world champion of Thai boxing, he returns to his neighborhood of Bègles

“Front leg, back leg, and back to guard position!” » In front of a quartet of young boxers, Mohamed Souane lays the foundations of Thai boxing at the Noros club, a stylish combat sports hall open in a former warehouse in the Terres-Neuves district of Bègles, since the start of the school year, under the leadership of Greg Gothelf , said Greggot. Within a large team, the Thai boxing teacher, or “muay-thai”, may cultivate discretion, but his profile does not go unnoticed: he is the neighborhood kid, who has become world champion in the category. less than 70 kilos in 2015 and 2018. At 29 years old, he is back in Gironde, and decided to take a new step.

“I was looking for a good Thai boxing coach. Everything lined up to make it happen,” praises Greggot, whose room already has 200 members, adults and children. Ideal base for Mohamed Souane who grew up in the Yves-Farges city, before the urban renewal of the district. After a detour through football, he only came late to the discipline that would change the course of his life: “At the age of 15-16, I got hooked on boxing. » First English, then Thai. “And I didn’t give up. “That’s what I needed to concentrate,” he breathes.

32 victories

He joined Impacts 33, the multi-boxing club in Bordeaux, a breeding ground for Thai boxing champions. Barely an adult, Mohamed Souane was sent to Thailand for an internship in Patong. Idyllic setting, but daily learning, at the rate of “three training sessions per day”, for a year. Back in France, licensed in a club in the Paris region, he fought all over the world and, above all, won his two world gold belts in Bangkok. “A lot of people say that there are a lot of world championships, but these tournaments were held by the large muay-thai fighting organization. »

45 fights later, including 32 victories, it’s time to take stock for Mohamed Souane. “I was number 1 when I stopped…” He has not announced his retirement, still defines himself as a “boxer-coach” on his recently reset Instagram profile and, if he is not very diligent on social networks, says he receives “quite a few messages” about the future he intends to give to his career.

« Transmission »

But, after the sequence of sabbatical leave and confinement, the young man finds himself at a turning point, he who only wanted to “work” and travel “right and left”. He completed his sports instructor diplomas and, with the help of fatherhood – he has a one-year-old son –, aspires to settle down. “I took the time to train myself, to question myself,” he continues. The almost thirty-year-old is today eager for “transmission”, his key word, especially on the edge of the priority district that is Terres-Neuves.

But, at a time when MMA, this bare-handed combat sport, is experiencing unprecedented growth, is there still room for Thai boxing? “I have confidence in the authenticity of this martial art” which requires arms and legs. And which, incidentally, offers MMA its best elements.