Africa-Press – Namibia. THREE Namibian muay thai fighters will be in action this weekend in Johannesburg, South Africa at the Eclipse Fight League, with one fighting for a title.
THREE Namibian muay thai fighters will be in action this weekend in Johannesburg, South Africa at the Eclipse Fight League, with one fighting for a title.
Muay thai is an old martial art form similar to kickboxing and Mixed Martial Arts, although it does not allow fighting on the ground.
While kickboxing is limited to kicks and basic boxing, muay thai also includes fighting at close range using elbows and knees.
The three Namibian fighters, Sonja Simon, Kyle Ducie and Mutua Mutuku are all members of Combat Club Windhoek, which was started by Pedro Costa in 2014 and has since grown to about 130 signed-up members.
Some of the fighters have also started competing in South Africa at the Eclipse Fight League and have done well, winning seven gold and two silver medals to date.
Simon, who started practising muay thai two years ago, has been a regular competitor in South Africa, where she has won two gold and one silver medal.
That record has now given her a title shot as she will fight for the super featherweight amateur title on Saturday night.
Ducie and Mutuku will also be in action on the same bill when they take on two South African opponents in the super lightweight division.
Both fighters are still unbeaten with Ducie having won two fights and Mutuku one.
Simon said she was in top shape and ready for the fight.
“I feel a bit nervous, but they say if you are nervous then you are going to do your best. I feel good about it because I didn’t even know that I stand a chance to fight for the belt and now that I got a chance I feel really grateful and happy. I put my best effort in during training, so I feel Im going to be at my best on Saturday,” she said.
Simon said she started muay thai training initially as a joke.
“It actually started off as a bit of a joke. My friend said I need a lift to a gym to go and train, but when we got there coach Pedro said everyone has to tell me what is your goal, why are you here and what do you want. I said, ‘no I don’t want to be here, she wants to be here’, but then he said, ‘no, everyone must train, you came here so you must also train’.”
“I trained the first day and then the second day I had to bring her again, so I continued and then later I started going alone, so she was left behind,” she added.
Simon said the sport had enriched her life.
“I continued doing it and then I fell in love with it because besides being a sport, and improving your fitness, it also gives you respect and confidence, and you boost your self-esteem. It makes you look at the world differently and you meet people from different cultures. We’ve had people from Europe who come to train during their holidays here in Namibia, so I’ve learnt a lot at this place – it’s like my second family now,” she said.
Costa thanked the following companies who all sponsored the Namibian fighters: Monster Energy, Gasit, Binary City, JP Accounting Services and Cospharm.
Costa also thanked some of his other club members who have also contributed to help cover their expenses.
“A lot of our members have contributed to help cover the costs. They all want them to succeed, because this is for them as well,” he said.
Muay thai is an old martial art form similar to kickboxing and Mixed Martial Arts, although it does not allow fighting on the ground.
While kickboxing is limited to kicks and basic boxing, muay thai also includes fighting at close range using elbows and knees.
The three Namibian fighters, Sonja Simon, Kyle Ducie and Mutua Mutuku are all members of Combat Club Windhoek, which was started by Pedro Costa in 2014 and has since grown to about 130 signed-up members.
Some of the fighters have also started competing in South Africa at the Eclipse Fight League and have done well, winning seven gold and two silver medals to date.
Simon, who started practising muay thai two years ago, has been a regular competitor in South Africa, where she has won two gold and one silver medal.
That record has now given her a title shot as she will fight for the super featherweight amateur title on Saturday night.
Ducie and Mutuku will also be in action on the same bill when they take on two South African opponents in the super lightweight division.
Both fighters are still unbeaten with Ducie having won two fights and Mutuku one.
Simon said she was in top shape and ready for the fight.
“I feel a bit nervous, but they say if you are nervous then you are going to do your best. I feel good about it because I didn’t even know that I stand a chance to fight for the belt and now that I got a chance I feel really grateful and happy. I put my best effort in during training, so I feel Im going to be at my best on Saturday,” she said.
Simon said she started muay thai training initially as a joke.
“It actually started off as a bit of a joke. My friend said I need a lift to a gym to go and train, but when we got there coach Pedro said everyone has to tell me what is your goal, why are you here and what do you want. I said, ‘no I don’t want to be here, she wants to be here’, but then he said, ‘no, everyone must train, you came here so you must also train’.”
“I trained the first day and then the second day I had to bring her again, so I continued and then later I started going alone, so she was left behind,” she added.
Simon said the sport had enriched her life.
“I continued doing it and then I fell in love with it because besides being a sport, and improving your fitness, it also gives you respect and confidence, and you boost your self-esteem. It makes you look at the world differently and you meet people from different cultures. We’ve had people from Europe who come to train during their holidays here in Namibia, so I’ve learnt a lot at this place – it’s like my second family now,” she said.
Costa thanked the following companies who all sponsored the Namibian fighters: Monster Energy, Gasit, Binary City, JP Accounting Services and Cospharm.
Costa also thanked some of his other club members who have also contributed to help cover their expenses.
“A lot of our members have contributed to help cover the costs. They all want them to succeed, because this is for them as well,” he said.
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