Firsthand: 17-year-old took up boxing despite having bone conditions

“There are many times where I felt like giving up but chose not to because it’s my passion.” By Nur Anisyah, Crystal Tan, Rachel Tan

After leaving his fight club, Nick Chua continued his path of boxing by training with his private coach to maintain his health and stamina. (PHOTO: Nick Chua) Following the diagnosis of a bone condition that affected the mobility in his legs, Nick abandoned his love for martial arts due to concerns about worsening his condition. After his long break from the martial arts scene, Nick decided not to let his condition get in the way of his passion.

Nick Chua, 17, a first-year Mass Communication student at Republic Polytechnic, was introduced to the martial arts scene at the young age of six. Progressing into his teen years, his passion grew as he practiced Taekwondo for eight years.

In June 2022, the former black belt holder was hit with the news that he was suffering from Ankylosing Spondylitis, the doctor advised Nick that it was best to stay away from physical activities, prompting him to pause all martial arts.

Nick won his first medal after winning a taekwondo match at the age of six. (PHOTO: Nick Chua) WHAT IS ANKYLOSING SPONDYLITIS?

Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS), is a medical condition that mainly affects the spine. This condition causes chronic inflammation that can cause severe pain and stiffness to those who are suffering from it. AS can also affect one’s shoulders, hips, and other joints, as well as the heart, and eyes.

In the beginning, Nick thought that his medical condition was minor as it initially did not affect his day-to-day life. The pain was inconsistent, feeling it every now and then, making him think nothing of it. Not long after, the inflammation started worsening, taking a toll on his physical health. Leading to him getting a medical test to get a diagnosis.

The inflammation was so severe that it affected Nick’s ability to walk. Due to this, he had to take anti-inflammation pills as well as muscle-relaxing painkillers to ease the pain.

“I could not even stand on both legs because they hurt when I put weight on it.”

Things started looking better after he started building up his muscles and doing stretches. Despite that, he is still unable to over exert himself with strenuous exercises.

AS is a condition common amongst men. Generally, AS affects one per 500 to 1000 people, who are mainly in their teens and 20s.

World-class boxer Mike Lee is a prime example of someone who was able to overcome his condition and rise to the top of the boxing field. Similar to Nick, Lee suffered years of pain without knowing the root cause of it. AS even prevented Lee from competing several times in the past.

TAKING A BREAK

Being diagnosed with AS led to Nick taking a break from the martial arts scene. Years of martial arts went down the drain as if he had never practiced it before.

Nick thought that this was the end of his journey. Every time he moved his leg, the pain would shoot through his entire body unbearably. He thought that giving up on martial arts would be better than putting himself through even more pain. With a heavy heart, he decided to put a stop to his martial arts journey for a while.

Staying away from the martial arts scene was not easy, trading away his black belt for books, he shifted his time and focus to studying for the Singapore-Cambridge GCE O-Level. Having so much time on his hands was something different; something he was not used to.

After investing so many years of his youth into martial arts, this break hit him hard. Instead of a jam-packed schedule of juggling between school and his outside curriculums, he had plenty of free time which he spent studying, and focusing on hobbies like fishing, and playing the piano.

It was not until he developed an interest in boxing after coming across a video on social media, that he discovered that boxing was a sport his body could handle. He found hope again for his love for martial arts.

SHIFT IN PASSION

Nick’s passion for boxing kicked off in January this year, after his break from the martial arts scene. The then secondary school graduate realised he did not want his medical condition to stop him from his passion for martial arts.

Despite his condition preventing him from lifting his legs up with ease, Nick thought about the various forms of martial arts and was set on pursuing boxing as his next step.

“I discovered martial arts like muay thai and kickboxing and have a keen interest in it but because of my medical condition, I couldn’t do it since I’m unable to lift my leg up without being in pain, so, I decided to pursue the next best thing in my opinion, which was boxing,” said Nick who now pursues boxing as his hobby.

When asked what motivated him to do boxing, Nick stated that it was simply due to him liking this form of martial arts and his determination to not let his medical condition stop him from pursuing what he likes.

Taking an interest in boxing, Nick joined a fighting gym, ONYX MMA, on Jan 6, where he attended boxing classes in hopes of strengthening his boxing skills.

Nick Chua’s first time participating in a competition was during the 2023 ONYX Fight Night. (SOURCE: Nick Chua) With his fiery passion for boxing and two months of training with the gym, Nick partook in ONYX Fight Night, an in-house event where participants would fight for a medal, which then Nick won.

Irene Chua, 51, working as a freelancer, added that her son was determined to compete in the event as he worked towards losing weight so as to qualify for his fight category.

“Nick had to lose some weight to fit into the fight category against the opponent within two weeks. He had determination and a strong mindset to do it. In the end, he won the fight.”

With the help of his fight club, Nick Chua (in red) harnessed his boxing skills and won the yearly ONYX Fight Night 2023 after an intense and gruelling match. (PHOTO: Nick Chua)

CHALLENGES FACED

In spite of doing what he loved, boxing with a medical condition that affected his mobility was no easy task.

The condition took a toll on Nick physically as he struggled to walk, making it difficult to manoeuvre around the fighting ring with footwork. Nick added that he struggles to stand on both legs as it would hurt when he puts weight on them.

“He needs to take anti-inflammation pills if it is too painful, and muscle relax pain killers to ease the pain. He can't run or walk too much or do strenuous exercises,” said Mrs Chua as she shared about Nick’s struggles with his medical condition that affects his ability to do physical activities.

Beyond the physical challenges Nick faced, boxing with his condition affected his mental health as often times, he would feel like giving up on boxing as the struggles were sometimes too hard to handle.

However, his passion for boxing prevailed as he was set on not letting his condition take over his like to do.

“There were many times when I felt like giving up but chose not to as boxing is my passion.”

Nick added that he did not want his condition to take away the joy he feels when boxing, sharing that it provides him with a sense of thrill and adrenaline.

THE NEXT PHASE

After months of training, Nick made the decision to momentarily halt his boxing activities again as advised by his parents so he could focus more on his academics instead as he was just entering polytechnic earlier this year. Due to this, he officially left the fighting gym, ONYX MMA as of March this year.

Now that he has more free time before school starts, he focuses on improving his health and medical condition. Nick felt that he should not give up on his hard work of working out and the momentum abruptly during this time, hence he continues to regularly go to the gym to build up his arm muscles and footwork.

After a while, Nick still misses the adrenaline of boxing and the atmosphere of the boxing ring. When asked if he would ever return to the boxing gym, he states: “I still train with my friends I made at the gym (by) ourselves. Currently, my boxing friends and I have a personal boxing coach that coaches us.”

Nick Chua (middle) with his fight club friends taken on his last day in the fight club.

(PHOTO: Nick Chua) Juggling studies and boxing is not easy, but with the support Nick has by his side, he chooses to never give up this passion.

EPILOGUE

Despite all odds, Nick will never stop boxing anytime soon. Nothing can drive him to give up his strong passion and love for the sport – not even his medical condition. Not only his parents but his friends admired him for being persevering and determined during his hard times as they have witnessed his hardships during matches and training.

Nick’s current medical status is stable as he continues his journey in boxing albeit not actively training for any competitions. He wants to inspire other young teens who are suffering from the same medical conditions as him to never give up your passion.

Although Nick shared that he had no regrets taking a break from the Martial Arts scene after being diagnosed with his medical condition, he was glad that he resumed his passion. He wouldn’t trade his love for boxing for anything else even if it meant he had to deal with his medical condition.

Nick shared that he hopes his story shows that with great support, motivation and a strong will, you are able to achieve anything.