all right I’m gonna get you think about
this would you have thought any
differently everyone Phoebe introduce my
hi fighter would you have taught
different me if it was a male that
walked out here but no you got someone
in a dress okay so I’m a Muay Thai
fighter before I tell you my story I
just want you to keep thinking about
whether it will make any difference to
you if it was a man up here talking to
you about being a fighter
okay life doesn’t always go according to
plan
everyone has a plan until they get
punched in the face
don’t get yourself punched in the face
so I’m gonna tell you my story about the
first time I got knocked out cold in a
fight so I remember that fight I was up
against the more experienced fighter who
went into the fight nervous as usual I
was composed but I took comfort in the
fact that I had the best corner men in
the world behind me I had support from
my friends and family from all around so
I went into that ring as a plan was you
know stay calm be in control listen to
mine cornermen that was the plan so the
bell rang and it started the fight I
remember I got startled because my
opponent came charging right in at me
she was ready to kill me with a barrage
of punches and kicks so when my tie
you’ve got eight limbs the collar the
odd of eight limbs you can use your
hands for punches you can use your legs
for kicks you can help with someone in
the face give him a rip in the face
you can knee them in the body get them a
little bit when they’re please don’t try
this on the person next to you okay so
my opponent was she was aggressive
the bell rang and she came charging unit
me I got shot lasted about two seconds
thankfully then I remembered my plan it
was yeah
I use my legs to push her away it’s
called a push kick so same thing don’t
try this again push your leg out as a
peasant’s walking in at you and you
basically put them off momentum so then
they stumble a little bit when they
stumble that’s when you land your own
punches and your own kicks
also since you like coming in at me
right oh I gave her a hug and my tie
it’s called a clinch
so you lock someone in on their necks
you try to create some space and you try
to knee them when their body and in
weight higher you usually got quite a
fair bit of points from the knees so
that was my plan pushing her away
grabbing her giving her some knees to
the body so that first round was over in
two minutes
it was so after that two minutes you
know I was pretty sure until today I’m
pretty sure I won that that’s wrong so
during the round bring my coaches were
telling me you know you’re doing the
right thing stick to the plan
so then second round sat there and I
stopped at a plan that was throw the
same push kicks it was still the knees
and then I remember the cold soggy floor
I have no idea what I basically that
whole bit was was a missing bit in my
life so I walked out with a cold soggy
floor my Conner men were around me
trying to wake me up someone was trying
to carry me out of the ring so pretty
much that evening went by in a blur so
when I finally you know got my head a
little bit clearer things only became a
little bit clearer to me I remember
being disappointed you see it would have
probably been a little bit of an easier
pill to swallow if I had fought the
whole fight lost on points to someone
who was more experienced that would have
been something that would have been
easier for me but I got knocked out cold
face down in front of a bunch of people
and then I had to go back to training
now before I took on that fight I
already knew that the month after I was
going to be in Thailand I was gonna be
my first professional about Azzam we tie
fighter so professional about my tie
means you don’t have any protection you
go in there just gloves you go in for
five rounds with your opponent and good
luck to you from there so I had to get
back to training although I didn’t want
to after being knocked out kind of
knocked a little bit of confidence out
of you at the same time so I had to get
back to training pretty sure I didn’t
really have my heart in it when I went
to Thailand but I had to do it anyway
the flights were booked didn’t want to
let my coaches down I didn’t want to
appear defeated so I went ahead with
that fire in Thailand no prizes for
guessing how I did there I lost that
fight again so it was now two successive
losses in a row so if I didn’t think
that getting knocked out in Singapore
would do my confidence in I came back
from Thailand at an all-time low
so having lost two fights in a row I
went back to training again
so we after I kept going for training
thinking you know the next fight will be
better you’ll keep getting better but
you know when your heart isn’t there
when you don’t really want to do it
you’re not gonna you’re not gonna
achieve success so there were days when
I would pack my bags go to the gym and
as soon as everyone was starting to get
warmed up for training I took my bag
and I left the gym I’m not doing this
today I’m going home so yeah and then
you know it hit me you know maybe I
needed a break so I took a break after
two consecutive fight camps I took a
break I went out with my friends realize
I missed my friends a lot while I was
training and I think after a few months
after a year actually I missed it I miss
the thrill of stepping into a ring I
miss the feeling of your muscles and
your lungs on fire when you’re training
so I went back and this time I went back
not because I have to
I didn’t go back for anyone I didn’t go
back to prove myself but I went back
because I left my sport so this year
this last April I went back to Thailand
