Hello! I am Emily Haase, a blue belt practitioner of BJJ. My jiu jitsu journey started at the end of 2020. From the moment I first began, I fell absolutely in love with this sport. I've always loved the process of learning and bettering myself, physically and technically, but jiujitsu is the first sport I would say changed me fundamentally as a person. Everyone experiences adversity throughout their lives, everyone experiences moments of feeling powerless, worthless, et cetera, and the beauty in life is finding the things that raise you out of these experiences and transform you into a stronger and better person. Jiu jitsu is what did that for me. Jiu jitsu has changed my life. It gave me power; over my mind, my body, and my life. It has given me access to a community of diverse, talented, and inspiring individuals whose impact on me cannot be understated. Because of my coach, my training partners, and most importantly MYSELF, I now look at myself with so much love and pride. I am more confident and happy than I have ever been in my life, and I am so incredibly excited because I know this is just the very beginning of a lifelong journey into this sport.
There is nothing that I have experienced in this world that comes close to the act of competing. It's when I feel the most like myself. In 2022, I had the phenomenal experience of competing in the International Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Federation's two Open competitions held in New Haven, Connecticut as a blue belt. In the first tournament, I won gold in both my gi and no gi weight classes, and medaled silver and bronze in the open weight classes (a total of 13 matches over the course of two days, with only one loss by points and one disqualification). I also recently learned that one of my competitors who I had beaten went on to win the IBJJF No Gi Blue Belt World Championship several months later! After winning over a dozen gold medals in my first year of competing in local tournaments, to enter a tournament of such a high caliber and place as well as I did only served to confirm what I had known from the very beginning of my journey: I was born to be a jiu jitsu champion. I dedicated myself to rigorous training, and two months later I competed again in another IBJJF New Haven Open, winning all four gold medals this time.
This year, I plan to compete in as many of the major circuit competitions as possible which includes both gi and no gi World Championships. I know I am more than capable of winning these competitions, and I am extremely excited for the undertaking of preparing for them. The goal of this fundraiser is to help cover the costs and fees associated with competing (tournament entry fees, travel expenses, etc) as well as to help pay for jiu jitsu programs that will further my training.
There truly aren't enough words to describe my love and passion for this sport, or to fully encapsulate it's value and importance in my life, but I can express that I am willing to do absolutely anything to become the best in the world. Your support in this endeavor would mean the world to me. Thank you for believing in me! <3
