As Tyler Van Horn walked out of the ATA Martial Arts Tournament of Champions with a second-place medal in 2019, disappointment heavily weighed on him.

With the silver circle staring back at him, a stranger said eight simple, but impactful words he would never let go of.

“I was pretty upset but someone came up to me and told me, ‘Don’t let that moment define who you are,’” Van Horn, a recent Warrenton graduate, said. “I took that to heart and kept competing.”

And compete he did.

After six years of working towards the title, Van Horn finally reached the top and earned a world championship medal in creative weapons.

“It felt so surreal and I kind of thought I was dreaming, so I actually pinched myself,” Van Horn said when reflecting on the moment.

The Tournament of Champions, held on July 23-25 in Phoenix, Ariz., brings together the best martial artists from around the world. It is considered to be the highest-level of competition in the martial arts world.

As Van Horn stepped into his familiar sector and his years of hard work came down to a singular moment, he remembered those eight words.

“Right before I competed, I had butterflies – I was anxious, worried,” he said. “But right before I went, I calmed down and trusted in God.”

Van Horn’s journey to the title was far from easy. Over the course of the season, he competed in 14 tournaments, trained rigorously in his garage, spent hours in the weight room and recovered from a torn meniscus suffered just a year prior. Some days even stretched into eight-hour training sessions.

“I felt more determined because this was kind of my last year, since I’ll be going to college and I won’t have much time to train,” he said.

Not only did Van Horn achieve a years-long dream, he did it on a larger stage and with an aggravated knee.

This year, Van Horn competed in the 18-29 age division, a major step up from the youth divisions he was used to. Despite being one of the youngest competitors, he wasn’t fazed.

“I’m used to competing against people close to my age, but the age range is a lot bigger so it was interesting,” Van Horn said. “I knew this was my year though.”

Alongside his World Championship title, Van Horn walked away with two bronze medals in extreme weapons and traditional weapons and qualified for a total of five events. Heading into the tournament, he was ranked No. 1 in the world in both creative weapons and extreme weapons, No. 2 in traditional
forms and sparring and No. 3 in traditional weapons.

While Van Horn’s passion for the sport is palpable, it wasn’t instant.

“I first started when I was about three and I couldn’t do much,” Van Horn said. “I didn’t really start liking it until 2018 and then I started winning and enjoying it more.”

Martial arts is in Van Horn’s blood. His family has been involved and competed in the sport for years, attending the ATA Tournament of Champions together since 2010. From 2014 to 2022, his family owned their own martial arts studio before Van Horn moved to Rise Martial Arts, where he continues to train.

“Tyler was kind of born into it,” Amy Van Horn, Tyler’s mother, joked.

With a title to his name after years of dedication, Van Horn’s dreams don’t stop here.

“I’d like to get into tricking and mainly learn some new tricks and add it to my competition in Taekwondo,” Van Horn said. “I also want to teach other people and help them win their World Title.”