Tom Hardy is best known around these parts for his portrayals of comic book characters Bane and Venom. Now, the Oscar-nominated actor has another thing to add to his resume: tournament-winning martial artist. Saturday, The Dark Knight Rises star entered a Brazilian Jiu-JItsu championship being held in England by the Ultimate Martial Arts Championships. Competing under his real name of Edward Hardy, the actor eventually walked away with a gold medal.
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“Everyone recognised him but he was very humble and was happy to take time out for people to take photographs with him,” a spokesperson for the event told The Guardian . “It was a real pleasure to have him compete at our event.”
One of his opponents said Hardy very much resembles his Dark Knight character Bane. “I was shell-shocked. [Hardy] said, ‘Just forget it’s me and do what you would normally do,’” martial arts veteran Danny Appleby added. “I’ve done about six tournaments and I’ve been on the podium in every one. But he’s probably the toughest competitor I’ve had – he certainly lived up to his Bane character, that’s for sure.”
Suffice to say, Hardy has been a worldwide trend on social media most of the day as fans rave about his surprise win. Keep scrolling to see what they’re saying!