the very same ring that I got that I
lost my first professional fight and
last year I went back there and I won
this time I won that fight in a second
round fiction so I won that fight by a
technical knockout and a low kick of my
opponent and aside a few consecutive
times and she couldn’t stand because I
had given her deadly I feel really
terrible if I had nah I always feel
terrible after a fight but yeah you know
I’ve I’ve gone back to winning ways now
I’ve lost some fights I win some and as
much as I wish that I had won those
fights that I’ve lost when I look back
and think about how much of a better
fighter I am now than I was in the past
before getting knocked out Cole I
wouldn’t trade the experience of losing
for anything you see but it’s not the
adversity that defines who we are it’s
how we react you to get versity that
does so losing my fights all those
losses all those fights I’ve lost
doesn’t define who I am what defines me
is how I reacted to the adversity and
then I guess when you’re sorry to tell
you wouldn’t have known I got knocked
out cold fight and tell you my story and
if I didn’t get knocked out cold I
wouldn’t have a story to tell you okay
so no matter whatever it is you would
have plans you’d have plans for your
career
you’d have plans to buy your first home
you’d have plans to retire comfortably
every day I will make plans you make
plans last night to come here to TEDx
you p.m. you make plans for your evening
later on what are you going to do this
evening well then happens when your
plans don’t happen what happens when
things don’t go according to plan so I
just want you to remember that it’s not
the adversity it’s not the challenges
that define us it’s
you react to it that defines who you are
when you love something so much when you
live on passion I live so much on
passion in my time when you’re training
for a fight a fight cam you train six
days a week your warmup would be seven
kilometer run and then you’ve got 15
minutes of skipping on the ropes you’ve
got five minutes of shadow boxing before
you actually start training the
trainings then six rounds of four
minutes on the pads you’ve got a minute
break in between you then spar with your
mates for three rounds of four minutes a
minutes rest in between and then you’ve
got 15 minutes of clinching which if you
remember it’s where you’re almost
hugging someone and just getting knees
in your body for 15 minutes and then you
still have to finish off of conditioning
so conditioning would be 500 knees on
the sand back two minutes worth of push
kicks on the sandbag 500 sit-ups where
someone’s dropping Pat’s right in your
stomach just to condition your abs for
taking punches so that’s training and if
you don’t have passion
you’re never gonna live through that so
it was only passion that got me through
all those fight cams and if you want to
achieve something there is no shortcut
it can be hard
plans change you want to achieve
something I want it to win my first
professional fight and I lost but I
didn’t just give up there it was passion
that got me through to see the second
fight sometimes you have to take a break
you’ve got to step back give yourself a
break catch up on live catch up with
your friends catch up with your family
but if you’re truly living on passion if
it’s something you have so much passion
about no matter how long it takes you
will get there so it took me a year to
win my first professional fight what I
did this year now I’ve been talking a
lot about fighting
I’ve been talking about being in the
ring I’ve taken you through some way
time moves which I hope you don’t try on
anyone didn’t make any difference that I
was a girl standing up here talking to
you about my time so let’s just be
honest now hands up if during this
entire time I was speaking did you think
about what if it was a man out there did
anyone think any differently if it was
going to be someone else
no in a dress being up here talking
about weight I one person you know this
this top that I was supposed to give was
supposed to be about crushing
stereotypes talking about breaking
boundaries as a female fighter you know
what I think we’ve all just broken
that’s your type here no one thought any
differently that I was a girl in a dress
talking about fighting would have been
the same if it was a man talking about
my tie so well done everyone you’ve all
started on breaking the stereotype a
fighter gender bias is still exists in
my sport I am lucky that I live in
Singapore and where we organize fights
no one really talks about you being a
female fighter no one talks about the
male frankness but when my tie comes
from in Thailand the very first time
were fought in Thailand that was quite
surprised because in Singapore a lot of
us climb over the top rope to get into
the ring but when I first got to
Thailand I realized that women weren’t
allowed to climb over the ropes to get
into the ring we had to crawl under the
last rope also in Thailand there are two
major stadiums in Bangkok which host
sort of the biggest muy Thai fights
these are the lumpini and the Raja
dominant stadiums and in this big
stadiums only male fights are allowed
the female fights aren’t allowed to be
hosted in those stadiums maybe one day
well maybe now that we’re starting to
break stereotypes maybe one day I will
be allowed to fight a lumpini that would
be a dream it may not go according to
plan but still there’s no short
gender biases in sport let’s still like
this we’re gonna have to work our way to
eradicate the stereotypes but I think
we’re starting that just today thank you
everyone [Applause]
