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The following article about former Bao Trieu student Mieke Hink --now living & fighting in the UK-- appeared in Vol. 15 No. 2, page 60- 61 by Curtis Page |
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| The British Sport Martial Arts Premiership | ||
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Mieke Hink talks to Curtis Page Sport Martial Arts has many nice people but they don't come much nicer than Mieke Hink. Quiet and demure this six foot beauty can unassumingly blend into any competition. Mieke has a deep sense of fairness, which makes her one of the best women referees in the country. Renowned for her axe and thunderous hook kicks she electrified the crowd last year on the way to winning The US Open World Championships. It was a joy for me to watch her destroy opponent after opponent with these same techniques, and to go on to take the grand championship's prize.Mieke was born in a small village near Groningen, in the north of Holland. Talking about her family she says, "Mum, dad, brother and sister still live there and I love going back to visit them and my 'old' friends about twice a year." When Mieke was thirteen, she started training Kung Fu / Wushu with the great Earl Blijd and his influence remains as strong as ever on her and on her views on martial arts. "My aunt introduced me to this and it appealed to me straight away, not only because of the sport itself, but also because of the great atmosphere. At nineteen, a year after I finished my A-levels, I decided to take a year out before going to university, to make up my mind what I wanted to do with my life and to, hopefully, get some direction. Brian Beck invited me to come and train at his freestyle Karate academy in Sheffield, which I did for the next year. I got exactly what I wanted, training six days a week and competing nearly every weekend. It was a great year and an eye opener after competing in Holland, as the Dutch circuit is quite small." Mieke returned to Holland but decided to come back to the UK and is now resident here. Living in Nottingham she now trains and occasionally teaches with the formidable Owen King at his Nottingham Schools of Blackbelts. Owen has been another positive influence on her life and his positive support, motivation and knowledgeable teaching style is helping her achieve new heights. In the daytime Mieke is call centre manager for an insurance company. She says, "I enjoy it and it pays the bills. (Enough about that)." She talks affectionately about and has great respect for her first Sifu/instructor, Earl Blijd. "Not only because he was the one who taught me my beloved axe kick and hook kick, but mainly because he taught me patience and determination to keep going, no matter what. Most people would not have made it through the things that Earl went through as a result of a near fatal car crash. Imagine martial arts being your life, then having an accident which leaves you in a coma for a week, having a huge amount of reconstructive operations all over your body, learning to walk all over again, rehabilitating, knowing it will take forever to be able to do martial arts to the level you used to... I respect that determination and I think about it when things don't go as quickly as I want them to. "At the moment, and for as long as I'll be training, my main goals in martial arts are to keep developing myself and to be the best I can possible be. I know I am no where near reaching my full potential yet, but I'm working on it. " She continues, "In the long term, I hope to be able to give something back to martial artists, especially to women fighters. There has always been a huge gap between the standards of male and female top fighters all over the world (I am talking about points fighting). I would like to get away from the idea that girls don't have to train as hard as guys, just because they're girls. Correct me if I'm wrong, but in theory, especially in point fighting, when speed is so much more important than power, I feel there is no need for the big difference in standards between men and women. If somehow we could raise those standards and make women fighting as exciting to watch as men fighting, it would get equal respect, equal prize money and hopefully it will attract more women to the sport. (Which I�m sure is of interest to guys too.)" Mieke has a vision for martial arts, to see it grow and get the recognition it deserves. You can see in her depth of feeling the art should not be compromised. Earl Blijd's great shadow still remains over her after all these years which will see this warrior Queen continue to thrill the crowds worldwide as she continues her winning ways, being true to herself and to the art. |
| Team Profile | ||
| Name: | Mieke Hink | |
| Age: | 23 years | |
| Height: | 1.82 (6 ft) | |
| Weight: | 78 kg | |
| Status: | single | |
| Residence: | Nottingham | |
| Style: | Freestyle | |
| Grade: | 1st Degree Black Belt | |
| Years training: | 10 years | |
| Instructor: | Owen King | |
| Present Club: | Nottingham School of Blackbelts | |
| Most Valued Title: | US Open Grand Champion | |
| Other Styles Studied: | Wushu | |
| Likes: | Honesty, big competitions and the buzz they give | |
| Dislikes: | False people, baked beans | |
| Hobbies: | Listening to music, socialising | |
| Favourite Food: | Too many things, but not baked beans | |
| Favourite Martial Artist: | Mohammed Ali | |
| Ambition: | To get internationally recognised and be the best I can be | |
| Honours & Achievements | ||
| 1996 | WKA World 2nd | |
| 1996 | WUMA World 1st | |
| 1998-2001 | EMA Grand Champion | |
| 1998-2001 | Combat World Championship 1st and Grand Champion | |
| 1998 | WAKO World Cup 1st | |
| 1998 | Austrian Open 1st | |
| 1998 | WUMA World 1st Open Weight | |
| 2000 | WAKO Nationals 1st | |
| 2001 | US Open 1st + Grand Champion | |
| 2001 | WKA Nationals 1st | |
| 2002 | Irish Open 1st | |
| 2002 | WKA Nationals 1st | |
| 2002 | WAKO Nationals 1st | |
| Plus about 12 Dutch national titles, all for fighting with various associations. | ||