There is a brawling beast roaming the streets of Queens, fighting for her right to jump, punch and kick.
This past May, The Queens Courier profiled a rising star on the Taekwondo scene – nine-year-old Jayda Skye, whose fury in the ring earned her the nickname “Baby Dragon.” The Taekwondo child prodigy boasts a 41-1 record, a Black Belt, 300 videos on YouTube and, along with her father Jose, is currently creating the Jayda Skye Rising Stars Foundation, which aims to aide aspiring fighters looking to hit the mat.
“There are a lot of kids less fortunate than Jayda who might need help financially or physically,” said her father, Jose Irizarry. “We want to help kids who love martial arts, but maybe don’t have the finances for equipment or training.”
But it’s not easy creating a foundation out of thin air, and Irizarry needs help from his community before he can help pint-sized powerhouses like his daughter. He is asking anyone who might have knowledge about starting a foundation to contact him at 718-618-0664 or through his email, jaydaskye@yahoo.com. Irizarry can also be contacted through his daughters Facebook and Twitter pages.
“Eventually I want to get her a sponsor,” he said. “This kid is second to none. The work I have to put in to help her is effortless because she is just so talented. We are looking for sponsors who believe in making dreams come true for these gifted kids in the martial arts world. We believe her fighting skills are unique and the exposure created through a foundation will help her reach that status of a young champion.”
Jayda, a fourth-grader at P.S. 81 in Ridgewood, started Taekwondo at five-years-old. Now, four years later, she’s fighting independently under Team Jayda and headed to the New York Open in Mineola, Long Island on October 22; then it’s off to the Champions Open at Queens College on November 5. Her latest victory was first place in the 2011 Gold Cup at Queens College on October 8.
Beyond that, Jayda hopes to compete in the taekwondo’s U.S. Open and various international tournaments. But for now she will continue to train hard for local tournaments and prepare for state and national qualifiers in order to participate in 2011 Junior Olympics.
