Publications
Partners
He couldn't believe it when he got the news that he'd been chosen to compete in one of the biggest karate tournaments in the world.
Christos Prokas (12) was gaming with his friends when he received a WhatsApp telling him he'll represent South Africa at the World Union of Karate-do Federation world championships in Dundee, Scotland from 13 to 16 July.
“I was like, ‘Mom, I got selected!’ and I was jumping on the couches and onto the table,” he tells YOU.
The youngster didn't take up karate to win competitions, though.
He was bullied at school over his protruding ears which led him to take up the sport.
“I used to come home crying. I didn’t want to go to school and I couldn’t concentrate on work,” he says.
At first, he chose to keep it to himself because he didn’t feel comfortable talking about it but when it got too much to bear he finally opened up to his parents Kali (48) and Nikos (54).
“Your heart breaks as a parent. The last thing you want to see is your child being hurt and being upset all the time, crying all the time and not wanting to go to school or go out,” Kali says.
In 2017 when he was six, his parents spoke to him about getting surgery for his ears, which entailed a surgeon pinning them back. Christos was keen.
“It was a two-and-a-half-hour surgery but it was something we had to do because the bullying was getting out of hand,” his mom says.
The surgery was a success and she says it's one of the best things they could have done for him.
“He was a different child after the operation. He was more confident and secure in himself.”
But the surgery did little to stop the bullying and more needed to be done.
His parents notified the school principal, who tried to stamp out bullying at the school.
“They did a full-on campaign about accepting everyone the way that they are and spoke to the parents. There was an improvement but bullying is one of those things we’ll never be rid of,” she says.
That's when they decided to enrol him in a karate school.
In the beginning Christos went for training once a week but these days he trains at least four times a week. During the week he attends two hour-long classes, and he has a class on Saturdays.
He admits that he almost gave up his passion during the pandemic.
“I wanted to quit when I was doing it online. It’s just not the same. You try so hard and you can’t see it on camera,” he says.
But once restrictions were lifted in 2021, he moved to a new dojo where his mom says he thrived.
Since then he has competed in national and regional competitions where he has proven to be a rising star.
He placed second and third in his categories at the World Union of Karate-do Federation South African National Championships in Gqeberha, Eastern Cape last year and in June this year he won gold and bronze at the Gauteng Karate Championships.
Now he’s ready to show off his skills in Scotland.
“I’m getting really excited, I get butterflies in my stomach once or twice a day just thinking about it,” he says.
He's putting in a lot of hard work to prepare. He works out for three hours every Saturday and for the past eight months he's sacrificed video games and hanging out with friends to focus on his training.
Whatever the outcome of the competition, Christos is already a winner.
“I've seen my confidence increase as well as my strength, discipline and self-control,” he says.
“He's become a lot more confident and outspoken. He’s not scared to stand up to anybody. There have been other incidents where his friends have been bullied and he stood up for them against the bullies. His confidence, discipline and dedication can all be put down to karate,” his proud mom says.
Kali will travel with Christos to Scotland this weekend while Nikos and their daughter, Xenia (6) will cheer for him from their home in Fourways, Johannesburg.
“It’s a huge achievement. He's taken something that was so negative and he turned it into the most amazing and positive opportunity,” Kali says.
