A Quebec Games silver for Beaconsfield resident

BY ETIENNE LABERGE

Beaconsfield resident Tobias Overney-Ragan is getting set to bring his Quebec Games silver medal in taekwondo back to his home club in Pointe Claire, and the young martial artist was confident the event would go the way he wanted right from the beginning of the competition.

Overney-Ragan, who competes under the banner of the Interclub Taekwondo in Pointe Claire, never had any doubt he would tackle the difficulty of the games and emerge a stronger, better fighter and athlete.

The idea, he said, was to come to the Games and learn as best he could, regardless of the results. Meeting new people, camping out indoors, social events, and above all, the competition, were the attraction — the silver medal was just icing on the cake.

“I would’ve missed school to (come here),” he said. “Getting on the podium just makes it a little more satisfying, that’s all.”

Finding his way

Ovenery-Ragan didn’t just discover taekwondo in his youth like Isaac Newton discovered gravity; there was no ‘epiphany apple’ for him. In fact, he didn’t participate in sports of any kind until he took up taekwondo.

“The only thing I played before I took up taekwondo was the clarinet,” the teen quipped.

One day, a friend convinced him just to give it a try: that was all it took. Like a kick to the head, the urge to keep going in the sport hit him fast and hard.

“I knew about judo before, but always trying to put your opponent on the ground wasn’t attractive to me. Taekwondo, with its kicks and punches, was a lot more interesting for me,” he said.

Overney-Ragan practices about four hours a week. Like many student-athletes, he manages to balance his athletic responsibilities with his academic ones the same way he makes advances in the world of martial arts: hard work.

“It’s not too hard. I love to be in the match, on the mat. That’s where I feel good. I don’t think of anything except what my coach tells me to do,” he said.

Doing it his coach’s way worked quite well at the Quebec Games competition, but Overney-Ragan also thinks a good game as well, his coach said.

“You’ve got to see him with the six-year-old kids,” said Pascal Legault.

“He is attentive, helpful and listens to the kids. He helps them with certain throws and teaches them the best way to execute certain maneuvers. He’s able to apply all the things he’s already learned, and that’s what’s important,” he added.