Tony ‘The Iceman’ Sewell

Despite the fact that he’s now retired, one of the most talked about names in the martial arts fighting scene is that of three times world taekwondo champion, twice European champion and mega-times British/English champion, Tony Sewell. Tony ranks alongside such stars as Kevin ‘The Jedi’ Brewerton, Hank Myer, Mike Sailsman and Steve ‘Nasty’ Anderson.

Why did you first decide to take up a martial art?

When I was at school I used to be very sporty. I played football, table tennis, badminton, swimming and gymnastics. I also trained in karate for a couple of years with my uncle. I was about eight or nine at that time and I used to travel over to Birmingham, but it became too much for me. Then my eldest brother Howard began taekwondo a few years later in Derby. He was followed by my other brother, Michael, and I followed about a year after that.

My first instructor was Bob Harvey who was a 3rd dan at the time. He took me through the basics of taekwondo in the ITF style and from there I began to develop the art in my own unique way, through watching and learning from my two brothers Michael and Howard, who had an amazing ability to dissect the art and perfect each technique.

Did you always enjoy training?

Yes I did! I understand the theory behind preparing your body to do certain kicks or techniques, so virtually every aspect of the training I enjoyed. I always knew that my hard work would pay off in the end – as it had done for my brothers.

Did you find it easy training with your two brothers and learning from them?

I learnt a lot from them, though they wouldn’t let me train with them at first because they thought I needed to show a certain amount of dedication of my own. I’m the same with my students today. If they’ve no self motivation then I don’t let them train with me personally.

I remember once going to Howard and Michael as a white belt and they wouldn’t let me train with them because they thought I was just another shooting star. They wanted me to show dedication by learning on my own, or under my instructor.

Did that help you, do you think?

Definitely, because I can remember when I was a green belt and thought I was the greatest kicker in the world. I asked Michael and he just said my kicks were rubbish! The fact is, my kicks were good for the grade I was at that particular time but they were technically imperfect. Thanks to Michael, I radically changed my kicking style, taking a bit of his style and a bit of Howard’s style of kicking. This helped me develop speed, power and much improved accuracy.

When did you begin competing?

I began sparring in competitions when I was a green belt. At that particular time we weren’t allowed to compete unless we were green belts. I was glad because a green belt seemed years away – but it soon rushed up and my mates in the club encouraged me to compete because they thought I was the best fighter in our club at that grade.

I’d watched my brothers compete before and they had it all! They were cool, calm and collected and they seemed to just walk through things. At first I thought “I can’t do that! Not me!” But in the end I discovered that I actually did have the same cool, calm approach and as you know, the rest is history!

Do you lose the quality of technique during competition?

Yes, you can lose a lot of quality, though it depends on how hard you train. If you’re training very hard, then good quality technique becomes second nature and it gives you a definite edge over your opponent. Without the correct mental approach, you can lose a lot of power and your whole body tends not to feel like it’s yours – as though you aren’t in control of it. Adrenaline zaps you out, making you feel tired very quickly. But by doing your training properly, you are thoroughly prepared for that and you’re half way there. Once you know you’ve prepared for it you just say to yourself “I shouldn’t be tired! I should be able to kick hard because I’ve trained properly for this!”

It’s definitely a mental thing and if you’re not mentally and physically prepared, then the lack tends to affect you mentally, more than you think.

With your wide experience competing against other martial arts, how does taekwondo measure up?

There are some things lacking in taekwondo, though I have tried to correct these – such as the absence of ground work for example. I have trained with Mark Weir over the years that have made me develop as a good ground fighter, techniques which I pass on to my student’s.

Though taekwondo is lacking in these things, I’ve learnt a lot from travelling around and training with other martial artists. I’ve picked up bits and bobs from judo, aikido, wrestling and boxing.

So have you finally hung up your gloves?

I have definitely left the fighting scene! Otherwise you become like the gunfighter who never put his guns down and was constantly being challenged. At one time if you said something about me, I’d fight you anywhere anyhow, no problem! But as I grew older, I started to think this was ridiculous. You’re going to be doing this forever until somebody beats you. So you can only go on for so long – you can’t keep coming back!

