Cheick Kongo repertoire and trained in Kickboxing, Muay Thai, Savate and Greco-Roman Wrestling at age of 19. At age 23, he studied Pencak Silat, an Indonesian martial art, and was coached by Charles Joussot and Franck Ropers, men who brought silat to France. They taught Kongo the Pencak Silat style of Setia Hati Terate. He is also a cousin of rugby star Fulgence Ouedraogo, the French back-rower. Cheick is also a columnist for the French MMA magazine, Top Fight. On June 10, 2001, Kongo began his professional career by knocking out Doog Ward. Kongo then followed up that win with a TKO
Pencak Silat meaning "old silek", but others claim it traces to the freedom fighter Tuanku Nan Tuo after whom it was named. All the classical pencak silat weapons are used in silek but the most prominent Minang weapons are the "pedang" (sword), "tumbak" (spear), "karih" (dagger), "klewang" (longsword), "sabik" (sickle), "payung" (umbrella), "kurambik" (claw), and various types of knives. From Srivijaya, pencak silat quickly spread eastward into the Javanese Sailendra and Medang Kingdoms where the fighting arts developed in three geographical regions: West Java, Central Java, and East Java. Today Java is home to more styles of pencak silat than any other