Despite currently holding the title of Pro-Am South African super welterweight champion, Ruan Hanekom’s journey in kickboxing started on a whim.

The 25-year old took up boxing in 2021 when he discovered The Power Plant gym at The Woodmill. For the first time Ruan started exercising, which soon became training.

“I was first team in school for 2 Dota – computer games and e-sports – and I did debating. I was very scrawny, always tired and had no energy. At university it was very much the same, just sort of drifting through life,” Ruan explains.

In spite of not participating in sports, the Stellenbosch student always enjoyed watching combat sports. After finding The Power Plant, he decided to “drop by for one session” and the rest is history, as he hasn’t stopped training.

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Training abroad

Encouragement by coach Xolisani “Man X” Thembani, founder of the Kayamandi Boxing Academy (KBA), Ruan was soon involved in his first boxing fight.

“Xolisani invested a lot of energy and time training me, and within six months he said it was time and he was going to put me in a ‘nice match’,” he recalls. “I started looking my opponent up on Instagram; he had perfect form and had been a coach for years!”

Ruan walked away from the fight with a broken nose and a bruised ego.

After the bout, he also started training in Muaythai. After a visit to Thailand, where he trained at a local gym, he shifted gears in the sport. “It was a tough but nurturing environment. The opportunity to train with the best of the best was wonderful.”

On his return home in 2024, Ruan participated in the regional and provincial boxing championships, ultimately recording an eight-fight winning streak.

At the national boxing championship in KwaZulu-Natal, he lost in the quarterfinal.

A different pivot

On a break from boxing, Ruan was invited to try kickboxing at the Titans Fitness and Martial Arts Academy in Paarl. He soon started competing, making it all the way to the kickboxing nationals this year, where he won the 71 kg and 75 kg fighting categories.

“In life you have to find something that inspires you, even if you aren’t necessarily predisposed to that something. I was never athletic, yet I ended up doing something the polar opposite of playing video games and it changed my life.

“This sport has changed my confidence, self-confidence, humility and discipline. It taught me many virtues and the community I found is a very nurturing environment.”

Along with the titles Ruan was also crowned the Muaythai Pro-Am SA Super welterweight champion after defeating Richard Spagnolo in Lansdowne on Saturday 26 September – a career highlight.

“Winning a fight is about so much more than physicality. Getting enough sleep, tracking your diet and preparing mentally is all part of winning. The deciding factor is being more prepared than your opponent. It is all about creating a positive feedback loop because that is what I can control.”

During the fight Ruan suffered a fractured eye socket and has since undergone surgery, but he continues to coach others. “My family have always been supportive and proud of my fighting career but they worry so this break is a relief for them,” Ruan quips.

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