Taekwondo fans will recognize the Lopez name. Of the eight U.S. Olympic medals in the sport, Steven Lopez has three, while his sister Diana and younger brother Mark each won one.
“I love testing myself, and I love representing my country and being an ambassador for my country,” Lopez said.
With the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games three months away, the Sugar Land native is prepping for his fifth chance to take home the gold—he already has two.
He first learned the sport from his father in the family’s garage. The family has run taekwondo centers in Sugar Land and Houston.
“Discipline was very important in our household, and respect,” Lopez said. “That’s what martial arts teaches you.”
He joined the national team at 15 years old while still attending Kempner High School. After graduation, at 21 years old, he was part of the country’s first Olympic taekwondo team in the 2000 Sydney Games, the first year the sport was included.
In 2006, Lopez served a three-month deferred suspension for testing positive for L-methamphetamine, a substance found in cold medicines and not used for performance enhancement, according to the United States Anti-Doping Agency. The following year he won gold in the World Taekwondo Championships—welter weight category.
“I am toward the end of my career, and so I am enjoying the process,” he said. “There will come a day when I’m not going to be doing this anymore.”
Now 37 years old, Lopez said the excitement of the games never subsides. He said his experience gives him an advantage.
“When you feel you’ve been there and done that, when you’re actually going through the motions it feels a lot more relaxed and a lot more comfortable for you,” he said.
Lopez plans to stay in Sugar Land for now. He said he likes being near his family, not to mention taekwondo has gained popularity locally despite the national team’s base being in Colorado.
“That’s why I say the epicenter of USA Taekwondo is Sugar Land, Texas,” he said.