The cage may no longer be her arena, but Malaysia’s women’s mixed martial arts pioneer, Ann “Athena” Osman, remains very much involved in ONE Championship.
In her current role with ONE’s athlete relations department, the 32-year-old Sabah native helps recruit up-and-coming talents for the world’s largest martial arts organization.
This also includes Rich Franklin's ONE Warrior Series.
There are various criteria that potential talents need to fulfill before they can land themselves a coveted spot on the roster.
“We start off by ascertaining what sort of athletes we need. There needs to be a demand,” Ann begins, before adding that the team receives a lot of applications from athletes around the country.
“Some actually come to me and say, ‘I want to be signed!’”
Another important part of the criteria includes skills. Unfortunately, Ann adds, this is where a lot of martial artists fall short.
“I’d say that although the sport has grown from before, MMA as a sport is still at the infancy stage here in Malaysia,” she says. “The general level of talent is still pretty green.”
Also, it is important for potential talents to truly represent the many values that ONE promotes, such as respect and integrity.
“Respect is number one, and definitely sportsmanship,” the pioneer mentions.
Suffice to say, there’s much filtering to be done when considering talents for the organization.
Sometimes, an athlete can be deemed green yet is seen to have potential. In this kind of scenario, Ann and her team will pursue the situation further.
“We’ll then look into their background story and do some digging. We’ll get ourselves into the community, talk to other gyms and coaches, and check out fight events,” she explains.
“Once we’ve ascertained the necessary [information], then I’ll send a report to my supervisor and we’ll see whether there’s a demand to sign that new athlete.”
Citing a recent example of a talent she was involved in signing, Ann excitedly shares why Mohammed “Jordan Boy” Mahmoud ticked all the boxes.
“We’d seen him in the Muay Thai circuit a lot,” she says.
“Once we had the ONE Super Series, we could sign more talent. ‘Jordan Boy’ possessed an impressive pre-ONE record. In his amateur days, he’d already racked up 100-plus fights, and then there’s his pro fight record, which was about 40-plus.
“That’s the kind of talent we want to see. Furthermore, he’s young, good looking, and has what you call that ‘whole package!’”
Speaking of which, Mohammed will return to action on 31 March, as he meets Panicos Yusuf at ONE: A NEW ERA in Tokyo, Japan.
Astro Awani
Mon Feb 25 2019
Ann helps recruit up-and-coming talents for the worlds largest martial arts organization. - Instagram pic/@annosman
Gaza Freedom Flotilla: Latihan antikekerasan prosedur wajib sebelum misi pelayaran bermula
Freedom Flotilla to Gaza: Latihan anti keganasan prosedur wajib sebelum misi pelayaran bermula
Majoriti Ketua Bahagian UMNO sokong afidavit Ahmad Zahid - Ahmad Maslan
Majoriti daripada 191 Ketua Bahagian UMNO menyokong usaha Presidennya, Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi memfailkan afidavit tambahan menyokong petisyen Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.
Tun Hanif selamat dikebumi di sebelah pusara anak
Jenazah Allahyarham Tun Mohammed Hanif Omar selamat dikebumikan di Tanah Perkuburan Islam Bukit Kiara, jam 3.17 petang Sabtu.
JKM tunggu siasatan lengkap polis sebelum ambil tindakan lanjut
Menteri Pembangunan Wanita, Keluarga dan Masyarakat Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri bmengesahkan pihak JKM sudah menemui mangsa buli berusia lapan tahun dan kesemua yang terlibat untuk dirakam percakapan
Kerajaan komited noktahkan kemiskinan tegar di Sabah - PM Anwar
Perdana Menteri percaya hubungan erat kerajaan Persekutuan dan kerajaan Sabah yanmampu memainkan peranan penting dalam merealisasi hasrat tersebut.
Pemergian Tun Hanif kerugian buat negara - Musa Hassan
Pemergian bekas Ketua Polis Negara (KPN) Tun Mohammad Hanif Omar adalah satu kerugian buat negara.
