At 34, Diego Demme found a new field of expression after hanging up his boots last summer. The former Naples midfielder, crowned Italian champion with the club in 2023, started practicing MMA in Berlin. Having played for RB Leipzig and Hertha Berlin, the former German international now trains four to five times a week at the Choke Athletics club. A radical change of discipline for someone who has played for a long time at the highest level of European football.
However, the beginnings were not easy. Demme admitted to having suffered from the holds of his partners and the physical intensity of this new practice. But his progress is already visible: he recently completed a course without being forced to drop out, a first for which he was delighted. His coach, Saman Darvish, highlights his ability to learn, his endurance and his determination. If the German now plans to join intermediate to advanced level grappling sessions, he does not plan to become a professional fighter. Above all, he sees this experience as a new personal challenge and a way to learn to better defend himself.
