Aria Thephavong, a 14-year-old wrestler from Murfreesboro, has been dominating competitions from local to international stages.
Across all competitions, she has earned first-place honors 38 times, including the last six consecutive Tennessee state championships in the weight classes she has competed in.
One of her most recent competitions was the Windsor Open, a highly acclaimed youth freestyle wrestling tournament in London that welcomes competitors from across the world. There, she won two gold medals: one in the boys 13U 41.6 kg weight class (92 pounds) and one in the girls 15U 38.5 kg (85 pounds) weight class.
“I was the lightest one, but still did my best and worked for a gold medal and got it,” Thephavong posted on her Instagram.
Being one of the smallest competitors on the mat is only added motivation for her, not an obstacle.
“It makes me happy because they’re in a whole different weight class and they still lost to me,” she said, regarding her win in the boys division, competing up a weight class.
Thephavong began wrestling in third grade, competing in AAU tournaments with the Blackman Youth Wrestling Club. Throughout her journey in her wrestling career, family has played a key role in her development, specifically the training she does with her brother.
“Her brother is the one that trains her, and he pours his sweat and tears with her,” said Aria’s mother, Judy Thephavong. “He’s the one pushing her and putting all his time into her.”
Seeing the hard work behind the scenes and all the success Thephavong has achieved has made her mother and the rest of her family very proud.
“It’s been a roller coaster of emotions, from heartbreak after tough losses to overwhelming pride after big wins,” the wrestler’s mother said. “Seeing her dedication and growth has made us extremely proud.”
After all of this, Thephavong has her eyes set on big goals for the future.
“I want to go to college and go to the Olympics,” she said.
With the end of this school year, her middle school wrestling career will come to a close. But this fall, Thephavong will begin wrestling at Blackman High School, looking to bring home more gold medals and state titles.
