06/19/2025
Congratulations to our athlete, Ana, on an outstanding performance at her debut show! She took home 1 gold and 2 silver medals in the Wellness division this past weekend. 👏👏👏 We love her story and thought we’d share it below.
Ana’s “Why”
“I remember when my daughter, Catalina, did her second jiu jitsu competition. It was in a bigger venue, but with less competitors on the floor at one time, so a lot of attention would be on her. She found out that she was going against her teammate, who had way more experience than her, not only in jiu jitsu, but also judo. She cried and didn’t want to compete because she was afraid she would lose. I wanted to have a conversation with her about being brave and encourage her to go out there even if it was against someone who had way more experience. I wanted to tell her that even if she lost, it would not have been a lost, because stepping out was already a win, but I couldn’t truly relate because I’ve never done something like that myself. She did eventually go out there and even though she lost, she was a good sport and congratulated her opponent. As soon as she stepped off the mat and saw me, she cried and all I could say was wow, that was so brave of you.
My daughter is the reason I did this. She embodies everything I’ve ever wanted to be, she’s brave, loud in her confidence, speaks her mind and just does not care what anyone thinks of her. Competing and being on stage is something I would’ve never done. Like ever… I’m not typically a confident person, but ever since starting this journey, I have gained confidence I never knew I had. Stepping on that specific stage for that championship was so scary, but I’m glad it happened the way it did. I messed up a few times but still smiled and kept it going.
My daughter hasn’t competed since that last one and now that I’ve competed, it’s a conversation I can genuinely have with her and actually be able to relate.”