RUQSANAS A REAL FIGHTER
Begum’s battled astonishing odds to become world champ
THIS isn’t your average story but, then again, Ruqsana Begum isn’t your average person.
She’s a London-born, Mesuffering, Bangladeshi Muslim who overcame religious and societal constraints, a failed arranged marriage and a nervous breakdown to become kickboxing world champion by the age of 32.
Now, aged 34, the Eastender wants to become a world champion boxer and next month she hopes to continue her path to the top with her second professional outing.
“Thai Boxing was my first love, my passion,” said Begum.
“But now I have a platform to shine and inspire, and that really gets me going.
“My goal was to become a world champion. I always visualised that and kept going until I got it.
“And once I got to that point I thought: ‘Well, what really inspires me?’
“I took a deep breath, thought about it and it was the fact I could reach so many different people from all backgrounds with my story and inspire them.
Expectations
“Boxing gives me that platform and, as a new discipline, it stimulates me, which is what I thrive on.”
Begum was introduced to combat sports by an uncle who loved watching films of Bruce Lee and Muhammad Ali.
She added: “I used to be fascinated with the speed and technique, and what Bruce Lee was able to do.
“I just loved sports. At school I was always the fastest girl, I used to play football and I would join in with the boys.
“But then my mum was all: ‘Oh, you’re becoming a teenager now so you can’t go and play with the boys’.
“So during the summer holidays I would be at home learning how to cook, helping her and being bored.
“She wanted me to set an example for my sister, but I always knew I was drawn to martial arts and I always wanted to try it.”
Begum went to a one-off, afterschool session which eventually led to her meeting her coach, Bill Judd.
She added: “By that point I was 18 and had just started university, and I still knew my family wouldn’t approve.
“I would religiously train every Sunday but was still very conscious of my background and how it would come across with the family. I kept that up for four years at university but then had an arranged marriage when I was graduating and that didn’t go according to plan.
“I got seriously ill. I was working in architecture and started a very demanding job.
“I was trying to be a modern woman and a very traditional housewife but I didn’t cope with both things – the expectations were unrealistic.
“I did it for around six months until I had a bit of a breakdown.
“My doctor asked me to pack my bags and go to my mum’s, so I went back and stayed there a few weeks while I was recovering and my ex filed for a divorce.
“I didn’t expect that, but it was a blessing in disguise for me, because as I found some strength to walk and travel I went back to the gym. I’d lost my identity and the only thing I was familiar with was the sport, so I brought my parents down to the gym and introduced them to Bill. “I didn’t know how it was going to play out, but I took a leap of faith and thought: ‘I don’t want to live a double life anymore’. “I’d done everything correctly and it still didn’t work out for me, so now I was going to do something a little bit selfish, which was my sport. “It gave me another lifeline, sport saved me.” Begum went on to become World Kickboxing Association champion in 2016 and decided to make the switch to boxing last year before signing for David Haye’s (left) promotional stable in January. Her first fight, Picture: Steve Bainbridge against Bulgaria’s Ivanka Ivanova, ended in a draw and the pair are set for a rematch next month.
Crucially, Begum’s parents tuned in to the TV coverage of that fight.
She said: “I was always petrified to invite them because there are ring girls and people drinking, people dressed inappropriately, they wouldn’t approve, and then there’s me getting hit.
Inspire
“But they were really supportive, and when I went home the first thing my father said to me was: ‘Your opponent was really strong’.
“I was like: ‘OK, so it was nothing about my dress code then…’
“I feel like there is a stronger message here and that’s why I have to keep going.
“I feel like I’m doing something special and that it will touch so many lives. And even if it just touches one person’s life and I can inspire them, what more could I ask for?”