Unlucky you live Hawaii

All hope is not lost for the unfortunate girls in Teshya Alo’s weight class.

Alo, a freshman state wrestling champion at Kamehameha a year ago, is not only favored to repeat this season, but it would be a shock if anyone can derail her from becoming a four-time state champion, a distinction held by only two other girls.

There are a few girls at her weight in the world who can beat her, and none of them reside in Hawaii. That is what can give other girls hope.

"I feel like it would really be for the best if I want to go far in wrestling to move to the mainland," Alo said. "I never thought I would leave this island, but this is my life."

Alo’s ultimate goal is an Olympic gold medal, and everyone involved with wrestling agrees that it is out there for her. But an Olympic dream consumes everything until it is realized. Alo’s aspirations have already forced her family to refinance their house and have left Oahu devoid of suitable training partners. She recently got a sponsorship from Titan Mercury Wrestling Club in San Marino, Calif., and her family is committed to doing whatever it takes to realize their little girl’s dreams. Alo’s younger sister by two years, Teniya, is coming up right behind her, and the hope is that both will compete at Worlds next year.

Some of the most successful former grapplers in the country have told the girl that she will not get any better unless she finds a way to get closer to the Olympic Training Center in Colorado. Alo believes them, but there are two small facts that keep her on Oahu: She relishes being a part of a team and she’s made it this far without moving.

"I don’t really know (why sooner is better than later)," Alo said. "I think that a lot of hard work and courage and belief in myself, to me I can do anything I want if I actually try hard. That’s where I am right now for that decision."

Alo’s journey is being chronicled by a local filmmaker, and a trailer for "The Animated Adventures of Judo Girl" can be found at makingwavesfilms.com/judo-girl. Cameras were on hand when Alo learned that there is a whole other world out there. After repeating as Cadet national champion in Fargo, N.D., Alo punched her ticket to Serbia over the summer to take on the world’s best. She drew Maria Kotsareva of Russia, who had medaled at the event the previous two years and had three years of maturity on Alo. The phenom was unfazed, catching the champion in a hip toss and running out to a 5-0 lead before getting injured and losing 7-5. She came back to pin an Italian and a Norwegian to claim the bronze.

"She got kind of a wake-up call at Worlds," her father, Leroy Alo, said. "She saw different styles of wrestling. It’s so different, much more fluid and stronger girls and she wants to get up to par with them. She will probably wait until after she graduates. She wants to stay with her friends."

Both Alo girls got into combat sports when they were young. Leroy says they didn’t play like typical girls and that their games often turned into wrestling matches on the floor.

"Me and my sister were actually fighting over a Hello Kitty pencil or something," Teshya Alo said. "And then we started fighting and my dad thought it might be fun to take me to wrestling classes. My mom disagreed at first because it is so dangerous. She thought I might be doing something like ballet or hula, but then I started competing in tournaments and I did pretty well. Then it got to nationals and more nationals and I got here, I guess."

So the 15-year-old who has won gold 44 times in wrestling, judo and jiujitsu shook off her recent loss to Kotsareva and eagerly reported to practice at Kamehameha, where she wore out coach Bill Venenciano with her intensity.

"I was so excited to get back on the mat," Teshya Alo said. "The team looks pretty tough this year. I feel like we can take it this year because everybody is starting the year off hard."