By BEVERLY BEAL
Beverly@newsroom.byu.edu
Coming to a new country and becoming a part of the crowd at BYU is a big change for many international students.
For Melany Moras, 22, a junior from Lima, Peru, majoring in electrical engineering, this statement takes on a new meaning. She left her country and a national and international championship title in Tae Kwon Do two years ago to come and study at BYU.
'I was nationally and internationally recognized in Peru. I would go to tournaments and everyone would know who I was. Here, I have to earn recognition and prove that I am good and that I could do it.'
-- Melany Moras, 22, junior from Lima Peru majoring in electrical engineering
Her career began at age nine. Although she wanted to do little girl things, like dance, she started training in the martial arts for one reason: to please her dad, she said.
'My dad wanted me to learn martial arts. I hated it, but I did it to make him happy,' she said
Moras' father, Victor Moras, said he wanted her to learn to protect herself.
'I wanted her to have confidence and security because she was weak and I wanted her to be strong,' Victor Moras said.
Moras said her desire to learn and compete started to grow as she began practicing six hours a day and participating in competitions. She has been practicing Tae Kwon Do for thirteen years.
'I do it now because I like it, because I love it,' she said.
Moras said that she has used Tae Kwon Do in her daily activities.
'Tae Kwon Do is a discipline. It gives you security, energy and the self confidence to react in any situation,' Moras explained.
Moras said that she was the 1991-1997 National Champion in Peru and during those years, she never lost a fight. She won tournaments in Bolivia, Paraguay, Cuba, Venezuela, and Costa Rica. She has received recognition from the Olympic Peruvian Committee, the Republic Congress and the Presidents of the Republic.
Moras' family moved from Lima to Utah two years ago. It was then that she transferred to BYU from Ricardo Palma University in Peru.
'My family moved here to Utah because my mom liked the place. She knew about the LDS Church and liked it. They also wanted to find a university for me to study, so they looked here at BYU and liked it.' Moras said.
Moras joined the LDS Church in March 1999, and now her entire family are members of the church and still live in Utah, she said.
Although Moras liked the United States and BYU, coming here was a big change for Moras.
She said that the biggest impact was that she was used to being a champion -- someone who is well known and prestigious -- and she had to start all over.
'I was nationally and internationally recognized in Peru. I would go to tournaments and everyone would know who I was. Here, I have to earn recognition and prove that I am good and that I could do it,' she said.
Since she is still working on her U.S. citizenship, she said she is not allowed to compete in the U.S. nationals. She said that she was going to try and compete in the 2000 Olympics, but she missed the Olympic qualifier because of her studies at BYU.
Now that Moras is in America, she is working on other aspects of Tae Kwon Do, said Burton Sparks, 24, a senior from Issaquah, Wash., majoring in electrical engineering.
'She was trained to be a fighter for competition; that was the whole basis of her training. She is now working on other aspects, such as traditional forms and Korean techniques, which include prettier and exaggerated moves,' he said.
Moras said that she is also instructing her 7-year-old sister, Samery, in the art of Tae Kwon Do.
'I like to go to Tae Kwon Do with my sister. We learn many different things and have fun,' Samery said.
The English language is another barrier that Moras is trying to overcome while at BYU, she said.
'I am still learning the language. It is hard when you just want to talk freely. You want to be the same person, but you have limitations when you can't explain what you want to say,' Moras said.
Moras said that she is the vice president and an instructor of the Tae Kwon Do club at BYU. To find out more about the club and when it meets, check out its web page at www.et.byu.edu/~sparks/tkd.html.
See related story:
Moras hopes to clean up at national Tae Kwon Do championship 4/1/99