Emma Bilde Carp, originally from Brussels, is a history and politics student in her second year at the University of Edinburgh. Last semester she competed in Edinburgh Student Fight Night, one of the university’s most popular sporting events, with tickets selling out in under 20 minutes. Sport writer Ella Adamec sat down with Emma to discuss her journey to competing in fight night last semester, her past experience with boxing, and her advice for students wanting to participate.
Like most good things, Emma signed up for fight night due to a recommendation from a close friend. She recalls that her friend was not someone you’d expect to see in the ring, but she relayed the wonderful support system and motivating environment, inspiring Emma to make the impulsive decision: “I was looking for a challenge. I knew I wanted to do it, because it seemed like a great opportunity to work on self defense, strength training, cardio, boxing, all of that. And do it with fellow students as well.”
Boxing was not a new sport for Emma. In fact, she has been sparring since she was just 10 years old, with constant support from her parents, who believed it was a healthy and creative outlet. This attitude is one which Emma shares: “I just quite like the idea of being able to get your anger out somehow, in a more productive way.”
Be warned, though, prepping for Fight Night is not for the faint of heart. Training takes place four times a week in the late afternoon in Leith, a 45-minute bus journey from George Square. To make matters worse, the start time was so strict that Emma recalls even a minute tardiness earns 10 burpees for the entire group. After an hour’s session of intense activity, Emma returns home for an evening of studying and an early bedtime.
In addition to the four provided sessions a week, Emma said that she “did student sessions and private sessions on the side, just to really make sure I was getting the most out of it and learning properly.” With the difficulties of being a full-time university student, balancing coursework and training was challenging. Work on the bus became a regular habit, as well as busier mornings to catch up on missed lectures. But, despite the hard work, seeking comfort in new friendships is what really drove Emma to love the experience: “What was most fulfilling was meeting great other people who, you kind of knew you were all suffering together, so it was like, collective suffering, which made it easier.”
Then, after nine weeks of brutal training, the day finally arrived — 2000 audience members, 40 fighters, three two-minute rounds, one ring. Emma showed up an hour early to the event to run medical tests, change into her gear, and warm up, before entering the ring as one of the first competitors.
“It didn’t really feel like it was happening. I couldn’t hear my friends, I couldn’t hear what my coach was saying, adrenaline was running, and then the last round, then I was done, and my coach was like ‘you won!’ And I was like ‘No way, I can’t believe that!’ That was just completely surreal.”
Perhaps a contributor to Emma’s heightened adrenaline was her walkout song, ‘Made You Look’ by Nas.
It becomes clear that, despite the many challenges of the sport and the high intensity of the event itself, that Emma would not change her experience for the world. In fact, she recommends competing to anyone:
“Absolutely do it, but be ready for a sort of pressure cooker environment and for putting yourself outside your comfort zone. But know that you’re not alone in doing so. Although it’s an individual sport, I really do think that training like that with other people and getting to know them on that level is really, really impactful. It’s a very healthy thing to commit to a challenge.”
Image courtesy of Emma Bilde Carp.