Kiana Khan-Smith is a lot like any other seven-year old out
there. She goes to school, she does her homework, she plays with
her little brother Jaymin. She’s so full of energy, one could get
exhausted just watching her tear from one end of the house to
another.
Kiana Khan-Smith is a lot like any other seven-year old out there. She goes to school, she does her homework, she plays with her little brother Jaymin. She’s so full of energy, one could get exhausted just watching her tear from one end of the house to another.
But for all of the shyness and hyperactivity that goes along with being seven-years old, Khan-Smith carries herself with a sense of self-confidence that is rarely seen in a child her age.
But that’s what happens when you’ve spent more than half of your young life dedicated to something as intense as the martial arts.
Less than a week ago, Khan-Smith successfully tested for her black belt in Karate, the culmination of four years worth of hard work. The testing process alone took about four hours and included a five-mile run at five in the morning, which Kiana is quick to point out wasn’t all that enjoyable.
When Kiana was three, her parents, Larry and Marlis, wanted to get her involved in a sport. Given the fact that most organized sports aren’t open to three-year olds, they decided to enroll their daughter in Karate. And, seeing as how Larry himself is a second-degree black belt, they felt comfortable with Kiana’s ability to handle the challenges she would face as she progressed through the world of martial arts. They were also confident that once Kiana set the goal of attaining her black belt, she would stick with it until her dream was realized.
“We knew that she’d get the black belt,” said Kiana’s father. “We knew that she might get frustrated at times, but she catches on really quick and she also works very hard at it. She can actually do some things I can’t even do. I try to remember back to when I was her age and trying to do some of the things she can do, and I’m not sure if I could have.”
Khan-Smith can do a lot of things that most of us can’t do. Never mind being able to run five mile at the crack of dawn, even with a bit of a break after the first couple of miles, once you’ve seen Kiana take to the air and throw a perfect 360-degree roundhouse kick, you get an idea of how special her ability is.
Now that Kiana has reached her goal of becoming a black belt, it’s time for a break. Khan-Smith has, at least for now, hung up her sparring gear and taken up gymnastics. But karate is in her blood and, even given her age, Kiana knows that the years she has invested in the sport have been time well spent.
“We’ll see what happens, it’s up to her,” Kiana’s mother said on the likelihood of her daughter returning to Karate. “But because (Larry’s) in it and he’s practicing all the time, she sees it. And I’m sure she’ll have a desire to pick it up again in the future.”
Until then, Kiana will continue to grow as a student and an athlete. In addition to gymnastics, she has shown some interest in taking up soccer, a sport that will allow her to further showcase her speed and overall athletic ability.
She’ll also likely spend some time with her father, working out on the bag or on her forms to keep her Karate skills sharp.
Let’s just hope she doesn’t practice on Jaymin to keep from getting rusty.
