NIANG Assmaa

Belt grade
Black belt - I DAN (IJF, 15 Jul 2016)

Preferred techniques
Sumi-otoshi (IJF, 17 Jul 2016)

General
CONSIDERING QUITTING
She almost left the sport after a disappointing experience at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. "Rio was a bad memory. Being at the Olympics had always been my dream since I was a little girl, no matter what. And when I arrived in Rio I didn't find anything special, it wasn't like in my childhood dreams, but when I arrived it was a competition almost like any other, with the whole world watching you. I thought about my journey, about everything I had done to get there. When I stopped after the Rio Olympic Games, I really had decided to retire for good and then I said to myself, 'One more year', and then I finished fifth at the 2017 World Championships. I was having a great time, so I kept going. There are ups and downs, but today I'm still ahead." (International Judo Federation Facebook page, 25 May 2020)

REPRESENTING MOROCCO
Her father is from Senegal and her mother is from Morocco, and the family moved to France when she was age 11. She initially represented France in judo, but switched to Morocco in order to compete at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. (en.yabiladi.com, 04 Aug 2018; sport.le360.ma, 11 Dec 2015; judoinside.com, 01 Jan 2016)

OCCUPATION
In 2016 she founded the company Mind Over Matter, which focuses on mental and physical preparation for athletes of all levels, including relationship management between athletes and coaches. "I have an inquisitive mind that has always guided me towards the interaction between the body and the mind. Through my professional and sporting careers, I have had the privilege and challenge of living, understanding and acting on those interactions. Mind Over Matter is a reflection of this." She had previously served in the French Army with the Paris Fire Brigade for 10 years, before leaving in order to focus on representing Morocco in international judo. (LinkedIn profile, 01 Jun 2021; asmaniang.com, 01 Jan 2020; International Judo Federation Facebook page, 25 May 2020; en.yabiladi.com, 04 Aug 2018)

FUTURE PLANS
Following her retirement, she aims to support judo in Africa. "My dream is to invest myself in African judo, after spending ten years serving France as a soldier with the Paris Fire Brigade, and ten years representing Morocco in judo." (rfi.fr, 02 Nov 2019)