An aspiring lawyer came back from the brink of defeat to win gold for England at the Karate World Championships.
University of Worcester Law student Paulina (Lina) Makazlieva took on competitors from around the world at the International Combat Organisation tournament in France. On the verge of losing the contest, Lina said she found a way to win, taking gold in the kumite (sparring) category. She won a further gold and silver medal in kata – a performative type of karate.
“I’ve worked hard for this opportunity and wanted to make sure that I did well and took advantage of it,” said the 19-year-old, from Kidderminster, who is in the second year of her studies at Worcester. “I wanted to come home with at least one medal, but this exceeded my expectations.”
Alongside her studies, Lina is doing legal training at SM Lawson Solicitors in Kidderminster. She balances this with training at Young Gloves Karate Club, spending up to five days a week training or in the gym.
Speaking about the gold-medal match, Lina said she had doubted herself when faced with her opponent.
“Inside I wanted to quit, I felt really scared,” she said. “But then I just went back to the words that my dad used to say, which is if you’re going to start something, do it to the end. And my coach used to say if you’re going to lose, don’t lose by fear, lose by actually doing the match. So that gave me motivation.”
Despite her determination to see it through, Lina found herself 4-0 down, with the winner the first to reach five points.
“I was losing 4-0 and then I got hurt and I couldn’t even get back up, but I just had to because I was thinking about everybody and my hard work,” she said.
“My coach was telling me to calm down,” she added. “So I tried to listen to him and then I talked to my teammate for 10 seconds and they gave me tips. I started to get a point or two and started to learn and observe her. I won 5-4 and it felt like it was literally straight out of a movie.”
“I felt really good when I realised I’d done it,” she added. “And I just knew that it was from all my hard work and all the training that I put in and I just felt very proud. My dad always used to say to always believe in myself and never give up and that’s what I did.”
In kata, each competitor showcases their technique in a sequence of moves that are ranked by judges. Lina spent three months perfecting her minute-long routine, winning her two further medals.
Lina credits much of her drive to succeed to advice from her late father, who died three years ago.
“I think he would have been very proud of his daughter because he’s always raised me to be a fighter and to have the soul of a fighter and be independent,” she said.
A brown belt in karate, Lina first took up the sport as a hobby six years ago and has been competing for four years. She hopes to pursue a career in civil and corporate law while continuing to compete internationally and that karate might be included in the 2032 Olympic Games, allowing her to fulfil her dream of one day becoming an Olympian.