Jessa_Khan

Jessa Khan

Jessa Khan

Cambodian ju-jitsu practitioner

Jessamine Jada Khan (born 8 October 2001),[1] often shortened as Jessa Khan (Khmer: ខាន់ ចេសា, romanized: Khăn Chésa [kʰan ceːsaː]), is an American-born Cambodian jiu-jitsu athlete.[2] She is the 2023 IBJJF World Champion.

Quick Facts Personal information, Nationality ...

Career

Khan represented Cambodia at the 2018 Asian Games and claimed a gold medal in the women's 49kg ne-waza event.[3][4] This was also the first gold medal to be received by Cambodia which happened to be unexpected in the sport of ju-jitsu during the 2018 Asian Games.[5] Khan is a second Gold Medal Cambodia's Asian Games history after Taekwondo Gold 2014.[6] She is a daughter of a Mexican American mother with Cambodian American father.[7][8] She began jiu-jitsu training at age 12.[9]

On October 6, 2020, Khan was awarded her black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu by her coaches, the Mendes brothers, just two days before her nineteenth birthday.[10]

Personal life

Khan was born in Texas and resides in Southern California.[11]

Black belt career

On February 26, 2021, Khan made her debut appearance on Who's Number One, defeating Danielle Kelly by unanimous decision.[12] She competed at Evolve Ur Game on April 3, 2021 in a superfight against Mayssa Bastos, losing on points.[13] She returned to Who's Number One on May 28, 2021, defeating Patricia Fontes with an armbar.[14] This performance earned Khan the invitation to compete for the inaugural WNO women's strawweight title at the WNO Championships.[15] Khan submitted Jessica Crane with a heelhook in the opening round, but was submitted by Grace Gundrum in the semifinal with a twister and was submitted by Amanda 'Tubby' Alequin in the consolation match with a toehold.[16]

In May, 2022 Khan became one of the first grapplers to sign a contract with ONE Championship.[17] The promotion booked a rematch with Alequin for her debut at ONE 159 on July 22, 2022,[18] but the match fell through when Alequin withdrew due to an undisclosed medical issue.

Khan competed in the 2023 Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu European Championship, winning a bronze medal in the women's roosterweight division.[19] At the IBJJF Santa Cruz International Open on April 22nd, 2023, Khan won gold in the light-featherweight division.[20] Khan returned to the Southeast Asian Games in 2023 to represent Cambodia once again, winning silver in the gi ne-waza event and gold in the no gi ne-waza event.[21] She donated her winnings from the event to the Cambodian Red Cross.[22]

Khan competed in the IBJJF World Championship 2023 on June 3 and 4, 2023 and won a gold medal in the light-featherweight division.[23]

Khan was booked to compete against Danielle Kelly in a rematch for the inaugural ONE Championship Atomweight submission grappling title at ONE Fight Night 14 on September 29, 2023.[24] Khan lost the match by decision.[25]

Khan then competed at the IBJJF No-Gi World Championship 2023, where she won a silver medal in the roosterweight division.[26]

References

  1. [1]
    "Sabay News". news.sabay.com.kh. Retrieved 29 September 2018.
  2. [2]
    "Jessa Khan | Asian Games 2018 Jakarta Palembang". Asian Games 2018 Jakarta Palembang. Archived from the original on 26 August 2018. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
  3. [3]
    "Breaking: Jessa Khan Wins Asian Games Gold Medal for Cambodia ! – Cambodia Expats Online: Forum | News | Information | Blog". cambodiaexpatsonline.com. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
  4. [4]
    "Cambodia claims a Ju-Jitsu gold – Khmer Times". Khmer Times. 25 August 2018. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
  5. [5]
    Chap, Chetra. "Cambodia wins first gold medal at 2018 Asian Games". VOA. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
  6. [6]
    "News – Olympic Council of Asia". www.ocasia.org. Retrieved 29 September 2018.
  7. [7]
    "Jessa Khan: The Jiu-Jitsu Prodigy – Khmer Times". Khmer Times. 14 September 2018. Retrieved 29 September 2018.
  8. [8]
    "Jessa Khan bags double gold at jiu-jitsu worlds".
  9. [9]
    "Jessa Khan Athlete". www.facebook.com.
  10. [10]
    "Jessa Khan Becomes First Black Belt from AOJ Kid's Program". 7 October 2020.
  11. [11]
    "Asian Games: Gold for Cambodia by Californian born in Texas". The Cambodia Daily. Associated Press. 27 August 2018. Archived from the original on 28 August 2018.
  12. [12]
    "Who's Number One: Craig Jones v Ronaldo Jr Full Results and Review". 27 February 2021.
  13. [13]
    "Evolve Ur Game Full Results and Review". 4 April 2021.
  14. [14]
    "Who's Number One: Craig Jones v Luiz Panza Full Results and Review". 29 May 2021.
  15. [15]
    "WNO Championships Lineup Announced for 115lbs Division". 30 July 2021.
  16. [16]
    "WNO Championships Full Results and Review". 27 September 2021.
  17. [17]
    "ONE Championship Signs Renato Canuto, Jessa Khan, and Tainan Dalpra". 12 May 2022.
  18. [18]
    "Jessa Khan to Face Amanda 'Tubby' Alequin for ONE Championship Debut". 16 June 2022.
  19. [19]
    "IBJJF European Championship 2023 Full Results And Review". JitsMagazine. 30 January 2023. Retrieved 5 February 2023.
  20. [20]
    "IBJJF Santa Cruz Open 2023 Produces Exciting Results". JitsMagazine. 24 April 2023. Retrieved 24 April 2023.
  21. [21]
    Phillips, Sabrina (8 May 2023). "Jessa Khan Wins Gold At Southeast Asian Games 2023". JitsMagazine. Retrieved 8 May 2023.
  22. [22]
    Phillips, Sabrina (19 May 2023). "Jessa Khan Donates SEA Games Winnings To Cambodian Red Cross". Jitsmagazine. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
  23. [23]
    "IBJJF World Championship 2023 Full Results And Review". JitsMagazine. 5 June 2023. Retrieved 5 June 2023.
  24. [24]
    Phillips, Sabrina (19 July 2023). "Danielle Kelly Faces Jessa Khan For First Women's Title At ONE Fight Night 14". Jitsmagazine. Retrieved 19 July 2023.
  25. [25]
    "Danielle Kelly Wins First Female Submission Grappling Title At ONE Fight Night 14". Jitsmagazine. 30 September 2023. Retrieved 30 September 2023.
  26. [26]
    "IBJJF No Gi World Championship 2023 Full Results And Review". Jitsmagazine. 10 December 2023. Retrieved 11 December 2023.


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