She became champion against all the negativity

Izmir University of Economics (IUE) student Melis Aras (19) ignored those who said, "Taekwondo is not for you. You can't make it, you'll get injured." and crowned her childhood dream with a championship. Aras, who won the second place in Europe at the age of 17 with the national jersey, and who has given up the first place to anyone in the last two years in Izmir, said, “Those who told me that I couldn't succeed in taekwondo and that I started a wrong job now say, 'It's a good thing that you didn't listen to us'. I was confident and went after my goals. This is how my journey to success started.”

Melis Aras, a student of IUE Vocational School Civil Air Transportation Management Program, started folk dances at the age of 7 with the guidance of her family. Continuing folk dances for about 5 years, Aras changed her goals with the opening of the taekwondo department in the private center she went to. Although her friends and some acquaintances said, "Taekwondo is not for you. You will fail, you will get injured. You will have a permanent illness, give it up immediately", Aras trusted herself and started taekwondo at the age of 12.

Aras, who caught the attention of her coaches with her talent in a short time, quickly climbed the ladder of success. Aras from Izmir was selected for the national team by being in the top 16 among 177 athletes at the 2018 Poomsae Turkey Championship held in Ankara. Then, she came second in Europe at the '2019 Turkey Open Poomsae Taekwondo Championships', which was held with the participation of 16 countries. IUE student Aras did not give up the first place in Izmir for two years.

I DECIDED ABOUT MY UNIVERSITY DURING A FLIGHT

Stating that she proved that sports and education can go together, Aras said, “Taekwondo is a martial arts sport. It is a sport that requires you to work with a program, and discipline is very important. I practice an average of 2 hours a day. When the competition approaches, I practice for 4-6 hours. I also find enough time to study because sports organize my life and keep me fit all the time. Thanks to sports, I become energetic and my motivation for my lessons increases. Sport is my biggest helper in this sense. I am studying at Civil Air Transportation Management Program at IUE. Taekwondo was decisive in my choice of this department. When I was in high school, I used to fly a lot because of sports. I loved flying, my interest in this field developed. After a few trips, I decided to study a program on aviation. I wanted to study at Izmir University of Economics, and my goal came true.”

BOTH IN THE NATIONAL TEAM AND CAPTAIN IN THE SKY

Aras continued as follows: “I think I am successful in taekwondo, which I started at the age of 12. I would love to participate in the Olympic games and represent my university. I also took advantage of the athlete discount provided by my university. Thus, my university offered me a very important chance for my education. I want to progress in taekwondo and achieve new successes. However, sports alone are not enough. I also need to improve myself in the field I studied. I will be starting first grade this year. After graduating from university, I want to shape my career goals by taking flight training in Ukraine. One of my biggest goals is to become a pilot. I would love to deserve the captaincy both in the national team and in the sky. There are no athletes in my family. However, they supported me a lot in every way. My family has a big share in my success.”