As students performed their poomsae for a crowd of family and friends, a small girl in the back of the dojo mimicked the movements.
Her kicks may not reach the heights of the martial artists around her, and her punches don’t have the same power as the adults three times her age. But Isabella LePage is their equal, and she has the belt to prove it.
At just nine years old, Isabella was the youngest of 12 students ranging in ages up to 45 to earn their black belts in taekwondo from Kootenay Martial Arts on Saturday in Nelson. When the five judges approved her as a first Dan, Isabella reacted with a little hop and squeal.
Afterward, tired and sweaty from the long day, Isabella said she was thrilled to get her first black belt. “There’s just something about it that keeps me going,” she said matter of factly.
Master Dean Siminoff said it’s not the first time a child Isabella’s age has tested for black belt, but it is rare. That’s because the requirements to achieve first Dan are the same for everyone, regardless of age.
“A child might not be able to kick the height of an adult or they might not be able to do some physical things, but the curriculum they have to know is identical. The same movements, the same test, same true-false quiz, all kinds of stuff that they have to duplicate as an adult.”
That meant Isabella had to go through the same gruelling, daylong testing as everyone else on Saturday.
Isabella’s father Mark is Siminoff’s nephew, and she began training at the dojo when she was just three years old. Her mother Raquel Mayorga said it was a long process for Isabella to get her black belt, in part because she is, after all, just a kid.
“She’s like a normal child. Sometimes she gets out of the routine and she wants to do other things. I have tried to teach her to finish what we start and she has succeeded. Now she likes it and enjoys it and it has been a place where she makes friends, where she exercises.”
Siminoff, a sixth Dan who is planning on testing for seventh Dan next year, said students who train twice weekly typically achieve their first black belt in four years.
Isabella has what Siminoff describes as a snappiness to her movements that is uncommon for children in taekwondo.
“It’s called personal insight. You might be thinking punching hard, but you’re not. … That’s a thing that switches with most people at a certain age. So most kids it’s not until [they are] teenagers where they really get that, and she’s already got that at nine years old.”
Now that she has her first Dan, Isabella said she was already looking forward to testing for the next level. Eventually, she said, she wants teach students herself.
“I want to be an instructor. Maybe that’s what’s keeping me going. I love teaching.”
Kootenay Martial Arts’ graduating class of first Dans also included Abigail Robertson, Lucas Snowdon, Elliot Kim, Sarah Reid, Ethan Snauwaert, Jenny Hadfield, Ryan Hartleb, Jenny McPhail, Scott Robertson and Chris Reid. Ruth Keyes also earned her second Dan belt.