this would you have thought any
differently everyone Phoebe introduce my
hi fighter would you have taught
different me if it was a male that
walked out here but no you got someone
in a dress okay so I’m a Muay Thai
fighter before I tell you my story I
just want you to keep thinking about
whether it will make any difference to
you if it was a man up here talking to
you about being a fighter
okay life doesn’t always go according to
plan
everyone has a plan until they get
punched in the face
don’t get yourself punched in the face
so I’m gonna tell you my story about the
first time I got knocked out cold in a
fight so I remember that fight I was up
against the more experienced fighter who
went into the fight nervous as usual I
was composed but I took comfort in the
fact that I had the best corner men in
the world behind me I had support from
my friends and family from all around so
I went into that ring as a plan was you
know stay calm be in control listen to
mine cornermen that was the plan so the
bell rang and it started the fight I
remember I got startled because my
opponent came charging right in at me
she was ready to kill me with a barrage
of punches and kicks so when my tie
you’ve got eight limbs the collar the
odd of eight limbs you can use your
hands for punches you can use your legs
for kicks you can help with someone in
the face give him a rip in the face
you can knee them in the body get them a
little bit when they’re please don’t try
this on the person next to you okay so
my opponent was she was aggressive
the bell rang and she came charging unit
me I got shot lasted about two seconds
thankfully then I remembered my plan it
was yeah
I use my legs to push her away it’s
called a push kick so same thing don’t
try this again push your leg out as a
peasant’s walking in at you and you
basically put them off momentum so then
they stumble a little bit when they
stumble that’s when you land your own
punches and your own kicks
also since you like coming in at me
right oh I gave her a hug and my tie
it’s called a clinch
so you lock someone in on their necks
you try to create some space and you try
to knee them when their body and in
weight higher you usually got quite a
fair bit of points from the knees so
that was my plan pushing her away
grabbing her giving her some knees to
the body so that first round was over in
two minutes
it was so after that two minutes you
know I was pretty sure until today I’m
pretty sure I won that that’s wrong so
during the round bring my coaches were
telling me you know you’re doing the
right thing stick to the plan
so then second round sat there and I
stopped at a plan that was throw the
same push kicks it was still the knees
and then I remember the cold soggy floor
I have no idea what I basically that
whole bit was was a missing bit in my
life so I walked out with a cold soggy
floor my Conner men were around me
trying to wake me up someone was trying
to carry me out of the ring so pretty
much that evening went by in a blur so
when I finally you know got my head a
little bit clearer things only became a
little bit clearer to me I remember
being disappointed you see it would have
probably been a little bit of an easier
pill to swallow if I had fought the
whole fight lost on points to someone
who was more experienced that would have
been something that would have been
easier for me but I got knocked out cold
face down in front of a bunch of people
and then I had to go back to training
now before I took on that fight I
already knew that the month after I was
going to be in Thailand I was gonna be
my first professional about Azzam we tie
fighter so professional about my tie
means you don’t have any protection you
go in there just gloves you go in for
five rounds with your opponent and good
luck to you from there so I had to get
back to training although I didn’t want
to after being knocked out kind of
knocked a little bit of confidence out
of you at the same time so I had to get
back to training pretty sure I didn’t
really have my heart in it when I went
to Thailand but I had to do it anyway
the flights were booked didn’t want to
let my coaches down I didn’t want to
appear defeated so I went ahead with
that fire in Thailand no prizes for
guessing how I did there I lost that
fight again so it was now two successive
losses in a row so if I didn’t think
that getting knocked out in Singapore
would do my confidence in I came back
from Thailand at an all-time low
so having lost two fights in a row I
went back to training again
so we after I kept going for training
thinking you know the next fight will be
better you’ll keep getting better but
you know when your heart isn’t there
when you don’t really want to do it
you’re not gonna you’re not gonna
achieve success so there were days when
I would pack my bags go to the gym and
as soon as everyone was starting to get
warmed up for training I took my bag
and I left the gym I’m not doing this
today I’m going home so yeah and then
you know it hit me you know maybe I
needed a break so I took a break after
two consecutive fight camps I took a
break I went out with my friends realize
I missed my friends a lot while I was
training and I think after a few months
after a year actually I missed it I miss
the thrill of stepping into a ring I
miss the feeling of your muscles and
your lungs on fire when you’re training
so I went back and this time I went back
not because I have to
I didn’t go back for anyone I didn’t go
back to prove myself but I went back
because I left my sport so this year
this last April I went back to Thailand
the very same ring that I got that I
