Emma Wu Please Report To Holding

Taekwondo Insider News recently got the chance to interview ECTC All-Star and NCTA Champion, Emma Wu!

Name: Emma Wu
Birthday: July 15, 1987
Competition Weight: Feather/Light
Height: 5’3”
College: Harvard University ’09
Major: Linguistics and Neuroscience
Grad School: University College London ’11
Coaches: Michael Tang, Richard Min

(Taekwondo Insider News): What first got you into Taekwondo?

(Emma Wu): I grew up in a very white neighborhood in Dallas, Texas, and I think my mom was afraid I would miss out on Asian culture. Her solution was to enroll me in Chinese traditional dance, but I absolutely refused. The dance studio happened to be in the Min’s Taekwondo dojang, so we reluctantly compromised on taekwondo. I didn’t even like taekwondo at first; I wasn’t flexible or graceful or naturally gifted. But about a year or two in, something clicked, and here I am.

(TKDI): You competed in the Eastern Collegiate Taekwondo Conference (ECTC), and were also selected as an ECTC All-Star, what was a typical tournament like?

(Wu): The beauty of ECTC (or INCTL, as it was known) is the team format. You could be a ringer and still never win a division, not without your teammates’ success. The resulting team camaraderie, the inter-school rivalries, the cheering and jeering and heightened emotions—all made for great memories.

(TKDI): You took first place at Collegiate Nationals (lightweight), what were you thinking right after you won in the finals?

(Wu): Man, I was on the ultimate high. I had submitted my honors thesis the day before Collegiates, so I was exhausted. Collegiates was intended to be my last competitive hurrah; my only goal was to make the quarterfinals. Winning the finals on my turf (East Coast represent!), to the cheers of Harvard, Brown, MIT, etc, was incredible. National champion, Pam Am team member, and then to receive Female Athlete of the Year? I was flying.

(TKDI): Winning gold at Collegiate Nationals earned you a spot on the Pan Am Collegiate Games Team, what was that trip like for you?

(Wu): I loved the experience of representing the USA at an international tournament. My own sparring wasn’t that hot, but there were some amazing matches by my Pan Am teammates, really inspirational. A great way to cap my collegiate taekwondo career.

(TKDI): What is a typical training week like for you?

(Wu): When prepping for Collegiates and SWUG Team Trials, I would rotate between practices at Harvard, Team New England, and tBos. I’m grateful to all three for giving me so many opportunities to learn and train.

(TKDI): If you could give one tip to up and coming athletes, what would it be?

(Wu): As Coach Tang always told me, “Get in there, and do what you do. Be confident!”

(TKDI): You recently graduated from Harvard, what are your plans now, for both TKD and life in general?

(Wu): I am attending graduate school in London to study cognitive neuroscience on a Marshall Scholarship. Taekwondo will always be ingrained in how I think and move and act.

(TKDI): What is something not many people know about you?

(Wu): I studied Chinese, Spanish, and Polish in college.

Shout outs and Thank you's:

(Wu): I don’t think I’d be the athlete I am without my coach, Michael Tang (“Team Tang... Wha wha!”). I don’t think I’d be the person I am without my master instructor, Richard Min. They both instilled into me confidence, thoughtfulness, and ambition. They will always have my immense respect.