“I was nervous as anything,” Cynthia Rothrock said of her first tournament, after which she started to laugh.

“I was an orange belt competing against black belts in forms. I was doing the most basic forms, and they were so advanced.”

She ended up placing second in that event. It was but the first in a string of victories, for she went on to win the world forms championships from 1981 to 1985. In 1982 she became the weapons champion in the men’s division, as well.

http://www.blackbeltmag.com/daily/martial-arts-entertainment/martial-art-movies/cynthia-rothrock-best-advice-for-beginners-in-the-martial-arts/