B.C. woman fights off attacker, credits her self-defence classes

A B.C. woman is crediting her free self-defence classes with preventing what could have been a devastating attack.

Maria Hansen lives in the Comox Valley.

Last Saturday night she went outside her house to close her gate after her friend left and said a man grabbed her by the arm and slammed her hard into the gate twice.

Hansen said she remembered what to do and smacked the palm of her hands into his face, hard, then was able to run into the house and grab her husband’s golf club. Her husband was away at the time.

She went to the emergency room and was diagnosed with a concussion.

Hansen said she reported it to the RCMP and was told they would follow up. But she credits the classes for giving her the tools she needed.

“We always look for things to do,” Hansen said when she decided to take the classes. “It was so fitting, two lessons and then he shows up. What are the chances?”

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She said the classes taught her what to do if you get attacked from the front, behind, on the ground — every scenario.

“The trick is to hold on to him tight,” she added, “because the further he is away from you it increases the chance of him hitting you.”

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Adam Morden teaches the classes at Gracie Jiu-Jitsu in Courtenay, B.C., and told Global News they have been in the community for about 11 years.

“More than anything, we’ve heard about the number of situations that have been avoided due to the confidence, ability to set boundaries, and be more alert of their surroundings. Men, women and children have found they’ve felt safer,” he said.

Morden said he was happy Hansen had the skills to defend herself from the attack.

“We offer a free women’s self-defence class every Saturday at 10:30 a.m. It’s open to anyone in the community; you don’t have to sign up for anything,” he added.

“Come with a friend is one of the best things you can do.”

Hansen said she would like to take more classes and build on her skills.

She said she thought she would never need this training.

“If I didn’t have that, I don’t know where I would have been now.”

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