Every first Friday, my father would go to confession, and he took very seriously the faith he would someday transmit to us.
— Diana Lopez
Neither one of my parents played sports at a very high level when they grew up in Nicaragua.
Before we came along, it would be like, 'Yes, thank God, we have the U.S. as our first fight.' Now it's like, 'Uh-oh, we have a Lopez in our division.'
I think our legacy will always be there. My brothers and I have carved a path for all taekwondo players, not just in the U.S.
Of course I want to bring home a gold medal, and that's what I'm planning on doing. For me, that's not pressure. It's a chance to show the world who I am.
Because of my mom's compassion, direction, and knowledge, she gives me that extra push to be the best person I can be.
I am very proud of my mom and consider her the most courageous woman I know. With perseverance, sacrifice and hard work, she raised a family of Olympic athletes and gave us the tools and the spirit to succeed. That is something that my brothers and I will always be thankful for.
Growing up with three older brothers and being the youngest and the only girl, my mom always made me tough. She's taught me over the years how to be a strong, independent woman, how to carry yourself in a positive way and anything that my brothers can do, I can do.
When I tell people I'm going to the Olympics, they're like: 'What do you do, track and field? Pole vault? Are you a volleyball player?' No one ever guesses tae kwon do.
My mother was the oldest of nine children, five boys and four girls, so she had experience sharing responsibility for a large, sometimes loud group of kids.
If people look at me and, certainly, my brothers, and they see strength and guts, they'd have to know my parents. If they wanted to know why we're so close as a family, that closeness comes from my mother and father.
I need that hug from my mom. She's the Latin mother that hugs you and says all these sweet things to you in Spanish. It's just comforting. She also gives me that strength.
Win or lose, I'm going to leave everything on the mat. That's what gold medalists do.
Not only are we like the epitome of the American dream, we've been successful at the sport for so long that we know the Lopez name will always be part of the taekwondo world.
My mom always told me the more you try, the more you will succeed in everything you set out to do.
It is pretty amazing. My parents, who came from Nicaragua to the U.S. - who would have thought that they would have American kids on the Olympic team? I think that's the epitome of the Olympic dream.
Most everything I do revolves around tae kwon do. That said, I like to be a typical girl and go shopping. I have three nieces and nephews that I like to hang out with. I'm also finishing my last semester at the University of Houston, where I'm majoring in childhood education.
I've been training super hard at the Lopez Taekwondo Academy in Houston, which belongs to my brother Jean. For me, I think confidence is the biggest thing; it's all mental. I train with the best of the best, including my brother Steven, a five-time world champion who won Olympic gold medals.
When he was eighteen, my dad went off to college to become an architect.
It's so emotional. You train so hard. I know the hours we put into it.
It was natural for me to go to local tournaments with my mother and watch my brothers compete and sometimes be left with my mom at home while my dad would take my brothers away to different tournaments and competitions. So I started doing everything they did.
I don't really worry too much about what people say. I guess it's good that people talk about me.
I have a strong family, and they're not going to baby me, even though I am the baby. They're never gonna do that.
You know, me winning two gold medals, going for a third one, that's nice. But being there with Mark and my sister, and my brother being the coach, it's a dream come true. It's going to be awesome.
My parents sacrificed so much for all of us. It makes me want to give back to them by being the best I can be.
Do not sit next to my mother when she is watching one of her children compete because you will have fingernails down your back. She is a nervous wreck.
