I WANT TO DO IT FOR MUM Tae kwon-do champ Jennifer aims for top
Ashgill champion Jennifer Boyle hopes to represent Scotland at the tae kwon- do World Championships in Birmingham as a tribute to her mum Kathleen.
Kathleen was passionate about tae kwon- do and when she passed away seven years ago, Jennifer took a break from the sport.
However, Jennifer ( 28) has returned with all guns blazing, is in the Scotland squad to take part in the World Championships in July, and hopes to make the final team.
The Darjay School of Tae Kwon- Do student said: “To represent Scotland in the World Championships would be amazing; the last time I competed was back in 2007, so it was a long, long time ago.
“I’m going to keep working hard, keep going and just do my best. I’m already competing individually at the World Championships, but to be in the Scotland team would mean everything to me, and for sentimental reasons.
“The reason I stopped training was because my mum died, and tae kwondo was everything to mum. I passed my 3rd Dan because it was what she had always wanted to achieve, so it would mean everything to me.
“I’ll be at the Welsh Championships this weekend and all I ever ask of myself is to win one fight, and anything else on top of that is a bonus, but I want medals.”
Jennifer is certainly on form, having taken eight medals from two competitions last month, which put her into the Scottish squad. She won medals in all of the divisions she entered at the AIMAA (Action International Martial Arts Association) Scottish Championships in Greenock in April, taking three golds and a sliver in full contact, points stop, patterns and teams.
Hayley Duncan, an instructor at Darjay School of Tae Kwon Do, said Jennifer is an inspiration.
She said: “Jennifer is a good example to young kids who are coming up and fighting to do tournaments, she is so inspirational.
“She’s leaving with us on Saturday to go down to the Welsh Championships in Cardiff and she’s in the squad for the Scotland team at the World Championships in Birmingham in July.
“She’s the second person to be in the Scotland squad at the World Championships, after my son Daryn, but she’s not the only person from the club who is taking part in the World Championships, individually.
“Robbie Hughes, Ross Kerr, Zac Geffcott, Holly and Mark Gaughan and Lee and Scott Mckendrick are all taking part as well.
“It’s a good endorsement for the club, which is doing really, really well, and if somebody came back from the World Championships with a gold medal it wouldn’t be the first.”