Are you sad about the general lack of recognition your wins have received?

I sometimes think that with all my achievements, if I was in, say, boxing, I’d have been a millionaire sitting on a beach somewhere. But I picked taekwondo which is not recognised very well at all … If I could go back now with the information I now have, then I would probably choose something like basketball which earns you a better living.

Making a living from taekwondo (unless you’re a professional instructor running your own premises) is very hard to do. People think you’re making a fortune because they can only see you taking training fees. What they don’t see is that you have to pay out for halls and everything else, so I would probably pick a different sport! Maybe not because I love the training.

Why did you decide to become an instructor?

I just felt that I had a lot of ideas on training – about how to adapt to the kicks and how to change things. I was able to figure things out of my own accord. I’d wonder about how I could make my kick faster. How can I make my punch faster? How can I stretch more effectively? As I succeeded with myself, I developed the idea of training other people to succeed as well as me.

I’m not saying that I’m the best instructor in the world! I make mistakes like everybody else but I just found out that I was good at getting the best out of my students and that’s what an instructor’s supposed to do. That’s why I wanted to do become an instructor.

Tell the readers about your association.

We are growing faster than I thought we would originally, perhaps because the Committee, the instructors and the students all seem to be aiming for the same things – to better the art of taekwondo. We have an extensive training programme which includes seminars and training camps, and everybody works well together. We have problems – same as any association has – but now we have settled down and those who want to stay with the organisation are working hard.

Do you think professional full-time dojangs are the next step in the development of taekwondo here in Britain?

I think it’s going to have to be eventually because of the expense of sports centres. I went for full-time premises because I wanted to do that for many years but I looked at it financially and it was very expensive, so basically I was put off for a long time. But with the right support, it’s got to be the way of the future.

I always wanted to offer my students the best and not just take their training fees. I wanted to offer them the same facilities I would have liked when I was training. I’d have liked to punch a couple of bags, used stretching aids, mirrors to check patterns, I wanted to train in a room where there wasn’t a five-a-side football team waiting to come in straight afterwards. I used to hate that!

How long did it take you to get it off the ground?

It took me approximately 18 months to complete it though I’d done the major building work within about 6 months. The gym’s completed now but my brain hasn’t stopped ticking. The energy I used to throw into competitions I now throw into the business side and I want to turn this gym into something really special.

Has owning your own gym changed you at all?

Yes, I’m probably louder and a bit more pushy than I was when I first started taekwondo, I found it very hard to speak to a crowd of people, but you get over that as you get older. You gain confidence. I see the same change in the shy youngsters who train with me today. Hopefully by the time they reach black belt, they’ve got over that shyness and one day they will able to become instructors themselves, if that’s what they want.

How do you help a beginner to strengthen their character?

Well first I try to find their strongest points. Most beginners tend to be uncoordinated and lacking in confidence, so basically I teach them how to move, how to co-ordinate their arms etc. slowly they build confidence because they feel they’ve achieved something – no matter how small.

Is your prime objective to turn out good fighters from your gym?

No, I look at all aspects of the training. People think that because I was a fighter, that’s all we do, but that’s nonsense! In my club there are people of all types – from four years of age to sixty-four, and they’re all different shapes, sizes and weights. I offer an individual training session for all of them because they each have different needs.

My club is about fitness, building confidence and making friends. It is a meeting place.

What hopes do you have for taekwondo in the future?

I’d like to see unity in all martial arts. It seems a shame that we can’t all come together but I suppose this is because there are too many egos. In the past I probably thought that taekwondo was very good though I never once believed it was the best martial art going. In the end of the day, the best martial art depends on the person. If you put just five minutes in, then you’re not going to be very good are you? But if you put a lifetime’s effort into it, then hopefully you will come out of it a good person.

Finally, if readers want more information about your fitness Academy or one of your other clubs, how do they contact you?

Call or me on 01332 297286 or send an enquiry through the Contact Us page. Or you can write/call in to Tony Sewell’s Martial Arts Academy, Charlotte Street Normanton, Derby, DE23 6QG.