By YASEMIN TALAT
Hoppers Crossing professional fighter Sylvia Scharper competed in Perth over the weekend in the hope of becoming the National Muay Thai Junior Bantamweight Champion.
Sylvia, who is a current and two-time Victorian World Muay Thai Council champion fought at the Epic 9 Muay Thai Super show for the inaugural WMC 52.19kg title.
The step-mum of two juggles family life with a full time job, university studies and an intensive training schedule.
Sylvia was not always a fighter.
She was 23 when she decided she wanted to start doing Muay Thai.
“I came to it quite late and initially I just did it for a bit of fun because I remembered enjoying it as a child,” she said.
Sylvia said she was never really interested in sports but learnt martial arts in the backyard from a friend when she was younger.
Within a couple of years of training Sylvia decided she wanted to take things to the next level so she headed to Thailand to take part in her first professional fight.
And she won.
“I really really enjoyed it and I had a really good time, I was very happy to win and that started my desire to get better and better,” she said.
Apart from Muay Thai she also started boxing making her pro boxing debut two years ago.
“There’s never going to be a time where you stop learning and that’s what’s addictive about it,” Sylvia said.
“This is something that I’ve fallen in love with.”
Sylvia dedicates six days a week to training and follows a strict meal plan in preparation for her fights.
“When I fight there’s no malice in me, it’s like playing a game of chess, you fight to outsmart your opponent and although it’s a highly physically sport it’s highly mental too.”
