National karateka Muhd Sufizan Muhd Sufian was the only one to bag a medal in the sport for Brunei at the 2019 SEA Games in the Philippines. The 22-year-old is the eldest of two siblings and is following in the footsteps of his father. BruSports News caught up with him to talk more about his journey so far.
Q: Tell us how did it all begin for you?
A: My karate journey started because of my dad, obviously. My dad had previously been in the karate national team where he had represented and won medals for Brunei, such as in the SEA Games.
(Muhd Sufian was a bronze medalist at the 2003 SEA Games in Vietnam and was also a top-6 finisher at the Doha Asian Games in 2006.)
He was the one who brought me into karate and coached me to be the karateka I am today.
My dad started taking me to training when I was five years old. He taught me how to split and trained me on all the basics to punching and kicking.
It was only when I turned 10 years old that I started joining his classes and training professionally.
Q: Do you get to do sparring with him?
A: Actually, I never got the chance to do sparring with him. But he always corrects me, gives me tips and personally trains me.
He was never an opponent but he acted as the target so I have never directly done sparring with my dad.
Q: If not karate, which sport would you be doing?
A: There’s a lot I have in mind actually, if not Karate, I would definitely take up athletics such as running or sprinting as I have so much passion for these type of sports.
Other than that, I also have an interest in pool (cue sports) and bowling.
Q: What do you think is the best thing that has happened to you in karate so far?
A: For now, my major achievement is winning bronze medal in the Philippines SEA Games for Kumite -67kg category.
Not only that, meeting all my friends who have shaped me to be a good team player has also been one of the best things to happen to me in Karate.
Q: Any athlete that you look up to? Why?
A: My dad and my coach Shihan Okhida Simangasing. My dad is my idol as he was the first person to teach me Karate, and my coach is the one who inspires me especially because he became the world champion in Mexico and I aspire to achieve great things like him.
When my dad was still a national athlete, he was coached by Okhida and was able to win in SEA Games and as for me, I was able to win a medal in SEA Games coached by the same person too.
As for international Karateka, I look up to Araga and Ken Nishimura because these two are very skillful and know how to stay humble.
Q: What is your ultimate goal in the sport?
A: My ultimate goal is to put my name, my family and my country name as the first Karateka to represent Brunei in the Olympics.
(Karate made its debut appearance at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.)
Q: In your opinion, what makes a good karateka?
A: I personally think, in order to become a good Karateka, everyone should always acquire and stand by the five quality traits mentioned in the Karate Oath.
The five qualities are the ability to protect self dignity, obey honesty, increase good performance, maintain good manners and the ability to have high self control.
Q: What do you like to do during your spare time?
A: Prior to the lockdown, I enjoyed playing pool and going out. But now I mostly just use my time to do a lot of training online and workouts at home with my family.
Q: How do you view the future of karate in Brunei?
A: The future looks very promising in my opinion.
The new generation is driven with high passion towards the sport and there is no doubt in my mind that they will continue the karate legacy in Brunei with ease.
Q: Any words you want to give to those looking to take up the sport.
A: First of all, always keep a strong belief and faith in Allah SWT and always remember that nothing comes easy.
You can’t expect to sit around waiting for luck, so you need to hustle and train hard!
Keep your spirits high, always believe in the process and most importantly don't forget to pray!
Q: Where do you see yourself in the next five years?
A: I can see myself breaking Brunei’s record and be the first person to take up gold for my category and any medal for Team Kumite at SEA Games 2027 for Karate, insyaAllah. That is my goal, definitely.
Q: What do you think is your biggest strength in the sport?
A: My biggest strength is my team which is my family in karate as without them I would not be able to be the great karateka I am today.
Not only that, I would say that I have a strong endurance both mentally and physically - which enables me to push myself in Karate further.
Q: You stand out from your teammates. How tall are you and are there advantages?
A: I'm 185cm (6'1). There are advantages in my category (-67kg) as I have longer range.
Q: During these tough times with COVID-19, how are you staying in shape?
A: During the first week, it was quite difficult to cope with as it was pretty new to all of us, but as the weeks progressed it started to get easier.
I have online classes with my coach where we practise skills and new techniques and for my free time where I don't have classes, I will do my own workout and sometimes follow my coach’s workout programme.
Q: Anything you want to say to the readers?
A: Whatever it is you’re doing, always have fun and believe that you can continuously be the better version of yourself than you were yesterday.
If you have a passion for something, stick to it and keep it alive.
Work hard, stay dedicated and never stop dreaming! It will help you achieve greater things, I promise.
