Saturday, November 8, 2014

From Taekwondo, Judo, Aikido to bodybuilding

To Vacqur, bodybuilding seems to be a really good ground for him.

The ex-junior judoka slugging it out during a state-level MMA preliminary round in Kuching.

FORMER Malaysia Games judoka Van Vacqur Cotter is now focusing on another arena far different from what he has been training in since he was 15.

So far, things have been turning out quite well for the 22-year-old.

“Many think it’s rather strange for me to get involved in bodybuilding, which seems to be a whole world apart from judo.

“At least if I joined karate or other forms of martial arts, there would have been some connection,” he told thesundaypost during a weightlifting session at MSNS Gym Kuching recently.

Still, his venture into bodybuilding has not been fruitless, finishing fourth at this year’s Mr Fitness Boulveard Kuching and being listed among the top 10 best fitness contestants at the recent Mr Iron Hardcore Sarawak Open.

Standing at 174cm, Vacqur’s lean muscular frame did suit his preference for the fitness category of bodybuilding – also known as aesthetics.

“As much as I’d like to enter bodybuilding competitions, I have trouble bulking up as I have super-fast metabolism. To many, this is a great problem to have, but not so for me,” he laughed.

On his move to a sport other than judo, Vacqur said bodybuilding was not the first.

“After I reached 21, I was automatically no longer eligible for Malaysia Games. That was when I embarked onto new sports. I entered mixed martial arts (MMA) during a state-level challenge earlier this year and got selected for the national try-outs which sadly, I had to forego due to work commitment.

“Still, bodybuilding seems to be a really good ground for me as just like judo, it requires discipline and hard work,” he said.

Vacqur says as much as he wants to enter bodybuilding competitions, he has trouble bulking up due to his super-fast metabolism.

The 22-year-old in action at the recent Mr Iron Hardcore Sarawak Open, where he finished among the best 10 in the Fitness category.

How it started

Ironically, it was judo that got him interested in bodybuilding in the first place.

“I watched this YouTube clip showing a judo master, Sensei Taihei Ori – who is in his 70s – performing 3,000 push-ups every day.

“I was immediately inspired. I told myself: ‘If he could do it, so could I’. So I followed that routine, but ended up managing only 800 reps (laughed).

“Still, I wasn’t discouraged.

“Now, I make it a point to do 300 push-ups every day to maintain my stamina. To me, Sensei Ori’s message on that video was not all about strength; rather he also wanted to stress on the importance of discipline, spirit of competitiveness and self-determination in achieving one’s target,” said Vacqur, who speaks fluent Mandarin.

Vacqur (second left) with his Malaysia Games team-mates after training in this file pic.

Self-defence streak

Apart from judo and bodybuilding, this Bidayuh lad from Kampung Sagah has begun to explore aikido.

“You can say that some of the influences come from watching Steven Seagal (Hollywood action movie icon) in the movies,” he quipped. “Truth is, I have a penchant for martial arts – I took up taekwondo when I was still in primary school.”

Currently, Vacqur follows his cousin, Sullivan Cotter, 41, who is a sensei at Aikishuren Dojo Kuching and his former teacher Andrese Ridu, who teaches in SMK Bau.

“Interestingly, judo and aikido are not much different from one another – both stress on discipline and hard work. Perhaps judo is slightly more competitive, while aikido focuses more on self-defence,” he said.

Nevertheless with all the different hats that he’s wearing, Vacqur said he would never, ever forget judo.

“Now that I have become a senior judoka, my all-time desire to enrol in the Kodokan Centre of Excellence is still burning.

“I want to learn more from the Japanese masters, like Sensei Kawamoto who coached Olympics judo players. I met him during a judo workshop at Chung Hua Middle School No 1 several years ago. That would be awesome.

“Nonetheless, to reach there, I know that I must work hard,” he added.



Read more: http://www.theborneopost.com/2014/11/09/from-throwing-body-to-building-body/#ixzz3IWoPPdMq