SINGAPORE – When mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter Garie Tang discovered that his weight category had been dropped from the Dec 9-20 SEA Games in Thailand, the Singaporean was disappointed.
The omission of the ne-waza no-gi 56kg category – in which he won back-to-back Games silver medals – also ended his bid for a fourth consecutive appearance at the biennial meet.
But the initial setback proved a blessing in disguise, with the 35-year-old rebounding in style by winning gold in the brown-belt master 1 division at the Dec 11-14 World International Brazilian Jiu-jitsu Federation (IBJJF) Jiu-jitsu No-Gi Championship in Las Vegas.
It is Tang’s first title at the annual competition.
Tang, who defeated three opponents to stand atop the podium at the Las Vegas Convention Center on Dec 12, said: “I won’t say that it (not going to the Games) motivated me (to win the No-Gi championship), but I think I look back on it as more of a blessing in disguise.
“If I had qualified for the SEA Games, I would not have been able to travel and go to this competition. And this is something I have been chasing for a while too.”
Triumph had also come against adversity.
Tang said he has been having sleep issues for the last two years, resulting in him often getting between zero and three hours of sleep daily. On a good day, he would get five hours.
He continued to train, work – as the martial arts assistant lead at Trapeze Rec. Club – and compete. He said the issue finally took a toll on his body in September.
While he declined to go into details, Tang said he had “health issues” which forced him to cancel overseas trips and take time off to recover.
“I definitely didn’t feel like competing at all during that period of time,” he said. “I didn’t feel like training too.”
He sat out training for several weeks and also sought professional help for his sleep issues before signing up for the IBJJF competition. To prepare for it, he went for a month-long training camp.
Tang said: “This competition is a once-a-year thing and I told myself, I want to do it again this year and win the title just to prove a point to myself that I can go through tough training again, push myself and compete again after those health issues that I had.
“I wanted to show myself that I still have the fire and the drive.”
His love for the sport has kept the fire burning.
Tang, who was a recipient of the Ultimate Fighting Championship Scholarship in 2019, which saw him go on an all-expenses paid trip to train for four weeks at the UFC Performance Institute in Shanghai, said he is inspired daily by his colleagues and the ju-jitsu fighters that he trains.
“Coaching and helping people to improve at the sport which allows them to feel better about their day is something I take satisfaction from,” he said.
“The community inspires me too. It is not just the students and the younger guys, but even those who are 45 and older, have a full-time job, seeing them get stronger and healthier gives me a good feeling.”
Despite a world title in the trophy cabinet, he is not giving up on his pursuit of that elusive Games gold.
Tang, who had also represented Singapore in wrestling and combat sambo, winning bronze in the latter sport in 2019, hopes that he will get to compete at the 2027 edition in Malaysia or the 2029 Games on home soil.
He said: “I definitely want to do that, get the gold medal. Ju-jitsu is something you can do till you’re much older, so there is no timeframe on when I would stop. As long as I am competing, you want to achieve things.
“It would definitely be nice to really get a gold at the SEA Games.”
Singapore Ju-jitsu Association president Henry Kothagoda praised Tang’s efforts, adding: “He is an excellent athlete (who) is dedicated to jiu-jitsu.
“May his achievement inspire future generations of Singaporean jiu-jitsu athletes to excel at the world stage.”
Mixed martial artsWorld championshipsSEA GamesWrestling