Bekas KPN kelapan Tan Sri Musa Hassan menyifatkan Allahyarham sebagai ketua yang tegas dan amat peduli dengan pegawai bawahan ketika bersama PDRM.
Bekas KPN kelapan Tan Sri Musa Hassan menyifatkan Allahyarham sebagai ketua yang tegas dan amat peduli dengan pegawai bawahan ketika bersama PDRM.
Kompaun RM1.4 juta kesalahan merokok sepanjang Mac
KKM mengeluarkan 5,549 kompaun dengan nilai tawaran berjumlah RM1.4 juta pada Mac.
Jenazah disemadikan di Tanah Perkuburan Islam Bukit Kiara
Jenazah bekas Ketua Polis Negara, Tun Mohammed Hanif Omar akan disemadikan di Tanah Perkuburan Islam Bukit Kiara.
Ahli keluarga, saudara mara dan kepimpinan tertinggi PDRM dilihat sudah berada di tanah perkuburan tersebut.
Perincian lanjut, bersama Ridauddin Daud yang berada di lokasi.
Ahli keluarga, saudara mara dan kepimpinan tertinggi PDRM dilihat sudah berada di tanah perkuburan tersebut.
Perincian lanjut, bersama Ridauddin Daud yang berada di lokasi.
Sultan Pahang zahir ucapan takziah kepada keluarga Tun Hanif Omar
Turut menzahirkan ucapan takziah ialah Tengku Ampuan Pahang Tunku Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah.
Kerajaan Madani komited noktahkan kemiskinan tegar di Sabah - Anwar
Kerajaan Madani komited untuk menoktahkan kemiskinan tegar di Sabah walaupun memahami situasi itu agak rumit untuk diselesaikan, kata Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
Kenali si gadis ayu MMA, Edilah Johany
Mari kita kenali secara ringkas gadis petinju ayu bernama Edilah Johany.
MMA: AJ sudah bersedia untuk beraksi di Jakarta
AJ Lias Mansor kini bersedia untuk memberikan persembahan yang hebat pada acara ONE Championship di Jakarta, Indonesia, 19 Januari ini.
Tip elak berat badan 'plus-plus' ketika musim perayaan - Pesanan ratu MMA
Tip dari ratu MMA negara dari ONE Championship, Ann Osman tentang bagaimana hendak elakkan dari berat badan naik ketika musim perayaan.
Kisah mulanya karier Jordan Boy dalam sukan seni bela diri
Mohammed Mahmoud yang diberi jolokkan nama 'Jordan Boy', telah petinju sensasi terbaharu negara dalam arena seni mempertahkan diri.
Rashid Salleh dilantik Presiden Persatuan MMA Malaysia
Pelakon dan personaliti TV, Rashid Salleh telah dilantik sebagai Presiden Persatuan Seni Mempertahankan Diri Campuran Malaysia (MASMMAA).
MMA: ONE Championship holds open workout ahead of KL fight night
ONE Championship, recently held a Media Open Workout for ONE Championship athletes competing at ONE: PURSUIT OF POWER, set for 13 July at the Axiata Arena in Kuala Lumpur.
Ratu MMA negara Ann Osman umum bersara dari gelanggang
Ratu MMA negara, Ann 'Athena' Osman telah mengumumkan persaraannya selepas lebih empat tahun bergiat dalam sukan itu.
MMA: Saiful Merican kembali beraksi di pentas ONE Championship
Selepas setahun berehat, atlet MMA negara, Saiful Merican kini kembali semula ke pentas ONE Championship bagi menghadapi lawannya dari Filipina, Burn Soriano.
MMA: Ann Osman menang mudah di China
Ann Osman memperoleh kemenangan mudah di kejohanan ONE Championship di China apabila menewaskan lawannya dalam hanya satu pusingan.
MMA bakal warnai Hari Sukan Negara
Keterujaan ini dikongsi para atlet MMA profesional yang memberi sokongon kepada atlet amatur yang bakal beraksi pada 10 Oktober nanti.