Naples martial artist wins North American Kudo Championship for Team USA

NAPLES, Fla. (WINK) — A Naples native brought home gold after becoming a North American champion in Kudo, a growing form of martial arts.

Abbey Sokol has spent more than two decades in martial arts, a journey that started as a kid taking karate after school. Her dedication has taken her across the globe to compete.

"I've gotten to compete on four different continents in four different countries, so I don't know if I would have left the country without Kudo," Sokol said. "So no, I would have had no idea that this was coming."

Her latest stop was Colorado Springs. Competing for Team USA, Sokol won the North American Kudo Championship, finishing her title match with a first-round TKO.

"With about 15 seconds left, I heard my corner yelling, 'Mayweather, Mayweather!' Which is Floyd Mayweather, who's famous for being very evasive and being defensively sound," Sokol said. "So that just meant don't get hit, just move, and so just kill the clock."

Kudo combines karate, judo, jiu-jitsu and kickboxing. The traditional martial arts background is what drew Sokol to the sport.

"It comes from that traditional martial arts background, which is something I really enjoy," Sokol said. "That kind of felt like home to me."

Sokol says the Kudo community is small in Southwest Florida, but she has found a way to keep training and keep winning. Her persistence has paid off with championship results.

"It's just really an amazing feeling," Sokol said. "It's kind of surreal, it just feels good to get the results after just being persistent."

She is now setting her sights on an even bigger goal—qualifying for the Kudo World Championships in Tokyo next year.