No stopping this South Shields kickboxer as he takes European championship title

Adam Jensen of Horsley Hill won all five rounds against his French opponent Enzo Barcos at the ICO European Super Lightweight Kickboxing title in Surrey on Friday, September 27.

It’s the biggest achievement to date for the 22-year-old, who has trained with the Kuei-Ling Kickboxing Academy in South Shields since the age of eight.

Adam, who had his first fight aged 10 and is a black belt in kickboxing has competed all over the UK against some world-class opponents.

As a cadet (16 to 18-year-old) he took home the ICO World Kickboxing title and has now stepped it up a level as takes on more experienced fighters as an adult.

“This is his biggest achievement to date, particularly fighting away from home,” said coach Steve East.

“It’s a title way beyond his years in kickboxing.

“His contestant was one of the best, but Adam totally dominated the five rounds of fast paced kickboxing, scoring with some great techniques on the way.”

Steve continued: “He trained really hard for it over the summer months and this is the reward.”

Adam, a part-time student who also works in transport planning for Jacobs Engineering in Newcastle, trained every morning and night for eight weeks in the lead up to the fight.

He now leads classes for the younger boxers at the club, training 16-18-year-olds who hope to follow in his footsteps.

“It’s great for the club, Adam is an excellent example of starting young and the rewards you can get for training,” added Steve.

“We’ve got to see what comes along next, but the world is his oyster.”

Adam commented: “This is one of the biggest things I have won as an adult fighter. You always hope you will compete in something like this.

"I put a lot of work in, but it was definitely worth it. The feeling you get when you’re fighting always makes it worthwhile, but it’s even better when you can win something like this.”