‘It lit a fire in me’: How Duke Didier’s Olympic heartbreak fueled his MMA rise

Duke Didier faces Jasur Mirzamukhamedov in a ONE Championship fight. [ONE]

Australian star Duke “The Duke of Canberra” Didier always looked destined to be an elite athlete.

The towering 6-foot-4 heavyweight will face Ben “Vanilla Thunder” Tynan in a massive clash at ONE Fight Night 21: Eersel vs. Nicolas on Prime Video, but his move to mixed martial arts was a relatively late one.

While Didier has the chance to put his name among the division’s top contenders when he takes on his Canadian opponent at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium on April 5, other paths could have taken him on a completely different trajectory.

Didier was born in the Australian capital of Canberra, where much of his childhood was geared toward sport.

His father, Geoff, was a decorated rugby union player who was a legend at the local ACT Brumbies and represented the Australian national team.

“I had a pretty good life growing up, I came from a sporting background. My dad was an elite rugby player, so that was what I started doing in sports. I started playing rugby when I was nine," Didier said.

His father was both his biggest role model and biggest supporter and with the genes to match the motivation, he had a good run as a rugby player.

“My dad has always been a big influence for me. He’s never ever pushed me into doing any particular sport. He’s always just been a great role model and been super supportive of whatever I’ve chosen," Didier said. “I think that just gave me the drive and the motivation to make sure that I did achieve [success] because it was something that I’ve seen is possible and not out of reach.”

Didier’s move into martial arts came as a supplement to his rugby career but eventually superseded his first love.

At nine years old, he took up judo to help him with his tackling, but he had a natural affinity for the sport. He continued it alongside rugby for a long time, but deep down Didier always favored the martial art.

“I started doing judo because I was told at my school that it would help my tackling for rugby. Where I went to school, just so happened the judo program there was one of the most elite judo programs in the country with several Olympians," Didier said. "I ended up catching the bug.”

Although Didier was still fully engrossed in his judo career, he came across mixed martial arts in the late 2000s, and there was something about it that called to him.

He started to cross-train in MMA and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and competed in the new styles alongside his judo commitments, but it was his disappointment at not making the 2016 Olympics that saw him commit fully to fighting.

“I traveled all over the world for judo. Then after that, I sort of decided that I wanted to take my talents elsewhere. That’s what led me to mixed martial arts, but there was a bit of an overlap period there," Didier said. “My last run in judo was in 2016. I quit my job to go to try and qualify for the Olympics. I ended up in the shadow squad, I was [ranked] 23 or 24 in the world, but I needed to be 22 in the world to be selected for the Olympics.

“In 20 previous cycles, since I’d been Oceania champion, that would’ve been enough to qualify me for the Olympics. So, this was the hardest qualification criteria and I’d nearly qualified. It was pretty heartbreaking.”

Coming so close but still coming up short was a massive blow for Didier, but looking back, he believes it was an important catalyst that propelled him to success in mixed martial arts.

“That was probably the biggest setback and the most grieving I’ve done. I’d gone all-in on something and I felt really shattered," he said. “But by 2017, I was the main event at the AIC Arena for Brace FC and won the Australian title in mixed martial arts. I made sure I bounced back and that’s what I always do.

“In the end, it only lit a fire in me that may not have been lit quite as much if I’d have achieved that goal.”

BY JAY FURNESS [kjdsports@joongang.co.kr]