The mixed martial artist welcomed the Manx support he received after becoming world champion in a competition more than 3,000 miles (5,000 km) from home.

Ramsey’s Alanna Pritchard won the super heavyweight title at the International Mixed Martial Arts Federation World Championships in Uzbekistan.

The 21-year-old said everyone was “so supportive”, with even strangers from his hometown stopping to praise and congratulate his efforts.

She said last week’s amateur competition, in which she defeated Angola’s Ana Fernanda by technical knockout, was “intense” but an “incredible experience.”

Although he was confident heading into the contest, Pritchard said he was “really emotional” after winning by technical knockout and that his friends and family were “blown away” by his achievement.

Looking back on the moment he won the championship, he said: “I ran to my dad and we gave him a big hug and we were both like ‘what just happened?’ we said.

He said he was excited to see the belt his grandparents had won when he returned to the Isle of Man and they thought it was “an ace”.

He also learned that people in his hometown had gathered at a local bar to watch a live broadcast of the fight.

Pritchard, who studied sports coaching at Liverpool John Moores University, was introduced to martial arts at the age of 16, thanks to Jiu-Jitsu sessions at the Summit Grappling Academy on the island formerly known as Gracie Barra.

Following his latest victory, his focus now turns to his next competition in Serbia in February.

However, he said he also aims to compete in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, a major professional team in the sport, in the future.

“This is a lifelong dream and it’s going to be huge,” he said.

Tynan Pritchard, the father of the 21-year-old football player who went to Uzbekistan for the competition, said his daughter was “unshakable” in front of thousands of fans in a noisy stadium.

“I know how incredibly hard you worked for this, and she deserves it,” he said.

He acknowledged that he knew the strength of support in his home that night “really helped.”

“We were thousands of miles from home and the messages from the Isle of Man made a huge difference,” he added.