Kitchener karate kid continues to impress on national and international stage
A 13-year-old girl from Kitchener is making a name for herself in the karate world after a summer full of stiff competition.
Mariana Guerrero qualified for the Canadian championships in June and secured the gold medal.
At the end of August, she competed in her first international contest for sparring at the Junior Karate Pan American Championships in Mexico. Once again, she found herself on the podium with Canada’s only gold medal.
Guerrero’s father, Carlos, recalls watching his daughter shine and said it was mesmerizing.
“There she is. It’s amazing. But I couldn’t talk, it was like ‘Ah! Ah!’” he said, quietly. “It was fantastic.”
Guerrero is no stranger to the sport and has been training much of her life. But that training got an extra boost two years ago thanks to Canadian karate star Hamoon Derafshipour. He trained with her up to 10 times each week ahead of the Pan American Championships.
“Morning and afternoon, morning and afternoon,” Derafshipour explains.
“I was tired. I was done,” Guerrero told CTV News. “And then he kept telling me to push through, push through, push through.”
Guerrero trains out of Kazoku Martial Arts in Cambridge. Sensei and head instructor James Wyatt said the duo’s dedication and consistency create the perfect partnership.
“They're both on the same wavelength on what's to be expected and what it takes to win,” Wyatt said.
But this is just the beginning when it comes to what Guerrero hopes to accomplish.
“[My] number one [goal] is to try and be number one in the world as I get older,” Guerrero said.
Derafshipour says he believes Guerrero can be an Olympic champion.
In the meantime, it’s back to school for Guerrero. But what’s it like walking back into school as a national and Pan American champion?
“I think everyone is pretty intimidated by me,” Guerrero said, jokingly.
Although, there may be some truth to it according to her father.
“You kind of feel relaxed like, ‘Ok she can handle herself.’”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Honda to get up to $5B in govt help for EV battery, assembly plants
Honda is set to build an electric vehicle battery plant next to its Alliston, Ont., assembly plant, which it is retooling to produce fully electric vehicles, all part of a $15-billion project that is expected to include up to $5 billion in public money.
BREAKING New York appeals court overturns Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction from landmark #MeToo trial
New York’s highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 rape conviction, finding the judge at the landmark #MeToo trial prejudiced the ex-movie mogul with improper rulings, including a decision to let women testify about allegations that weren’t part of the case.
Residents of northern Alberta First Nation told to shelter in place
Residents of John D'Or Prairie, a community on the Little Red River Cree Nation in northern Alberta, were told to take shelter Thursday morning during a police operation.
Secret $70M Lotto Max winners break their silence
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
Remains from a mother-daughter cold case were found nearly 24 years later, after a deathbed confession from the suspect
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
Monthly earnings rise, payroll employment falls: jobs report
The number of vacant jobs in Canada increased in February, while monthly payroll employment decreased in food services, manufacturing, and retail trade, among other sectors.
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
Metro Vancouver mayors call for serial killer Robert Pickton to be denied parole
A dozen mayors from around Metro Vancouver say federal Attorney General and Justice Minister Arif Virani should deny parole for notorious B.C. serial killer Robert Pickton, and reassess the parole and sentencing system for 'prolific offenders and mass murderers.'