A kickboxer from Kariega, Jacques van der Westhuizen, has won three trophies at the US Open World Martial Arts Championships which was held in Orlando, Florida from 30 June to 2 July.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt was very tough, and I received a few massive punches. Within the first 30 seconds of my first fight my helmet was knocked off my head,\u201d said Jacques van der Westhuizen, a member of Fusion Martial Arts Academy with former world champion Sensei Cindy Strydom as his trainer. \u201cThe fighting was totally different from what I am used to. They called it mild, but it was full contact. We in South Africa practise controlled contact, but their rules and regulations are more lenient. So, I had to quickly adapt to hit with the same full impact.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Van der Westhuizen said the experience was overwhelming. \u201cI have never seen such a large venue and there were kickboxers from all outposts of the world. We were a small team of only seven kickboxers from South Africa, of which I was the only one from the Eastern Cape and the oldest in the team.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In South Africa, Van der Westhuizen (50) used to fight in the 45+ age category, but at the US Open World Martial Arts Championships, he had to compete in his same weight and belt category.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe oldest contestant I had to fight against was 37 years. This made my achievements even more special, as the opponents might have been quicker, but I made the wiser kicks and punches.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Van der Westhuizen won three third place positions respectively in Continuous Sparring; Points Sparring; and Clash Sparring. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
This was his biggest sporting challenge to date, but also a huge challenge to raise the required funds to be able to represent South Africa at a world championship. Therefore, he would like to thank everyone who supported his fundraising events as well as: Salome Pieterse, EC Sports Development Fund, Dr Steenkamp, Christo from Calbis Blue Bottle Liquor Store, Natalie from The Party Nook, SAPS Uitenhage Tea Club, and his SAPS Kamesh colleagues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cA special thank you to my wife for her continuous support, motivation, encouragement and making me believe that I would succeed. Thank you also to Sensei Cindy Strydom for pushing me to my limits during training.\u201d <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A kickboxer from Kariega, Jacques van der Westhuizen, has won three trophies at the US Open World Martial Arts Championships which was held in Orlando, Florida from 30 June to 2 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