“I was a little girl” – ‘Scared’ Smilla Sundell recalls her early days training Muay Thai in Thailand

Reigning and undisputed ONE women’s strawweight Muay Thai world champion, teenage phenom ‘The Hurricane’ Smilla Sundell is a freak of nature.

However, the 18-year-old Swedish superstar wasn’t always the scary Muay Thai monster that she is today. Not long ago, Sundell admits she was just a ‘scared’ little girl trying to learn martial arts for the first time.

Sundell discovered the ‘art of eight limbs’ while on a family vacation in Thailand and began training in the discipline shortly after. A natural talent, Sundell quickly learned the ropes, and before she knew it, she was competing in some of the country’s most prestigious arenas.

With guidance from her role model, former ONE atomweight Muay Thai and kickboxing world champion, and reigning ONE women’s atomweight MMA world champion Stamp Fairtex, Sundell has now become one of the most talented fighters in the world.

Speaking to ONE Championship in a recent interview, Sundell recalled how she stumbled upon Muay Thai and what she felt in those moments.

‘The Hurricane’ said:

“I was scared at first because I was a little girl, you know? But I had my family on the side and my sister trained with me, so it got easier after, like, five minutes. We had private lessons first and then after a few times, we also tried the group classes.”

Today, Smilla Sundell is ONE Championship’s youngest Muay Thai world champion at 18 years of age and an absolute force to be reckoned with in the ring.

---

What’s next for ‘The Hurricane’ Smilla Sundell?

Fresh off a resounding third-round technical knockout victory over current ONE atomweight Muay Thai world champion Allycia Hellen Rodrigues last September, Smilla Sundell is on top of the world.

The 18-year-old made it look easy against a very tough opponent. The two met at ONE Fight Night 14: Stamp vs. Ham on Prime Video in Singapore on September 30th.

Fans in the United States and Canada can catch a replay of Sundell’s fight on-demand with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.