You’re the first woman in China to get a brown belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. How did you get into the sport?

Before I started with jiu-jitsu, I did taekwondo for more than 10 years. I’ve also done judo in the past as well. But I changed sports because the people are very much the same height and type. Jiu-jitsu has so many different types of people who were from all kinds of backgrounds. I wanted the chance to compete against someone different.

As the only female to reach your fighting level, how do you handle going up against all those guys?

At first, I looked at everyone’s size, and almost everyone was taller than me. I thought I wasn’t going to be able to do it. But now I’m not afraid. Anyone that wants to spar with or compete against me, I will go up against them.

What did it take to get your blue belt?
It was hard getting the blue belt. It took 100 hours of training and 100 hours of sparring. After the first few months, I felt everything just started to click and my level really shot up. But after getting the blue belt, I still felt like I hadn’t really earned it. But now, training for the purple belt, I really feel like I’ve earned that blue belt. I still have two more years before I get the purple, but I just have to put in the hours to reach that next level.

What do you think about bringing women into the sport?

I am hoping more women come out and do this. A lot of men aren’t willing to go against a woman. Jiu-jitsu has a lot of grabbing, pulling and being in close quarters with your opponent. Some men aren’t comfortable with that.

Interview by Zachary Franklin