Speed juggling world record holders share similar struggles

JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers KICKS- Bryce Arenson and trainer Tasha-Nicole Terani practice soccer "juggling" in Bowfield Park. When soccer trainer TashaNicole Terani started working with Bryce Arenson two yearsago,shecou ldtell there was something different about the young player. Whether it was in his eyes or in the way he acted, Terani knew Bryce had overcome difficult challenges in his life.

"It wasn't until almost a year into our training that I asked his mom, 'What's the deal with Bryce?'" Terani said. "I knew he had been through his own struggle. I knew there was something special about him."

Terani was right. Bryce, 14, was diagnosed with cancer when he was 3 and battled the disease throughout his childhood. And although their stories are very different, Terani knew what it was like to fight for life.

Born in Tehran, Iran, in 1974, Terani was abandoned in a trashcan when she was just weeks old. She was taken to a local orphanage by her rescuer, an Iranian sheriff's deputy, who picked her up after hearing her screams.

Terani's adopted mother, Barbara, was volunteering in the orphanage while her husband was starting a business in the area. When Terani was 2, the couple moved back to the Conejo Valley, where they had lived before coming to the Middle East.

"We shared an understanding of hard times," Terani said. "When I figured that out, that's when training started to get really good."

Bryce agreed.

"Sometimes we get competitive, but we're really close," Bryce said. "She has kind of the same story as me, almost dying really young. Just going through those life-and-death situations and being able to surpass them and accomplish many goals, it brings us closer."

And their accomplishments are many. Terani, a world record holder in speed juggling, saw potential in Bryce to take up juggling. In speed juggling, the player bounces the ball repeatedly off the feet and other body parts, except for hands, without letting the ball touch the ground.

"Guinness calls every other month saying, 'Someone broke your record' or 'Come try and break your record,'" Terani said. "I don't want to be in a competition for the rest of my life. I knew I had to let that go. If I'm training kids and also try to keep up with my own ego, it's not going to work. But they just kept calling."

The next time the phone rang, Terani had an idea.

"I said, 'I have someone I think can break world records,'" she said. "The whole intrigue is no one else in the world can do that type of juggling. I told them that I could train him, and I could make sure it happened."

Terani and Bryce started focusing their training on speed juggling.

"She taught me how to speed juggle a while ago, but we never practiced hard core until a couple months ago," Bryce said. "We started practicing a lot more, and one time I started going as fast as I can."

As fast as he could was good enough for a new world record. Bryce and his family went to Book Expo America in Los Angeles in May, where Guinness had set a stage for Bryce to juggle.

"I knew I was going to do it, but I was still nervous," Bryce said. "There were like 100 people watching. I knew I would do it- I worked too hard not to. It was an exciting day."

Bryce set a record for the most touches on a soccer ball- 524- in two minutes.

"Instead of getting world records, getting this boy to set a world record, it was the highlight of my soccer training," Terani said. "He's my special student. As a teacher, your whole dream is to find a student who can actually take everything you give them and do exactly what you're doing."

Now Terani and Bryce are back to a regular routine, but Bryce said he still practices juggling in his free time.

"It helps me with everything else I do," Bryce said. "The quick touches with my feet help with faster moves in soccer."

Bryce will enter Oak Park High School as a freshman in the fall and looks forward to playing soccer there. Bryce said he'd love to play soccer professionally, but he is first focused on being able to play in college. Bryce is also a second-degree black belt.

"He's an honor student, a really amazing kid," Terani said. "What I hope for him is a good, confident entrance into high school."

Terani has recently finished a book, which she describes as a memoir that should inspire many, especially with Bryce's story included.

"I wanted to find a way to make an impact on kids all over the world, not just in Oak Park," Terani said. "I've found peace through soccer, and I want to help others find confidence in themselves. In my book I talk about all the struggles in my life experience and everything I've learned."

The book is finished, and it is currently in the hands of a publisher.