WWE's The Miz helps Abu Dhabi children fight off bullies

ABU DHABI // WWE wrestling star The Miz visited the capital yesterday to battle bullies .
The American fighter - real name Mike Mizanin - spoke out against picking on others to school pupils.
He has addressed children at about 20 schools worldwide as part of the "Be A Star" campaign to battle bullying, telling of his own experiences.
The Miz is in Abu Dhabi ahead of WWE Live, a major showcase next month that features stars such as Randy Orton and The Shield.
"If I affect even one student then this is all worth it," he said yesterday at the American Community School. "When teachers or parents say something you might listen but it goes out the other ear. But when someone famous says something, you tend to pay attention. I know when I was a kid, that's how I felt."
Charlotte Nash, 12, agreed. "Having someone famous telling us that really does help," she said. "If you stop it you can make a difference."
The Miz told the middle-school pupils about his own experiences with bullying, such as being told he was too short to play basketball - he is 1.88 metres tall - and not talented enough to make it as a professional wrestler.
He also warned about the effects of cyber bullying, especially given the prevalence of social media.
"Kids are on Twitter, Facebook and texting, so there's huge avenues for bullying," he said. "When I was bullied as a kid, I would keep it in the back of my mind and take the negativity and turn it into motivation for me to prove people wrong ... it's the same now. It makes me want to prove people wrong."
Charlotte said hearing about the star's difficulties made his presence all the more poignant.
"Hearing his experiences of being bullied shows you that it's real and we all need to find a solution," she said.
Charlotte said she had not been bullied at middle school, but had experienced bullying before and seen it around her.
"I do think bullying is a problem and people need to work to find a solution," she said.
The Miz told the pupils he was the "guy that tried to stop the bullies and make a difference", and encouraged them to do the same.
Mercedes Avila, a teacher at the school, said the wrestling star's visit had a positive influence on the pupils, who were clearly excited to have a star in their midst and screamed in the auditorium.
"It's good to see that even though he's a big star, he has the human part, saying let's do something for someone else," Ms Avila said. "I think what he's doing is great."
When the wrestler asked the children in the audience who had been bullied, about half of those in the room raised their hands.
"It's great for the kids to see a role model talking about bullying and their own experiences and success in spite of negative events," said Micheline Foss, a counsellor.
"It's something you see in every school and cyber bullying is on the rise. It's much more subtle than it used to be and there are a lot of questions of how we deal with that subject effectively.
"A famous person sharing their story means the kids are really listening though."
Ms Foss said it was impossible not to see results from the presentation. "Even if one child is affected by this then it's totally worth it," she said.
WWE Live will be at Zayed Sports City Tennis Stadium from October 10 to 12.
 
 
mswan@thenational.ae