Andrew Wong Kee got a black belt in karate at 11 years old. At 13, he became a competitive rugby player, and by 15, he had a New Zealand amateur boxing title under his belt.
Now 34, the Samoan-Chinese believes these early childhood achievements and his 'Polynesian warrior spirit' give him the competitive edge in his latest physical challenge: Brazilian jiu-jitsu.
He describes the aim of the sport as 'submitting your opponent into defeat by choking them, putting them to sleep or breaking a limb'. Broken arms, he says, are a common injury, as male bravado often gets in the way of the imminent need for submission.
But despite its brutal nature, Wong Kee explains that BJJ has noble roots as a way of empowering the 'little guy to beat the big guy'.
BJJ is a Brazilian twist on the Japanese martial arts of judo and jiu-jitsu. The story goes that a Brazilian student of a martial arts prodigy developed the fighting style during the early 20th century to overcome all other forms of martial arts, no matter the size of the opponent.
However, it was not until the mixed martial arts Ultimate Fighting Championships during the 1990s - in which BJJ-trained fighters captured the early titles - that the discipline finally earned respect in the world of martial arts. These days, almost every UFC fighter is trained in the BJJ style to some extent.