has dedicated his life to martial arts – 🐲but also to helping the next generation.
The Danish-Moroccan star – who will make his promotional debut against fo💖rmer ONE Word Title challenger at in Bangkok – has bl🌳ended his impressive Muay Thai career with social work that aids the youth of Copenhagen.
It’s not easy to juggle 🥂two demanding roles in life, but Assouik has thrived because of his dedication to both of his goals.
Before the reigning WMC Muay Thai World Champion fights in U.S. primetim🔯e on Friday, October 4, find out how he’s combined his biggest passions to make an impact.
‘You Had To Have Your Hands Up’
Assouik was born and raise൲d in the Nordvest ar🌄ea of Copenhagen, Denmark, with his parents and two sisters.
Although it was one of the more depri𝔍v🧸ed areas of the city back then, the 29-year-old enjoyed a happy childhood with a loving family.
Still, it was easy to fall on the wrong side of the tracks – which Assouik admits he did at times – and he had people aroun𝔍d him who went in all directions.
He told :
“My childhood had a lot of action. You had to have you🧔r hand෴s up.
“I had a lot of friends. ಌSome people became criminals🌳, some took the school way, and some took the sport way.”
Finding The Right Path
In his early teens,🐬 it looked like Assouik could have taken the wrong road, as he found himself in trouble on the streets. However, he was always sporty, and that was his saving grace✱.
His dad provided the initial push toward martial arts, and he trained in taekwondo for a time, but when he found Muay Thai during a stint in Morocco, he knew♌ it was the right place for all of his energy:
“My father supported me from day one.🔴 He wanted m🥂e to be a fighter in Muay Thai. He put me in taekwondo training for three-and-a-half years.
“I wanted to play football (soccer}, but he wasn’t happy because he likꦬed combat sports. I tried football and handball, but at around 15, I went all in with Muay Thai. I was in Morocco. I started there.
“After I started Muay Thai, I said, ‘This is awesom🎃e.’ I wanted to become a champi𓆏on. I went all in.”
Combining His Greatest Passions
In the beginning, it was tough to strike a balance between Muay 🐭Thai and 💦the rest of his life.
After meeting his first wife and getting married, Assouik worked various jobs to pay the bills alo😼ngside his fights, but he didn’t feel fulfilled working in offices or supermarkets.
So,ꦡ with a full-time gig, a baby on the way, and World Title fights lined up, he enrolled in university to study social work with the hope of ﷽supporting the local youth in his area.
Ass♛ouik remembers how hard it was to deal with all of his obligations – but he never faltered:
“I think the hardest time was in 2017. In that period, I worked in a company for 40 hours a week, and my ex-wife was pregnant. It was a hard time. My son came 10 days before I had a fight for the ISKA World Championship. I had to go to school and work to pay the bills, I had a newborn baby🃏, and I h🉐ad a big fight against a Spanish fighter.
“It was really tough. It was hard for me, b♈ut I didn’t give u🐎p. I told myself I wanted to do it. I won and became an ISKA World Champion.
“That 🔯was hard, but it was really good because I continued and followed my heart.”
These days, Assouik runs his own gym and his own company that uses his experiences in life and his acco🦩lades in martial arts to help influence young people.
It doesn’t leave much time for anything else, but when he’s not tr꧃aining for fights, he is teaming up with the youth to win their own battles.
He said:
“I have a gym in Denmark, and I have a company called Komeback. Its name comes from what happened in one 💟of my fights where I was knocked down in the first round, but I stood up and kept pressing forward and won.
“I have collaborations with the [Danish] government to help children through social work. I’m one of the owners, and when I’m home in Denmark, I work with the young guys to show them a good way in life, inspire them, and warn them against taking the easy wa༒y out and against a life of crime.”
‘They Can’t Hide’
Assouik’s competitive succes♍s has not waned 💯because of his other projects.
The Danish-Moroccan striker won National, European, and World Titles as a ju🅷nior before turning professional in 2014.
He then claimed prestigious belts throughout the pro ranks, including the ISKA Kickboxing and WMC Muay🅰 T𒉰hai World Titles against elite-level opposition.
Now unbeaten in almost six years with a nine-fight winning streak and still holding the WMC crown, Assouik is ready to bring his skills to the world’s largest martial arts organization, wh🐭ere he believes he has what it🎉 takes to reach the top.
He is facing a tough first assignment in two-time ONE Lightweight Muay Thai World Titl🐟e challenger Sinsamut, but the Copenhagen native is confident he can prove himself on the biggest stage:
“Sinsamut is a strong guy♔. I think I will handle him well because I’m tough.
I look forward to being part of this organization. I want to face him ⭕and face other big names here. They can’t hide.
