BIO
DOB: February 1st, 1987
currently 21 years old
The first woman to win a medal at the World Championships since 1995, 20-year-old Ronda was one of the youngest medalists at the 2007 Worlds – a feat she’s become used to as one of the most promising young judo players in the world.
At just 17, Ronda qualified for her first Olympic Team, becoming the youngest judo player in the entire Games. The reigning Pan American and U.S. judo champion in the 63kg division, Ronda expected that she would compete in the Olympics, but never considered that it would be in Athens – she even named her cat Beijing after the 2008 host city.
After claiming the top finish for the U.S. women at the Olympic Games (ninth), Ronda became only the second U.S. athlete ever to win a gold medal at the 2004 World Junior Judo Championships in Budapest, Hungary
Although many members of the Team USA come from “judo families,” Ronda’s is one of the most pedigreed as mother AnnMaria, was the first-ever American to win the World Judo Championships in 1984. Originally a competitive swimmer, Ronda grew tired of the sport and at age 11, and persuaded her mother to let her to do judo. AnnMaria was hesitant in allowing Ronda to try judo, worried that expectations would be high, but acquiesced. From the beginning Ronda exceeded all expectations and has risen through the ranks in an unprecedented fashion.
In April 2006, Ronda made history again, becoming the first U.S. female athlete in nearly 10 years to win an A-Level event as she went 5-0 to claim gold at the Birmingham World Cup in Great Britain. Later that year, the 19-year-old won the bronze medal at the Junior World Championships, becoming the first U.S. athlete ever to win two Junior World medals.
In February 2007, Ronda moved up to 70kg where she is currently ranked as one of the top three women in the world. By August she made history again by becoming the USA’s first female medalist since women’s judo became a fully recognized sport in the Olympic Games.
usjudo.com
Career Results
Gold
2003 Rendez-Vous, Montreal, Canada
2004 Jr World Championships, Budapest, Hungary
2004 Pan American Championships, Isla de Margarita, Venezuela
2004 US Sr. National Championships, San Diego, California
2005 Pan American Championships, Caguas, Puerto Rico
2005 US Open, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida
2005 Rendez-Vous, Montreal, Canada
2005 Puerto Rican Open, Caguas, Puerto Rico
2005 US Sr. National Championships, Virginia Beach, Virginia
2006 Belgian Open
2006 GB World Cup, Birmingham, England
2006 US Sr. National Championships, Houston, Texas
2006 Jr. Us Open, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida
2006 Rendez-Vous, Montreal, Canada
2006 US Open, Miami Florida
2006 Swedish Open, Boras, Sweden
2007 British Open, London, England
2007 World Cup Vienna, Vienna, Austria
2007 US Sr. National Championships, Miami, Florida
2007 Pan Am Games, Rio de Janerio, Brazil
2007 US Open, Atlanta, Georgia
2007 Finnish Open, Vaantaa, Finland
2008 Hungary World Cup
Silver
2003 US Open, Las Vegas, Nevada
2006 Sr. Pan Am Championships, Buenos Aires, Argentina
2007 World Championships, Rio de Janerio, Brazil
2007 Jigoro Kano Cup, Tokyo, Japan
Bronze
2004 US Open, Las Vegas Nevada
2004 Rendez Vous, Montreal Canada
2006 Jr World Championships, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
2006 Finnish Open, Vaantaa, Finland
2007 Pan American Championships, Montreal, Canada
2007 German Open, Braunschweig, Germany
2008 Belgian Ladies Open
2008 Olympic Games, Beijing, China
5th
2003 Korean Open, Seoul, Korea
2005 Austrian Open, Leonding, Austria
9th
2004 Olympics, Athens, Greece
2005 Otto World Cup, Hamburg, Germany
2008 Paris Super World Cup
Ronda’s Extremely Random Facts
-i want to win the olympics
-i get restless very easily
-i’ve never got to a point where i couldn’t eat any more buffalo wings
-same with milka chocolate
-i like the crunchy sound snow makes when you step on it
-i’m always happier when near the ocean
-it drives me crazy when other people pick at their feet and don’t wash their hands
-i like watching other people eat ….
-i set up a mean hookah
-i like guys with tattoos
-i can’t see when i laugh
-i think canadians are awesome
-i think matburn or cuts on the face (especially right above the eye) are hot
-i’m a hopeless romantic
-i can probably beat up most people i meet
-i read “Ender’s Game” once every year
-i like the arch in my feet
-i can’t stand being cold
-i need to break a sweat every day or I get grumpy
-i always procrastinate doing laundry waaaaay too long
-I once took so long to do my laundry the shirt on the bottom was molding
-its really hard for me to sleep by myself so i sleep with a stuffed ewe named dewy
-i have a tattoo of the olympic rings but you’ll probably never see it
-i love my bellybutton piercing
-i hate sleeping while wearing pants
-australia and antartica are the only two continents i havent been to yet.. i’m working on it though
-i love my little sister julia, she’s my favorite person in the world
-my mom is awesome (though it took me a while to realize it)
-i bite my nails
-i will probably end up settling down somewhere in SoCal
-i love using q-tips, it feels like scratching my brain
-i love drinking straight out of the carton
-I hate wearing makeup cause i’m always touching my eyes
-when i’m waaay too comfortable i drool in my sleep
-if i’m really stressed i twitch in my sleep
-its a big turn off if i can beat up a guy easy
-whenever i get to a new hotel room… my bag instantly projectile vomits all my clothes all over the floor
-i have a mole under my left eye
-i used to be extremely addicted to video games and DragonballZ
-i’m really scared to death of dancing in public
-but when i drive i can’t help it… i have to dance!!
-i want a dog - BAD!
-i lose things very easily
-i’m extremely forgetfull — i have almost no short term memory
-i like walking around in grocery stores, i dont even have to buy anything
-i like going to costco just to eat the samples
-all my sisters are absolutely gorgeous and way unbelievably smart
-i want kids really badly (not right now though, lol)
-i hate the pottery barn
-same with crate and barrel
-does anyone remember that game oregon trail??… i always shot waaay more buffalo than i could carry
-I dance naked in my livingroom every morning when i wake up (just ask my roommates)
-I’m addicted to starbucks
-i usually skip dinner but eat huge breakfasts
-everyone tells me i look like julia styles
-i think confidence is the most attractive trait in a guy
-I didn’t say my first sentence until i was 6 years old
-i almost died when i was born, the umbilical cord was wrapped around my neck
-my sister writes for ESPN
-my mom is the has the highest conentration of meaness you can fit into 5′2″
-my coach once froze boogers to himself in front of me
-my other coach would make me run everytime he was pissed about anything (which was alot)
-one of my favorite things in life is eating ben&jerry’s with asma
-which probably ties with smokin hookah with mark
-I’m still suprized when people think I actually have insightful things to say
-i eat imitation crab meat like string cheese
-Nothing pisses me off like a failed sneeze attempt
-Its nearly impossible for me to say the phrase “projectile vomit” and not smile
