Two athletes from Edinburgh are jetting off to Thailand to compete in an international Muay Thai competition.
The fighters from Endangered MMA in Slateford are just two of six who will represent Scotland in the Amazing Muay Thai Championships, held at the famous Lumpinee Boxing Stadium Bangkok in February.
The event will see over 600 participants from around 60 countries put their fighting skills to the test.
Emma Davison and Angelica Siracusa work out at the martial arts gym in Edinburgh almost every day – but they have kicked their training up a notch ahead of the tournament in Bangkok in just a few weeks time.
They are delighted to be among the small group heading to Thailand to represent Scotland.
Emma told STV News: “It shows how much we learn here and how much hard work we put in from this gym specifically.
“We deserve to be half of the team representing Scotland. It’s one of the hardest things, choosing to be a fighter.
“I love it but you have the dieting and training is hard. That on top of a full-time job is obviously very difficult.
“But I’m feeling confident about it. It’s going to be exciting.”
The club has a strong focus on children in the community, giving youngsters the opportunity to train when they otherwise might not be able to.
The pair hope their success will inspire other young female fighters to go for gold.
Angelica said: “It is very male dominated and we are starting to see more women starting to fight and get into this game and also for the little girls. I think they look up to us a lot.
“It’s been hard; lots of running and weightlifting. Hitting the bag and pads. We’ve had lots of support here.
“I’m very excited to get there and share the experience with all the other fighters.”
Endangered MMA was set up five years ago and welcomes those at any level of martial arts.
Trainer Pawel Zakrzewski also managed to get three of his pupils through to the World Thai Boxing Championships in Bangkok at the end of this month.
He said: “It’s a small team, originally myself and now I’ve got help from some other trainers and today.
“We have a team of six that competes regularly and we have a lot of amateur fighters. But our biggest division is the kids.
“You can see the kids really look up to the ones going abroad and they show great potential as well.”
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