Jamaican Olympic Athlete Prepares for London Games in Fort Lee

Fort Lee’s own Taekwondo standout and Olympic hopeful may have come up just short of her goal of making the U.S. Olympic team this year, but she’s just 17 and has yet to reach her full potential, her trainer and mentor says.

Merissa Pico, who was recognized for her impressive accomplishments with a in December, advanced as far as level seven of eight levels needed to qualify, the youngest competitor to do so, with her bid ultimately ending at the Olympic trials in Colorado Springs.

But Pico is also the training partner of someone who did qualify for the Olympics, the first athlete in history from Jamaica to earn that honor in Taekwondo, Kenneth Edwards, 26, who’s training with Master Alvin Bernard of on Lemoine Avenue in Fort Lee right up until the 2012 London Olympics, which start in July.

Bernard, who’s been training Pico since she was just three years old, is also the Taekwondo coach for the Jamaican national and Olympic teams and has been training Edwards since 2007, making trips to the small Caribbean nation but also hosting him in Fort Lee at least once a year for two weeks to a month at a time.

Edwards qualified for the London Olympics at the Pan-American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico, becoming one of the athletes out of a group representing 29 countries vying for three spots in the heavyweight division to do so in Taekwondo, joining competitors from Cuba and Canada.

“I’m excited for both Merissa and Kenneth,” Bernard said. “I’m excited for Merissa because she’s young. She qualified when she was 16. Not many people get a chance to be at that level at 16. She did the best she could. She had to go up against people who are 27, 28 years old—adults.”

As for Edwards, Bernard said, “I think he has a desire to do well and to win.”

“He’s been travelling and doing all the competitions, all the styles, and once he got into this style—the Olympic style—he liked it a lot, and luckily he found us,” Bernard said.

Bernard has been training Edwards in WTF (World Taekwon-Do Federation) style, as opposed to ITF (International Taekwon-Do Federation) style, which he said is completely different and not recognized by the Olympics.

Edwards has been able to adapt to WTF style quickly, largely because Bernard has been training athletes in it for a long time, but also in part because he’s such a versatile athlete, who also boxes and happens to be the Jamaican national champion in Karate.

Edwards, who is in Fort Lee for six months of training at Team USA with Pico and Bernard leading up to the London Games, called qualifying “my biggest moment” and “surreal.”

“To actually be able to come over and do this well to qualify, it was an amazing, amazing experience,” Edwards said. “If it had not been for this association with Master Bernard, I probably wouldn’t even have been doing WTF.”

About 100 students train at Team USA in Fort Lee, including kids and adults of various levels and in various programs, according to Bernard, who said that while Edwards is away from family and friends, the community is doing its part to make him feel at home so he can focus on his training.

“Everyone at the school has been very supportive,” Bernard said. “They help in any way they can, and it’s just been a great feeling to see that people are so nice. They’re really helpful and welcoming in supporting him.”

Bernard added that even when Edwards is training outside the school, people often wave and wish him luck.

“It’s nice to have an Olympian running on the streets of Fort Lee,” he said.

Pico’s mother, Fort Lee attorney Deborah Pico, who estimates that her daughter still has “two more Olympics in her,” noting that athletes in Taekwondo don’t typically reach their prime until at least their mid-twenties, said she’s proud of what Merissa accomplished at such a young age, but that she’s also proud of her daughter’s training partner.

“We’ve watched [Edwards] train, and we’re happy to see where he’s going,” Deborah Pico said. “He’s part of the family at this point so it’s nice to see.”

Merissa Pico will soon be heading off to college at Boston University, where she will compete on the collegiate circuit and continue to train with Bernard in Fort Lee when she can.

“It seemed like it was a never-ending process because it was tournament after tournament, going out to Colorado Springs multiple times, and it was a lot of training,” she said. “I really couldn’t have done it without Master Bernard’s and my mom’s support. It was a great experience just getting to that level. Not many people do, obviously, and I’m looking forward to the next chance.”

Bernard said he was “excited” that the athlete he’s trained since she was just three years old was able to advance so far in such a short period of time, and that the experience should prove to be an advantage next time around and perhaps make her want it even more.

“It’s been a lot of pleasure to see her grow from three to trying out for the Olympics,” Bernard said. “She’s been there before so she knows what to expect next time.”

He also noted that it’s not easy travelling across the country so many times with so many other things going on like preparing for college.

“I’m proud of her for how far she got with all these things going on,” Bernard said. “One phase, next phase, second phase, third phase, back and forth, so that definitely will be a plus for when the next time comes around. She’ll be a lot more mature, and those things you can’t force; you can’t force maturity.”

Merissa Pico said she intends to pursue a dual degree in Communications and Entrepreneurship at Boston University, and that while Taekwondo is not an NCAA sport, she will continue to compete in both sanctioned and collegiate events.

“We’ve been very successful in competition, starting with Merissa and other students,” Bernard said. “It’s nice to see Merissa at this level and Kenneth now at this level. That’s what you work for. You want your students to get to the top, be the best and get there. It’s a great feeling.”

For updates and pictures of Edwards’ journey leading up to the 2012 London Olympics, follow Team USA Taekwondo Fitness on Facebook.