondo. “In Poomsae, you face imaginary people and imitate defending yourself using hand and kicking techniques. Everyone has the same moves within the competition and everything depends on how you present yourself in front of the judges,” Assadian explains. The event is based on both power and control of movement.
And how did Assadian become an elite-level athlete in the Poomsae discipline? “I’ve always been an artsy guy,” he says. “I am drawn to the artistic factors.” Assadian was introduced to taekwondo by family friends and started sparring at the age of seven.
Road to Pan Am history
Assadian integrates training into his school routine. “I bring my uniform with me to class in the mornings,” he says. “I go directly from class to training and fit in homework in between.”
Training includes both cardio and strength conditioning. He also spends months in advance of competition perfecting his accuracy and technique.
“The Pan Am atmosphere was completely different than other competitions,” Assadian says. There were certainly less familiar faces in the crowd and he felt more pressure to be competing on such a renowned world stage.
“I feel honoured to make history for Canada in this discipline. I hope Poomsae stays in competition so Canada can win more medals.” He credits support from his parents, coaches and teammates for his success at this summer’s Games.
Asked what is next, Assadian is quick to say: “as soon as I got back from competition, I started training to reach the top of the podium.”
Pretty impressive in terms of summer accomplishments.