LIVING

JOHN MCKISSOCK

John McKissock has an impressive collection of trophies and medals to vouch for his success in the Korean martial art of Taekwon-Do. Among them is a gold from the 2005 World Championships in Benidorm, which he won representing Catalunya.

The Fifth Dan black belt moved to the region from Scotland in 2003 with barely a word of Castilian or Catalan, but he has since established himself as a major force in the world of Taekwon-Do in Spain, and runs four clubs around Catalunya teaching 120 students aged between four and 64.

“I was very proud to represent Catalunya in the World Championships,” said John, 37. “My wife Eulalia is from Barcelona, both our children were born here, and I speak fluent Catalan. But the greatest motivation is winning for the people who take my classes, for my family, for my children. That is a much bigger motivation than competing for any flag.”

Originally from Forres near Inverness in the Highlands, John fell in love with Taekwon-Do at the age of 13 when he saw a demonstration of the martial art. When he was 21, doctors suggested he give up the sport after diagnosing a serious bone condition. But he refused and went on to represent Scotland for many years, winning third place in the World Championships in Saint Petersburg in 1997.

John, who was previously a cigar salesman in the UK, moved to Spain six years ago after falling in love with Eulalia when they met on holiday on the Isle of Skye. They now live in Viladrau, in the comarca of Osona, with their children Grace, five, and Willie, three-and-a-half.

John retired from competition in 2006 when he was appointed Spanish technical director of the International Taekwon-Do Federation. Since then he has dedicated his time to teaching, although not just the martial art: he also gives classes in classical guitar, mandolin and violin at the Conservatory of Music in Vic.

In the Taekwon-Do classes, children up to 12 years old are taught in English, because the parents like them to learn a language while they train, and the rest of the classes are in Catalan.

“We’re having a lot of success using British training techniques,” explained John, “which are a lot more developed than they are here. There is a much older culture of Taekwon-Do in the UK, and there is more of a culture of training hard.

“I miss the adrenalin of competition, but I don’t miss the nerves and the dieting for months beforehand.”