Inside a women-only wrestling arena: ‘I thought there was no way I could do it, not at my age’ | Physical aptitude

A curious crowd has gathered atop the steps of the beach on Victoria’s Bellarine Peninsula, gawking at the 24 women staring at each other in the sand.

“LEAN BACK!” instruction comes in the wind. That is if you value your head.

Even those women who left a trail of beer bottles from the Airbnb pool to the sauna in the wee hours showed up at 9 a.m., eagerly dodging kicks to the head and trying not to get tangled up with passing dogs. Some have already had amateur fights; others are so new to muay thai that they have to be taught how to wrap their hands.

For now, this Muay Thai retreat is the closest any of us will get to intensive training in Thailand, which is a rite of passage for those new to the sport. A typical day here in Ocean Grove will consist of pad work, sparring and some strength training. But there are also plenty of opportunities to relax after the isolation instilled by Melbourne’s lockdowns, and that’s just as good for well-being.

Overseeing the action are professional wrestlers Joanne La and Somsurat Rangkla, who, just days before, many of us gathered at the Melbourne Pavilion to watch in action. They are chalk and cheese, both as people and fighters. in the ring, rangkla he is a smiling murderer; technically proficient and relaxed in style – sabai sabai, as the Thais say.

La can be playful in person, but her style in the ring is more aggressive. Rangkla recalls the first time she saw La fight, climbing the ropes to take a “man-like” stance, and was struck by the fire in her. Although they have fought each other in the past, they came together to form JS Muay Thai, to introduce women to the fundamentals through courses and retreats like this one.

The women here are from all backgrounds. My sparring partner this morning is Bridget Jacobson, head of human resources by day and amateur wrestler by night. Susi Seibt is an instrument scientist. Lauren Smith is a yoga teacher who leads our morning sessions. Ali Cheney works on gender equality and inclusion in diversity. Deb Doan is a project manager working in international development who calls herself a workaholic. He decided he would be better suited to a hobby that is “efficient and deadly” and has had two amateur fights.

During the closures, JS Muay Thai switched to online classes. Many of the camp attendees credit these sessions with lifting them out of depression and heavy drinking during that period. Or, as they say, “Netflix and waiting to die.” There is almost always a deep reason why someone starts playing a combat sport as an adult. Why else undergo such pressure tests?

Angela Edward Hollingdale is in her early fifties. He has narcolepsy and suffered from depression after his brother was killed in a car accident. As a single mother of three children, she felt she had lost herself. He hired La as a personal trainer to lose weight and was later forced to take Muay Thai classes. She was so nervous the first day that she threw up. Now it looks like home.

“I thought there was no way I could do it; not at my age,” he says. “He had everything covered: long pants, long sleeves.” Her narcolepsy medication had caused her to scratch her skin, but that has stopped now that she has thrown herself into the sport.

Many of the women here were drawn to Muay Thai because of the sense of confidence a combat sport can bring, particularly sparring, which Rangkla and La uncharacteristically introduce from the start, believing that if it’s well supervised it doesn’t have to be discouraging.

Candy Ngo, a physiotherapy student, had been harassed on public transport. Amiee Shand, a graphic designer, has someone close to her who, under the influence of methamphetamine, can often turn violent. Knowing how to sweep an assailant to the ground is reassuring, even if you haven’t put it to the test.

For La, JS Muay Thai is a personal mission. He trained himself to stay away from self-medicating his trauma. When she was younger, La moved between 20 domestic violence shelters in different states. She swore never to feel powerless again.

“I want to create a program for women in foster care so they can feel those connections and a sense of power, even if it takes time,” she says. “Because I’ve seen it firsthand. They go back to the couple because it’s all they know and they don’t believe in themselves.”

Fortunately, two weeks into this retirement, Rangkla suffers a devastating injury that tears the anterior cruciate ligament in his knee. Rangkla moved to Melbourne from Thailand for work 15 years ago, and it was here that he started taking up the sport. “In Thailand, muay thai was a way out of poverty, so not many people practiced it,” he explains.

Now 35 years old with 11 fights to his name, Rangkla has made the difficult decision to retire and will dedicate his time to developing JS Muay Thai. It has already been a great inspiration to the women drawn to this community.

As Ange Edward Hollingdale says, “We’ve turned our garage into a training area and there are pictures of Jo and Som on the wall. It’s great for my teenage daughter to see them as fighters, instead of just seeing the Kardashians.”