Sebastiaan van Teeffelen & Ashley Kakiay: two careers, one dream

We have known each other since 2018 through karate. We saw each other at competitions and stayed in touch on social media. In 2023 we got together. The fact that we do the same sport is actually a huge plus for us. We understand each other’s lifestyle and we know what it takes. That lets us genuinely help each other grow to a higher level.

The best part is that you get to live all the good moments together. We train together a lot, and when one of us performs well, we are both thrilled about it. You know what you give up for it, and getting to experience that together is really special.

The hardest part is our packed schedule. We both study, we work on top of that, and we are elite athletes as well. So we do not get much free time together, but honestly that rarely bothers us.

We definitely train together. Sebas is the one who can train the hardest. Training together helps us enormously, even though we are not in the same weight class and not the same gender. We are both good in our own category and we only get better off each other. We both score on one another, and neither of us ever wants to lose to the other.

Sebas is often more nervous when Ashley fights than he is before his own matches. Cheering each other on from the stands is great fun, especially when the tournament is going well.

Ashley regularly gets angry when she loses, especially when she knows it was avoidable. In those moments she needs a little time to process it, and then to learn from her mistakes. Sebas has become much better over the years at dealing with defeat. He used to walk off after a lost bout and nobody would know where he had been for a couple of hours.

Our dreams are mostly about the big senior tournaments: the European and World Championships. Winning a medal there is what we train hard for every single day.

We like trying things that are not done very often yet. As an athlete it is important to be visible to potential sponsors, and we wanted to be able to offer something special. With our website, our WhatsApp community and a magazine for our sponsors, we try to be original and to keep the people who are interested in our journey up to date.

Without sponsors it is almost impossible to travel to all the international competitions you need to reach the top. So we are always looking for sponsors, and we try to set up initiatives that genuinely give something back to the people and companies that support us.

We really enjoy people’s involvement and we appreciate it enormously. Above all we hope to inspire young people to keep training hard and to never give up when results do not go their way for a while.

Usually we are on the couch together watching a series, or we go out somewhere nice to eat.

I started karate when I was seven, in Zwanenburg. At nine I joined the competition group at Kenamju, and since then I have done more and more competitions. I compete in the -75 kg category. My fighting style is attacking, with strong leg techniques and fast hand techniques.

I cannot point to one specific sacrifice. It is mostly everything together. From a young age you train a lot, structurally, and so you automatically give up a lot of other things.

My biggest high is the bronze medal at the World Under-21 Championships in 2022, when I had just turned eighteen.

My hardest setback is losing three semifinals at a European Under-21 Championships, which meant I never reached a European final. That taught me how small the margins are at the top, and how much you have to keep investing to finally take that step.

For the coming season I want to perform at senior level, at the Series A and the Premier League. In the long term, my dream is to win a medal at a senior European or World Championships.

I started karate when I was seven. My mother has her black belt too, and I started through her. I compete in the Kumite -61 kg category. I would describe my style as patient, but I can really raise the tempo when I need to.

It felt incredibly good. I was really in the zone at that tournament and felt physically strong. Two and a half years ago I reached my first Series A final, in Matosinhos in Portugal, so reaching another final means a lot to me. It gives me a lot of confidence going into next season.

My biggest sacrifice is my freedom. I have a very tight schedule and basically have to plan everything around karate.

My biggest highs are my two Series A silver medals and my bronze at the European Youth Championships. I am also proud of my two fifth places, at a Premier League and at a senior European Championships.

Those two fifth places are at the same time my hardest setbacks, because in both of those bouts I did not fight the way I normally do, because of the nerves. What I learned is that everything is a snapshot in time, that anyone can beat anyone, and that you have to keep believing in yourself.

My main goal for the coming season is a podium finish at the European Championships. In the long term, I hope to stand on the podium at the World Championships.