Both have been successful recently at the Taekwondo New Zealand 2022 nationals.
Sophia won best female colour belt poomsae, and Ryan came back with three golds.
They study Korean style taekwondo at the Moray Place clubrooms of Dunedin Taekwondo Associated.
Sophia said there were two parts to taekwondo, one was sparring or kyorugi, and the other was choreographed patterns, called poomsae.
Kyorugi involved sparring against one person.
Sophia said kicks had to be precise to gain the best scores.
This was done by targeting spots on the helmet or body plates that were worn on the torso.
"In higher grade fights you have foot sensors, but in lower grade sparring you have got corner judges , so when you make contact with, like, the torso body pad the judges will keep track of that."
Sophia said the other aspect of taekwondo called poomsae, or choreographed moves, was focused on speed, rhythm, power and flexibility.
"That is more like attention to detail. Kind of like how you would in a dance, although it is a fight, you have to get every aspect of it right," Sophia said.
Ryan said poomsae involved learning a series of patterns.
"They will be a combination of lots of punches, kicks, and different sorts of stances."
When working in teams a big factor was synchronisation.
"When you do it you will form different shapes on the grounds ... so if you had a top view you would see different shapes."
Ryan enjoyed kyorugi, or sparring, because it was more fast-paced.
"Sparring is very random, it’s very high-paced, quite exciting."
He liked how learning taekwondo helped with his general health. "Taekwondo is a very physically tough sport," Ryan said.
Sophia enjoyed the multicultural environment and meeting other people.
The physical aspect was also refreshing.
"It is a fun way to get exercise."
