(AZERBAIJAN)
(BAKU)
It's important to have tactics,
to feel the opponent.
A prompt strike is crucial for your victory.
I am Farida Azizova, and I do Taekwondo.
(3RD PLACE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS PUEBLA 2013)
(OLYMPIAN LONDON 2012, RIO 2016)
As a child I had problems with blood circulation,
and doctors advised me to do sports
in which legs are actively involved.
I've been very fond of films,
that contained scenes of fights
and films featuring Jackie Chan and Bruce Lee.
I couldn't do sports for a month and a half
due to an injury and surgery. That was very hard.
I struck a blow and I twisted my knee.
It was in 2009.
At first we didn't understand what happened.
Then we figured that it was a third-degree meniscal tear
and I needed surgery.
I thought that I would cope,
and in a month I would get back to practice,
but it turned out differently.
Having returned to training a month later,
my knee started to swell
and fluid began to gather in the injured area.
My opponents kept on practising daily,
strengthening their skills.
It was pretty clear for me that I could not train my body
and I began my mental training by watching fights
and analysing them.
I did it in my imagination
and I felt ready for anything.
I could not be in the national team because it was hard for me
to train with them and just look at them as training.
In terms of morale, it was hard.
I thought how I could quickly recover.
At the same time, I went to the swimming pool.
I just tried it, and after that I realised
that my knee didn't hurt while in water,
because there was no such pressure.
When I run I always have opponents in mind,
and sometimes I just stop by a tree
and start practising my blows.
Despite the tree is not alive
it hurts after me like a living thing.
My coach then told me,
"You don't believe in yourself, but I believe in you
"and my belief will help us to win that medal."
(FARIDA FINALLY MANAGED TO RECOVER
AND REACHED SEMI-FINAL IN RIO 2016)
(SHE IS NOW TRAINING FOR TOKYO 2020)
The main thing is that Taekwondo begins with respect
and finishes with respect.
50% of it depends on the coach -
how they train you, how they talk to you,
and how they teach you.
My coach and I used to watch the battles of our opponents.
We knew them all by heart.
Every time it hurts and I don't want to practise,
all the same I train,
to become the first at World Championships,
European Championships, or at the Olympics.
After I finish my sports career,
I would like to become a coach.
I feel responsible for every step that I make each day,
because I know that the younger generation,
they look at us and learn from us.
Taekwondo begins with respect and finishes with respect,
and this needs to be understood correctly.