Ronda Rousey, one of the most recognized names in wrestling, came to her love of mixed martial arts (MMA) honestly—her mother was a decorated judoka, and the first American to win the World Judo Championship. This happened a few years before Rousey’s birth, in 1984.
Rousey had several hurdles to jump over in her early years. She had great difficulty speaking until she was about six years old, as she struggled with apraxia, likely because she was born with her umbilical cord wrapped around her neck. A few years after she made headway with intensive speech therapy, her father suffered a debilitating sledding accident, leaving him without the use of his legs. He committed suicide soon afterwards.
By the age of 11, Rousey developed a keen interest in judo, and by 17 years old, she became the youngest judoka to qualify for the 2004 Olympics Games in Athens. While she did not achieve olympic gold, she did go on to win a medal at the World Junior Judo Championship in Budapest that same year. Since then, Rousey has been an unstoppable force. After continuing to compete in judo then moving on to mixed martial arts and wrestling, Rousey became the first female fighter to sign with the UFC in 2012.
Rousey, once bequeathed the nickname “Rowdy” by wrestler “Rowdy” Roddy Piper, dominated the spotlight for most of her career. She came away with six UFC championship belts, retiring from the UFC in 2015 after being knocked out by Holly Holm in the final championship round. Unlike many pro athletes for whom “retirement” seems a relative term, Rousey seems to have switched gears permanently, and has even appeared in a few movies since then. In 2018, she was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame. "This is an immense honor, to not only take part in bringing women to the forefront of this sport, but now the UFC Hall of Fame," Rousey said of the induction. "May I be the first of many."