User:MarkedOne/Marinko Čabo

Marinko Čabo (Jabuka, Trilj, November 11, 1955), a famous Croatian boxer and kickboxer, is a legend of martial arts, and will be remembered as the first professional world champion in kickboxing.

Sports career
He is one of the first kickboxers in Yugoslavia, he had 360 amateur matches and 73 professional matches in his career and he remained undefeated in all of them. He started his professional career in 1985 in Berlin and ended it in Düsseldorf in 2005 with a knockout in the eighth round. It was the 73rd match and the 73rd win of his professional kickboxing career.

In his professional martial arts career, he achieved everything that can be achieved. He united world titles and won three world belts, that is, he was the world champion in three federations, and before that he was the champion of the former Yugoslavia, Croatia, Europe and the world.

Role in the Croatian War of Independence
In May 1991, Marinko Čabo became actively involved in the defense of the homeland. He was a member of the special police of Split, he formed the Military Police of Sinj, and for three years he was a member of the celebrated 4th Guards Brigade.

Specialist training of saboteurs, snipers and other Croatian elite units took place in the cliffs of Mount Kamešnica under the watchful eye of Commander Marinko Čabo.

Combat training of fast elite units of the Croatian Army, tailored to extremely rigorous programs of some of the strongest guerrilla units in the world, was organized under the leadership of camp and combat sector commander Marinko Čabo, at the initiative of the founder and first commander of the 4th Guards Brigade, General Ivo Jelić.

The altitude of about a thousand and a half meters, clean air and mountainous terrain were ideal conditions for staging possible combat situations and specialist training of saboteurs and snipers in circumstances when their strength and training came to the fore.

Specific realistic training with all available combat means was based on the dynamic change of camp locations and training of saboteurs for rapid actions of small and effective units and rapid breakthroughs through enemy positions.

In that turbulent and uncertain period, the training took place in the immediate vicinity of the front line and with real weapons, and at any moment it was ready to turn into action, battle or war.

Thanks to the commanders of the 4th Guards Brigade, Generals Jelić and Šundov, and the commander of the Livno brigade and battlefield Stanko Vrgoč, as well as the great understanding of the experienced warrior Jozo Sikirica who organized a complete special police, units of all military and special police brigades came to this camp for training.

Together, they prepared Croatian soldiers for the challenges that awaited them on the front line and trained them to perform even the most complex operations, and with such thoughtful moves and trained action prevented many unnecessary casualties.

More than five thousand Croatian soldiers were trained on Kamešnica, mostly members of the Livno brigade Petar Krešimir IV, but also soldiers from Posušje and many others from all parts of Herzeg-Bosnia.

Marinko Čabo also provided numerous commanders with protection by trained bodyguards as well as special police support in setting up brigades in these difficult and challenging circumstances.

The first Croatian kickboxing championship
General Ivo Jelić, founder and first commander of the legendary 4th Guards Brigade, and Jozo Sikirica, commander of the Split Special Police Unit, had an understanding for sport even in the most difficult moments of Croatian history and understood its great importance and key role in community building and in raising the morale of the Croatian people.

At their request and with their great support, on February 1, 1992, the first Croatian kickboxing championship was held at the Mugendo Center in Jabuka near Trilj. The largest number of participants were fighters who did the matches and immediately returned to the battlefields.

Mugendo Center
In 1989, Marinko Čabo founded a martial arts center in Jabuka near Trilj, which operates at the Karate Club Cetinka from Trilj, of which he is the coach and vice-president.

In addition to the exercise area, gym and sauna, the Mugendo Center also has an outdoor boxing ring in idyllic nature with a spectator area, a boules area and a restaurant divided in several spaces decorated with numerous photos and trophies from the best sports days of the first professional kickboxing champion.

The Mugendo Center has been declared as one of the ten best training centers in the world, and it regularly gathers many famous names from the world of martial arts and holds martial arts events.

Music, film and theater
A biographical documentary-feature erotic film called "Man from the Mountain" was made about the turbulent sports, war and love life of Marinko Čabo.

In addition to sports and acting, Marinko Čabo is also building a singing career. For now, he has three songs behind him - "Trilj in the Heart", "Beloved Woman" and "The Truth Will Always Be Real", and the recording of an album with the same name as his autobiographical film is in progress.

He was the first emperor Diocletian at the Days of Diocletian organized by the Split Tourist Board, and in his youth he also played in numerous theater plays, including the role of Bakonja fra Brne.