Lazare Chikhradze is a senior at Franklin Delano Roosevelt High School in Brooklyn. He is a member of the school's varsity wrestling, football and handball teams. His busy schedule also includes a number of AP credits.

"Wrestling, that's my favorite sport," he says.

What You Need To Know

  • Lazare Chikhradze is a senior at Franklin Delano Roosevelt High School in Brooklyn. He is a member of the varsity wrestling, football and handball teams

  • Chikhradze thanks his teachers and coaches for helping him overcome cultural and language barriers after his family immigrated from Georgia

  • His future includes study in either cybersecurity or medicine

Chikhradze has had to make some big life adjustments after immigrating with his family from Georgia.

"It was a big social change for me. Obviously the kids there are way different. In Georgia, you stay in the same class with the same kids from grade 5 to grade 12," he said. "Coming here and changing my classmates every year, it was a bit confusing to me, in a way.

"There's a lot of great kids here and there's a lot of great teachers that helped me change into the person that I am today," he added. 

Vincent Daiello is Chikhradze's wrestling coach.

"He's just happy to be here, happy to be around all the kids. With wrestling, too, he's friendly even with our opponents," Daiello said. "We would be at tournaments and I'd ask, 'Where is Lazare? His match is coming up,' and they'd point across the gym, and he's warming up with his opponent, and laughing and talking to his opponent before the match."

Chikhradze says he started sports when he was really young.

"My grandpa, God bless his soul, he started teaching me judo at the age of 6," he said  "Back then I used to think it was torture for me, you know, he's making me run all these laps, and he's making me practice everyday. But I came here and I started wrestling, and I was like, oh wow. I'm new to the sport and I'm already doing pretty well. This would not have been possible without my grandpa." 

Chikhradze's coach says sports have played a big role in his success in the classroom.

"He just has this confidence. He's not afraid to try and fail. That's a big lesson that kids learn from being part of a team. Falling down and just being able to pick yourself back up and keep trying," Daiello said. 

As for the future, Chikhradze is still finalizing his choice for college in the fall. He's interested in studying cybersecurity or medicine.  

Chikhradze says he cannot thank his teachers and coaches enough for their help throughout high school. But some might say they're grateful to Chikhradze for helping to lift everyone up with his positive attitude.