Richard Panik had to choose as a teenager whether he wanted to pursue a future in hockey or judo.
Yes, judo.
Panik had gotten into judo at a young age and showed promise growing up in Slovakia. He had worked his way up to an orange belt and won some competitions.
“In my region, it was pretty big,” Panik said. “My dad knew the guy who ran it, who was the coach there, so he put me there. I think it helped me a lot with coordination and stuff like that, so that was good. I was a four-time champion in Slovakia.