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At 43, Mustapha Chichaoui is a seasoned fighter. He stepped into a ring at age 16 to start his first Shindokai fights, «a Japanese martial art that combines all styles of combat, including boxing, kickboxing, wrestling, judo, mixed martial arts (MMA)», he told Yabiladi. Brazilian ju-jitsu was added to this training regimen.
Recently crowned Shindokai world champion in Milan, Mustapha Chichaoui fought against an opponent that was in a higher weight class. «There were no fighters in my category», he explained.
«The first two rounds you use your bare fists, without targeting the face, and during the second and third rounds you wear English boxing gloves, and you are allowed to hit the face of you opponent and bring him to the ground», Chichaoui said.
The victor wins by knockout or submission. «I choke my opponent neck and they are forced to tap the ground to signal submission, otherwise they may lose consciousness. Once they are on the ground, the rules don’t allow you to strike on the face», the fighting aficionado said.
Football player first
During his teenage years, his sporting career was mostly in the football stadiums rather than on the rings. «Basically, I was a footballer, but as I liked Bruce Lee, and I had friends who practiced high-level boxing, I dropped football for combat sports», he says. It is then that he got coached by Christophe Mendy, a French boxer also from Rouen.
Mustapha Chichaoui bears a rather impressive record : «I started full-contact boxing for ten years with the French team, I was several times champion of France and selected for the world championships in Atlanta, USA. I have also been twice champion of France in traditional kung fu, champion of France in taekwondo, professional boxing and semi-professional Thai boxing. I also had preparation courses in Bangkok, Thailand». In total, his record consists of 98 fights in several fighting styles, with only «and five losses».
Despite this record, the French-Moroccan athlete does not make a living out of his sporting abilities. In the meantime, he is a night mediator and manages the assets of Seine-Habitat in Rouen. «I intervene before the police, in case of problems between tenants, assaults, disaster, fire», he explained. On the weekends, he also manages security at a nightclub in Rouen, however he doubts it will be for long.
The forty-something man hopes to return to Morocco and set up a training camp in Bin El-Ouidane, a rural town in the province of Azilal, where his parents are from.
«Now that I have reached the highest levels, my plan is to put my belt at stake in Morocco against a foreign opponent. I acquired knowledge in France in different disciplines and I want to transmit it there, to train future Moroccan champions who want to fight abroad. I would also like to organize a Shindokai world championship in Morocco by 2020».
In this project, he would be supported by sponsors, but also by his coach and mentor Christophe Mendy, who is planning to return from New York, to train him for three months in preparation for the K-1 world championships, «under the colors of Morocco».
