Canberra fighter Zoe Putorak has set her sights on more international domination after winning the Muay Thai world title in Bangkok.
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Putorak won Australia's only gold medal at the championships after defeating rivals from Ukraine, Sweden, and the United States last month.
At 19-years-old, she defeated Angela Whitley of the US in the final after deciding to compete the open women's division rather than against opponents her own age.
Putorak hopes that it sets her on a path to more success in the coming years, already declaring her intent to qualify for the 2021 world games in the US.
Putorak says she decided to fight against older rivals was the right move for her development.
"After placing second in last years championships, I decided I just want to fight and I wanted to fight the best there," Putorak said.
Putorak started training at the Phoenix gym in Mitchell when she was nine and has spent the past decade giving up high school parties for a chance at glory.
"There has always been sacrifices growing up, not being able to go to my friend's parties because I was training but I was happy to make those sacrifices if it meant being better," Putorak said.
The sacrifices have obviously paid off, with Putorak being World Muay Thai Council (WMC) Australian Champion and a two-time World Association of Kickboxing Organizations (WAKO) Australian Champion.
Putorak's coach and Australian team manager Anthony Manning says he is proud of what she has accomplished.
"I'm amazingly proud of what she has done. I have known and coached her since she was nine so she is pretty much family, and I know she has given up a lot of things and those sacrifices have payed off," Manning said.
Putorak praised her long time coach saying that he is one of the best in the world and has done so much for her,
"He is one of the greatest coaches in the world, he has done so much for me but also for the team. He is just the quality coach to have," Putorak said.
Manning says they are looking toward the future and will take the next step for Putorak's career.
"We want to re-focus as a team, but she personally wants to maintain her number one spot, but also wants to go overseas to fight the competition over there," Manning said.