Bordeaux wrestler wins silver in Abu Dabhi
Skyla Aoun said that she struggled a lot with her self-confidence and jiu-jitsu helped her to boost her confidence; it made her feel she can conquer a lot more in life.
The 12-year-old Bordeaux resident Skyla Aoun flew the South African flag high as she scooped a silver medal at the 2023 Youth World Jiu-Jitsu Championships held in Abu Dabhi.
She competed and made the podium under the junior yellow 57kg.
The multiple-provincial and national wrestling champion said that she still feels overwhelmed. “I thought to myself can this be true? It’s the best feeling to know I achieved to be second in the whole world. I now know what ’’m capable off. I feel like nothing can stop me now.”
The Youth World Jiu-Jitsu Championships had close to 7 000 competitors from over 127 countries.
Aon explained that South-Africa is still growing with jiu-jitsu compared to other countries. However, she feels honoured to bring South-Africa’s name to the championships and to be second as a South-African means a lot to her.
“The week before, I got sick and I still felt a bit sick at the tournament. But I pushed myself to shake it off. As everyone knows bad thoughts can also play a role in challenges. But as always I kept my mind strong and set on my goal.”
Growing up seeing his older brother compete at world tournaments at a young age was all the inspiration Skyla needed to get into the sport. “His confidence in himself also amazed me. So I decided that I wanted to achieve the same goals.
“My goal now is to win gold. I will keep on working for that and also inspire more children.”
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