Kayla Jean Harrison is an American judoka and mixed martial artist born July 2, 1990, in Middletown, Ohio, who became the first American to win an Olympic gold medal in judo at the 2012 London Games and successfully defended her title at the 2016 Rio Games. She also won the 2010 World Judo Championships and was promoted to sixth degree black belt in 2016 as the youngest American to reach that rank. Moving to mixed martial arts, she won the Professional Fighters League women's lightweight championship in 2019 and 2021 and won the UFC women's bantamweight championship by submission in 2025, becoming the first fighter to hold both an Olympic gold medal and a UFC title.
Facts
Career HighlightThe first female fighter to win both an Olympic gold medal and a UFC championship. 1 Classification
Competition Category FAQs
How did Kayla Harrison move from judo to mixed martial arts?
She debuted in mixed martial arts in 2018, won the PFL lightweight tournament in 2019 and 2021, and took the UFC bantamweight title in June 2025.
Kayla Harrison made her mixed martial arts debut in 2018, after her judo career. She won the Professional Fighters League lightweight world tournament in 2019 and repeated as champion in 2021. She signed with the UFC in January 2024 and defeated former champion Holly Holm in her promotional debut. In June 2025 she captured the UFC bantamweight championship by second round kimura submission of Julianna Peña.
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Competed In
Source Wikipedia, Kayla Harrison
Plays
Judo, Sports Source Wikipedia, Kayla Harrison
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Nationality
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Source Wikipedia, Kayla HarrisonLead sentence 1tier 2Quote, Lead sentence 1
Kayla Jean Harrison (born July 2, 1990) is an American professional mixed martial artist and former judoka.
Sources
1. Wikipedia, Kayla Harrison
Wikipedia- Infobox, Born
- Infobox, Nationality field
Lead section, career summary sentence
She is the first female fighter to win an Olympic gold medal and a UFC championship.
Wikipedia, article summary lead
Kayla Jean Harrison (born July 2, 1990) is an American professional mixed martial artist and former judoka.
Competed In: 2016 Summer Olympics, lead paragraph, competed-in
In judo, Harrison won the women’s 78 kg gold medal in the 2010 World Judo Championships and gold medals at the 2012 and 2016 Summer Olympics.
Plays: Judo, Lead sentence
is an American professional mixed martial artist and former judoka.
Plays: Mixed Martial Arts, Lead sentence
is an American professional mixed martial artist and former judoka.
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