Fazlin finds her peace on karate mat
Learning more about yourself, building self-esteem and confidence by challenging yourself makes karate an ideal sport for any woman.
POLOKWANE – Learning more about yourself, building self-esteem and confidence by challenging yourself makes karate an ideal sport for any woman.
Fazlin Jardien is a 35-year-old woman who says karate is the ideal tool for women to push themselves beyond their limits and encourage them to broaden their horizons.
She adds taking part in karate has taught her a lot about herself and helped her to regain her self-confidence.
“I was overweight and began doing karate in a bid to become fit and lose weight. I was thoroughly impressed with the results and aside from helping me to keep fit and healthy, karate is an ideal sport for me as I want to learn self-defence. I am employed as a Branch Supervisor which requires me to travel alone a lot across Limpopo, Gauteng and Mpumalanga so safety is my first priority. I felt I needed to learn how to protect and defend myself and in January 2015 I decided to join a self-defence class but there were no classes in the city, and that is how my karate journey started. Because I was overweight I tended to be introverted but I wanted to change it so I could change and go out to conquer the world. It didn’t take long to realise that I found my niche in karate and I took on every challenge with enthusiasm.”
Fazlin says sensei Annatjie de Jager, a karate coach in the city, became not only her mentor but her best friend as well. She bills her as the person who helped her become motivated to achieve her karate goals. She competed for the first time in 2015 in Pretoria where she won a silver medal for her kata performance followed by a double gold later the year for her kunite performance at the Sun City All Styles Challenge.
She says even after suffering a knee injury last year did not deter her from her passion and goals and she kept winning the karate competitions she took part in.
“I would recommend karate to anyone who has ever been afraid of walking alone on the street, afraid of being mugged, raped or killed. Anyone who fears for their family or friends’ lives. It is essential and I feel it would be great if it was taught in schools as it teaches you discipline as well as helping you stay fit,” she said.
Fazlin encourages all women to strive to challenge themselves to do something different in life, to learn a new skill. “Women’s Day for me is a celebration of our ancestors’ legacy of perseverance, hard work and success, and it motivates me to know that through teaching kids, we encourage and live that legacy.”
