ONE athlete Radeem Rahman gains inspiration with birth of daughter
As we watch gladiators showcase their talents in the cage, we sometimes forget that outside of it, they lead normal lives.
On March 1, ONE Championship athlete Radeem Rahman shared a milestone that reminded us of this.
A week after teasing that he is in the delivery suite of KKH Women’s and Children’s Hospital, The Neue Fit representative and instructor revealed that he has become a father for the first time, welcoming a baby girl into the world.
“Her name is Raihanah Sakhi,” he proudly shared.
“It means jovial and generous.”
Like many cage competitors, Rahman is used to waiting for his moment, but while a normal bout would last about 30 minutes or less from start to finish, waiting for his daughter is a completely different story.
“I was in the labor ward for 18 hours,” he narrated.
“I wanted to have a good rest and kept asking myself ‘am I really going to be a father?’”
Having another human to take care of gives the 31-year-old more responsibilities to fulfill, as he now needs to balance his family and career even more.
“I have to do more things such as changing diapers, giving milk, and putting her to sleep,” he said.
“I also have to adjust my training schedule so that I can assist my wife. For now, I skip training in the day due to medical appointments as she is not even 14 days old yet.”
While training needs to take a bit of a back seat to his parental duties, competition remains a passion for Rahman, and his daughter only added to his fire.
“She gives me motivation to compete so that I could have a story to tell once I am done competing.”
As he looks to the future, the Singaporean athlete is hoping that his daughter would follow his footsteps as a martial artist, as it has given him so much in his life.
“I want her to take up BJJ and be a World Champion. I will be there to guide her. I hope she trains in martial arts to instill discipline in her, and not be glued to smart devices.”
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