Usually, during this time of the year, many 17-year-olds would be waiting for their SPM results but this 17-year-old is literally kicking butts on an international platform!
According to NST, our homeboy Adam Akasyah had bagged his seventh gold in the London Winter Open Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) championship last Saturday (3 March 2018). Impressive!
Source: NST
The SMK Taman SEA student, who is also now waiting for his SPM results, had defeated Vasco Antonio Simoes De Souse Lobo of Brazil in the finals at Crystal Palace and earned his place as a champion.
Adam, who is with Marcos Escobar BJJ Kota Damansara, competed under Brasa, an affiliate of Marcos Escobar BJJ, said, “I am very happy to have won this final, defeating a Brazilian, in a sport that they have created.”
Fun fact: The Brazilian jiu-jitsu has much simpler techniques compared to Japanese jiu-jitsu.
For illustration purposes | Source: Youtube
Coming from a family of martial art enthusiasts, he was introduced to jiu-jitsu by his parents. Not only that, Adam’s mum, Haryati Yahya, is actually a silat graduate while his other siblings are into self-defence. So, you can see where the passion came from.
Besides that, his parents had also sponsored his participation in this championship. Aww, there’s nothing better than supportive parents!
FYI, his other sponsor is Hyperfly – a technical sports apparel brand, especially for jiu-jitsu athletes.
In the championship, Adam competed in the featherweight division where the blue-belt BJJ practitioner defeated three English participants to reach the finals. Fuyoh, terrer!
He said that he was mentally prepared as he was constantly giving himself the “I am going to win” pep talk. Confidence is the key!
“I was pretty nervous initially because I had taken a long break before this competition. But when I stood on the mat, I had positive vibes as I had a good team who prepared me mentally for the competition. It is most important that when you are competing, you are mentally stronger than everybody else. It is to kill or be killed,” explained Adam.
Now, this isn’t Adam’s first gold as it’s actually his seventh gold and his second gold outside of Malaysia. His first gold was won in the Copa de Bangkok 2015 Championship.
Besides that, Adam had also previously won a couple of silvers from his tournaments in Japan and Taiwan. The guy is a winner!
His journey doesn’t end there.
That’s because, after the London championship, this amazing boy will participate in the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam London Championship next Sunday (11 March 2018) at Copper Box, Olympic Park, UK.
Being the ambitious and determined boy that he is, Adam doesn’t wish to stop at the tournaments as he has his eyes set on the 2024 Olympics, where jiu-jitsu will be an official sport. You go, boy!
We wish nothing but the best for Adam and hope his Olympic dream will come true! Keep making us proud, Adam!
Also read: This 38-Year-Old Malaysian is One of Britain’s Most Respected Barristers
