Guangzhou, China, July 13, 2026: Malak Thaer from Palestine is living proof that spending a lot of time online is not necessarily a bad thing.
After all, it’s brought her into wrestling – and to Guangzhou, China for the 2026 OCA/UWW Asian Wrestling Youth Camp.
Malak, who turned 15 only last month, found her way into wrestling after being captivated by the sport online.
“It was just like popping up regularly, so I have been following a lot of wrestling athletes, Brazilian jiu-jitsu athletes, MMA athletes,” she said, after another tough training session at Guangzhou Polytechnic of Sports on Monday, July 13.
“The most thing that inspired me is wrestling; it’s like the most inspiring for me in my opinion. It is so powerful; it needs a good mindset and it just like attracts me to get into it. When I first saw wrestling, I just wanted to try it so bad.”
Malak adds: “To be honest, I have been actively on line, so I have been seeing a lot of things that actually inspire me. I wanted to improve and try something new that I can improve, I can keep going with.
“I have been getting more stuff into my life so that really helped me to enjoy everything in training and making new friends and making new relationships with everyone. It just makes me feel better, something new in your life.”
Malak, from Al Bireh, is from a sporty family and her involvement in Brazilian jiu-jitsu brought her into wrestling. Although she has a passion for both sports, wrestling has a clearer path forward.
“I see myself in both, but I have faith in wrestling more because we can reach the Olympics with it but in Brazilian jiu-jitsu we cannot reach the Olympics. It doesn’t happen in the Olympics.
“I want to stay active in Brazilian jiu-jitsu as a hobby and in wrestling as an athlete.
“I want to be well known one day, like well known, to reach something, maybe the Olympics. Who knows? I can do it. I believe I can.”
This wrestling youth camp is one small step on this road – and her targets are already mapped out: “To reach a level that I really have in mind.
“I have something, a target of level that I want to get to – that I am just like fluent at it. I want to know that whenever I go I want to win, whatever I am going to do I am going to want to win.
“I do accept losing, like to learn, but I am not going to accept losing for myself. I want to train until I know that what I deserve is only winning.
“I am going to stay constant. I want everyone to know that I can go out and win and do stuff out there internationally. That is my target, to be honest.”
For a young grappler who took up the sport aged 14, and who still trains at the Brazilian jiu-jitsu gym, Malak Thaer Saleh Nakhlah might just be a name to remember.
