"I did not know anything about this sport and now I am already a champion"

BarcelonaThe life of Muhamed Conteh changed completely the first day he stepped into the Top King Training Center gym in Malgrat de Mar. His uncle advised him to practice sports and thought about martial arts. And Muha, who knew nothing at all about Muay Thai, found a path. Now he is the amateur champion of Catalonia and the champion of the Spanish Cup of this sport born in Thailand. And he has been competing for just one year. A year in which he has not yet lost a single fight.

Sitting in a café, no one would say that Muha is a fearsome fighter. "I saw right away that he was special. When he fights, he is lethal. He has a coordination and an intuition that make him a fearsome rival," says his coach, Álex Baena. Muha listens to him. He is a quiet boy who moves with slow movements. His smile shines, and he is one of those who looks directly into your eyes and conveys calm. It is as if he lived two lives. One outside and another inside the ring where he combats. When he fights, his movements are lethal and his gaze is serious. "It often happens in martial arts that many of the best fighters are very calm and relaxed people," Baena points out. Muha was born in Gambia. He played soccer in the streets without knowing very well what would become of his life in an area where there is little work. His father and his uncle left for Europe to look for a new life. They found it in Malgrat de Mar. And when Muha was 14 years old, they took him with them. It was November 2020. "I had never traveled. I spoke English, Mandinka, and Soninke, but when I arrived in Malgrat, I didn't know how to communicate with people," he admits. His uncle understood that he needed to find a space to socialize, meet people outside the family, and put down roots. And he thought of Muay Thai, a martial art born in Thailand that he had already learned about in the Maresme.

"I didn't know what Muay Thai was. I had no idea. It doesn't exist in The Gambia. But I fell in love with it immediately. I started discovering that it was much more than a martial art. It teaches me discipline and respect and helps me to improve every day," admits Muha, who at 19 has become the great promise of this martial art in Catalonia. In this sport, you fight with your elbows, knees, and every part you can use to grab your opponent. A spectacular martial art, with a ceremonial touch. "People might think it is a violent sport, but it provides many positive things. There is a philosophy behind it, of respect," adds Muha, who dreams of one day being able to go and compete in Thailand, the country where it all began and where arenas are filled.

A role model for young people

"Sports allow many young people to integrate, to make their own values that serve you in life. It is very valuable to see how young people who arrive without being able to communicate become a role model to follow. It changes their lives for the better," argues Baena. At only 16 years old, and through the AFE Malgrat association, Muha started training at the Top King Training Center, where he stood out very quickly. "He trains three hours a day. For now, we are in no hurry with him. If he continues like this, he will end up competing at an international level, but it is very hard to be a professional here. Although he has options," says Baena, who remembers the first training sessions with Muha: "I saw clearly that he is designed to fight. It is incredible how you teach him a trick and he makes it his own immediately," he comments.

For now, Muha has had eight top-level fights and has won them all. And five, by KO. "It is very difficult to win by KO, since it is a sport of rounds that are short and where protection is worn. At the Spanish Cup that was held in La Nucia, in the final the opponent was a professional. We are talking about that level," explains Baena. The trip to La Nucia, in the Marina Baixa, was the first one he had made outside of Malgrat. "Sport is allowing me to leave the town, meet people... Now I am doing interviews, it is very exciting," admits Muha. A young man who has found a path. So he has decided that his little brother, 9 years old, should also practice Muay Thai. The little one is already training with Alex Baena, who has trained different generations of Muay Thai champions, many of them young people of migrant origin who find in his gym a space where they can learn values, meet people, and flee from bad company.

And this weekend, Muha will experience the most special event of his career, because he will compete at home, in front of his family and friends. The Germans Margall pavilion will bring together more than 600 athletes who will compete in three different disciplines, both Muay Thai and kickboxing. And all the proceeds will go to AFE Malgrat, the association that promotes the integration of young people at risk of exclusion through which Muha has passed. The organizers expect more than 1,500 spectators to see athletes from different countries and more than 44 clubs. And, at the center of it all, Muha. "I am living incredible things. I hope my father doesn't suffer too much," he says laughingly.