lost my first professional fight and
last year I went back there and I won
this time I won that fight in a second
round fiction so I won that fight by a
technical knockout and a low kick of my
opponent and aside a few consecutive
times and she couldn’t stand because I
had given her deadly I feel really
terrible if I had nah I always feel
terrible after a fight but yeah you know
I’ve I’ve gone back to winning ways now
I’ve lost some fights I win some and as
much as I wish that I had won those
fights that I’ve lost when I look back
and think about how much of a better
fighter I am now than I was in the past
before getting knocked out Cole I
wouldn’t trade the experience of losing
for anything you see but it’s not the
adversity that defines who we are it’s
how we react you to get versity that
does so losing my fights all those
losses all those fights I’ve lost
doesn’t define who I am what defines me
is how I reacted to the adversity and
then I guess when you’re sorry to tell
you wouldn’t have known I got knocked
out cold fight and tell you my story and
if I didn’t get knocked out cold I
wouldn’t have a story to tell you okay
so no matter whatever it is you would
have plans you’d have plans for your
career
you’d have plans to buy your first home
you’d have plans to retire comfortably
every day I will make plans you make
plans last night to come here to TEDx
you p.m. you make plans for your evening
later on what are you going to do this
evening well then happens when your
plans don’t happen what happens when
things don’t go according to plan so I
just want you to remember that it’s not
the adversity it’s not the challenges
that define us it’s
you react to it that defines who you are
when you love something so much when you
live on passion I live so much on
passion in my time when you’re training
for a fight a fight cam you train six
days a week your warmup would be seven
kilometer run and then you’ve got 15
minutes of skipping on the ropes you’ve
got five minutes of shadow boxing before
you actually start training the
trainings then six rounds of four
minutes on the pads you’ve got a minute
break in between you then spar with your
mates for three rounds of four minutes a
minutes rest in between and then you’ve
got 15 minutes of clinching which if you
remember it’s where you’re almost
hugging someone and just getting knees
in your body for 15 minutes and then you
still have to finish off of conditioning
so conditioning would be 500 knees on
the sand back two minutes worth of push
kicks on the sandbag 500 sit-ups where
someone’s dropping Pat’s right in your
stomach just to condition your abs for
taking punches so that’s training and if
you don’t have passion
you’re never gonna live through that so
it was only passion that got me through
all those fight cams and if you want to
achieve something there is no shortcut
it can be hard
plans change you want to achieve
something I want it to win my first
professional fight and I lost but I
didn’t just give up there it was passion
that got me through to see the second
fight sometimes you have to take a break
you’ve got to step back give yourself a
break catch up on live catch up with
your friends catch up with your family
but if you’re truly living on passion if
it’s something you have so much passion
about no matter how long it takes you
will get there so it took me a year to
win my first professional fight what I
did this year now I’ve been talking a
lot about fighting
I’ve been talking about being in the
ring I’ve taken you through some way
time moves which I hope you don’t try on
anyone didn’t make any difference that I
was a girl standing up here talking to
you about my time so let’s just be
honest now hands up if during this
entire time I was speaking did you think
about what if it was a man out there did
anyone think any differently if it was
going to be someone else
no in a dress being up here talking
about weight I one person you know this
this top that I was supposed to give was
supposed to be about crushing
stereotypes talking about breaking
boundaries as a female fighter you know
what I think we’ve all just broken
that’s your type here no one thought any
differently that I was a girl in a dress
talking about fighting would have been
the same if it was a man talking about
my tie so well done everyone you’ve all
started on breaking the stereotype a
fighter gender bias is still exists in
my sport I am lucky that I live in
Singapore and where we organize fights
no one really talks about you being a
female fighter no one talks about the
male frankness but when my tie comes
from in Thailand the very first time
were fought in Thailand that was quite
surprised because in Singapore a lot of
us climb over the top rope to get into
the ring but when I first got to
Thailand I realized that women weren’t
allowed to climb over the ropes to get
into the ring we had to crawl under the
last rope also in Thailand there are two
major stadiums in Bangkok which host
sort of the biggest muy Thai fights
these are the lumpini and the Raja
dominant stadiums and in this big
stadiums only male fights are allowed
the female fights aren’t allowed to be
hosted in those stadiums maybe one day
well maybe now that we’re starting to
break stereotypes maybe one day I will
be allowed to fight a lumpini that would
be a dream it may not go according to
plan but still there’s no short
gender biases in sport let’s still like
this we’re gonna have to work our way to
eradicate the stereotypes but I think
we’re starting that just today thank you
everyone [Applause]
Please follow and like us: