The four best athletes from the 2022 GAMMA Asian-Pacific Championships who were announced at the end of the competition in Pattaya, Thailand last month are eagerly awaiting their competitive bouts with ONE Lumpinee in 2023.
ONE Lumpinee is a series of events launched in September by ONE Championship which will take place at the famous Lumpinee stadium in Bangkok, aimed at further developing and showcasing combat sports in Thailand. The opportunity for GAMMA athletes is part of the ongoing strategic partnership that the organisation has with ONE Championship.
The four coveted spots, two male and two female for MMA and Striking MMA, were won by Sandra Succar from Lebanon in the 65.8kg category, Sumit Bhyan from India in the 70.3kg category, Farida Abdueva from Kyrgyzstan in the 52.2kg striking MMA category and Almaz Sarsembekov from Kazakhstan in the 61.2kg striking MMA category. The athletes were judged by a panel of three impartial GAMMA representatives on their performances in the ring as well as their overall competitive attitude throughout the Championships.
Having won bronze at the 2019 World Championships and then gold at the 2021 Worlds in the -61.2kg category, Sandra Succar stepped up a weight category at the 2022 Asian-Pacific Championships and became GAMMA’s first-ever two division champion when she won the continental title. Earlier this year she received a presidential honour for her contribution to sports in Lebanon.
Sumit Bhyan won silver at the 2019 World Championships and 2021 Asian Championships. Last year in Kyrgyzstan, Sumit beat two favourites from Kazakhstan in impressive fashion on the way to the finals but came up short in his final bout. This time, his gold medal winning performance at the 2022 Asian-Pacific Championships highlighted his great determination and his never-give-up attitude.
Farida Abdueva was the only double gold medallist of the Championships, winning both the 52.2kg MMA and Striking MMA divisions. At only 18 years old, Farida certainly made an impression on her opponents showing great composure and solid technique. She will be one to watch in the future.
Almaz Sarsembekov won the bronze medal at the 2021 GAMMA Asian Championships. This time around he had impressive victories en route to the final and caused a major upset in winning the title when he beat his compatriot GAMMA 2021 World 61.2kg Striking MMA Champion Sairan Sagyndykov.
Speaking about the opportunity for these athletes GAMMA President Alexander Engelhardt said, “as an International Federation one of our missions is to provide real pathways for athletes to transition from our championships to the professional promotions for those that want to. We have already seen the value and success of developing these partnerships in recent months and these four athletes are great ambassadors for our sport and now it is up to them to make the most of this opportunity.”
For more information, visit GAMMA at www.gamma-sport.org.
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