This week, hundreds of people in Johannesburg will gather to break wooden boards, but the real goal is far greater: empowering thousands of women with knowledge that could save their lives.
Johannesburg, South Africa (16 March 2026) – Long before INpowered trained thousands of women and girls to defend themselves, the story began with a chance meeting in London. It was 1990 when Mark Grobbelaar crossed paths with Alison Botha while travelling. At the time, it was simply one of those fleeting encounters life sometimes offers. The two eventually went their separate ways, losing contact in an era before social media and search engines made reconnecting easy.
Years later, Mark would read Alison’s name again, this time under circumstances that would forever change the direction of his life.
On the 18th of December 1994, Alison was abducted, brutally assaulted and left for dead in one of the most horrifying attacks the country had ever seen. Against all odds, she survived. When Mark later read about what had happened in a magazine, he was stunned. The two eventually reconnected in April 2000, and hearing her recount the ordeal in detail stirred something profound in him.
A fifth-dan karate practitioner, Mark had spent years studying self-defence but Alison’s experience reframed everything he thought he knew about the subject.
“I realised that I had to share what I had known for so long with the world,” Mark explains. “Knowing something, having that knowledge, could potentially save someone’s life. When Alison got up and decided to live… the course of my life changed.”
He went on to write his thesis titled Girl Power – Self Defence for Women, which would eventually become the foundation for what is today known as INpowered.
When Alison read the thesis, she shared a sentence that has echoed through the programme ever since.
“Had I known this, my ordeal would never have happened.”
That moment turned a personal passion into a mission. In 2012, Mark left corporate life behind and committed himself fully to empowering women with practical self-protection skills through Woman INpowered (WIP). Over time, the initiative expanded, eventually bringing men into the conversation through Guy Responsibly INpowered (GRIP), creating the broader INpowered programme that now works with communities across South Africa and beyond.
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Since its launch, the programme has reached more than 16,000 women and girls, teaching them to recognise danger, defuse situations where possible, and respond when necessary. And for Mark, the impact of that knowledge has already proven life-changing.
“Miss SA and Miss Universe 2017 Demi-Leigh Tebow (nee Nel-Peters) credits the INpowered program for being alive after being in an attempted hijacking just after she was crowned Miss SA,” he says.
It is stories like these that continue to fuel the work.
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Now, Mark and the INpowered team are hoping to expand their reach even further through an event called The INpowered Big Break, taking place at The Tryst in Johannesburg on the 18th of March 2026.
At first glance, the concept is simple: hundreds of participants gathering together to break wooden boards. But the symbolism runs far deeper.
The current record involves around 300 trained martial artists breaking boards simultaneously. INpowered hopes to break that record with 1,000 everyday people, most of them with no martial arts training at all, standing together to demonstrate something powerful.
“Breaking the board symbolises doing something you thought impossible,” Mark explains. “It gives you the belief that you have a choice, that you are not a victim, and that you don’t have to be afraid.”
Each ticket purchased contributes to something even bigger. The funds raised will help provide the full INpowered personal protection programme to 2,500 women and girls in 2026, many of whom would otherwise never have access to this kind of training.
“After the event, we will reach out to people to register for the training,” Mark says. “We’ll focus on underprivileged schools, shelters and organisations like Women For Change. The goal is to make sure the knowledge reaches the women who need it most.”
For Mark, this has never been about martial arts or breaking boards. It has always been about knowledge, choice and empowerment. And it all traces back to one woman’s survival story, and the words that changed everything.
“Had I known this…”
Today, thousands of women do.
Event Details:
The INpowered Big Break is scheduled for the same week as International Women’s Day 2026, uniting voices and fists in the fight against violence against women and children.
Date: Wednesday, 18 March 2026
Time: 18h00 to 21h00 (registration at 17h00 for 17h30)
Location: The Tryst (20 Archimedes Street, Kramerville, Sandton)
Cost: R700.00 for two people
Each ticket purchased allows two participants to attend, as every delegate requires a partner to complete the board break.
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