Most of you will know I feel very blessed to have Van Do as my business mentor and that she is a student of Martial Arts legend Cung Le. This week I was privileged to be granted some time with Cung, gaining powerful insights and encouragement to live my dream and not letting other people’s boundaries become my own.

Cung is a busy man who juggles his own career while managing his gym and fighters. When Van told me that he had agreed to the meeting I was stoked. In addition to talking to me, he said we could film the conversations and the footage could be included in the Princesses of Pain film festival project due out early next year. Cung is close to Van and wanted to show his support for both her and the women of MMA. It is always great to hear the guys at the top are cheering for the girls, but since I hold Cung in such high regard his support seemed especially inspiring.

Before we met with him, Van had to finish filming with Drey, our producer as well as my business partner. We rocked on over to Starbucks to plan how our hours would be best spent (Time in Hollywood is always an issue and everything is always rushed).

My getting some schooling with Van and Drey before filming and meeting Cung

Van is talented on camera, and she got the footage in the can really quickly. We moved on to the gym where she could train and I would talk to Cung.

We arrived slightly early , and this worked out well for me as I got to speak with his partner Suzanne Dineson. Suzanne is very knowledgeable about the industry. As manager of the gym, she was able to give me a great starting point to my interview. I know how people will often overstep the boundaries of politeness and ask for favours of people in high profile positions. I didn’t want to be one of those people, but I did need the help with the next steps for the league. Suzanne was perfect as she openly expressed that Cung is supportive of the women in this sport and would likely be open to lending a hand if his time permitted.

Words of wisdom from Suzanne before the interview

The interview begins.

I didn’t know exactly what I was going to say, but I did know I had some topics on which I would like to hear his thoughts. I can’t share with you all that was said as it would reveal the likely direction Princesses of Pain intends to take next year, but I can tell you I was overwhelmingly happy to hear Cung say that if I was able to make it happen he would give his support to the girls and me.

Another point which rung clear to me is that Cung is not a man who will be held back from a dream because of what others have to say about his likely success or failure. He had some powerful thoughts about my future plans which I have on film, and will likely replay for inspiration when the journey gets tough.

Apart from the encouragement I received I also was given some very sound advice about how he felt I could best take my next steps to overcome the boundaries which I am likely to face.

I will stop there and leave the footage to show you the true heart and wisdom of a man who isn’t afraid to speak his mind or support the women of his sport. (You will have to see the finished project). In conclusion I know I was granted this interview because of Cung’s admiration for his student Van. But I do believe a friendship has started and that Suzanne and Cung will help the Princesses if they can in our coming journey.

In the end I was so impressed with his advice and kindness that I couldn’t resist a hug. He even handled that with grace, Thanks again Cung, Belinda.

Photo’s by Princesses of Pain photographer Wendy Cooper.

For information on Princesses of Pain or Wendy please contact Belinda on [email protected]