‘I Couldn’t Be A Normal Kid’ – How Danielle Kelly Used BJJ To Overcome Bullying

Reigning ONE Atomweight Submission Grappling World Champion Danielle Kelly might be a global superstar with legions of fans today, but that doesn’t mean she’s never endured the worst parts of being an outcast.

The Philadelphia native is now preparing for the first defense of her gold, as she’s set to take on decorated Brazilian Mayssa Bastos on August 2 at ONE Fight Night 24: Brooks vs. Balart on Prime Video.

Set to go down in U.S. primetime on ONE’s massive global platform, live from Bangkok’s Lumpinee Stadium, this contest has captivated the attention of the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu world and is sure to bring out plenty of Kelly’s diehard fans.

But life wasn’t always so easy for the 28-year-old. She spoke to onefc.com about her childhood which was marked by bullying:

“I got the new-kid bully syndrome.”

Kelly changed schools twice when she was a child – once in fifth grade and again before the tenth grade.

Constantly feeling like an outsider was understandably difficult. With social groups around her already set in place, she struggled to make friends:

“Being in fifth grade, a lot of kids that grew up together, they were together from preschool or kindergarten to that time. Then, I moved to a new high school… And pretty much at that point, people already had their cliques or their friends.

“So, it was hard for me to even have five friends.”

To make matters worse, Kelly had no one to talk to outside of her parents.

At school, she found herself the victim of daily bullying – from name-calling to physical attacks. As a shy and undersized young girl, Kelly seemed like an easy target for her bullies.

She recalled how bullying affected every part of her life and robbed her of a happy childhood:

“Most girls my age, they all had their friends, and they’re having fun on their own. They are not worried about [bullying]. Whereas me, I was always just worried about stuff like that. I couldn’t be a normal kid and talk about recess. I couldn’t talk about the new makeup products that came out during that time. I couldn’t talk about any of that.

“I was just worried about, well, hopefully, I don’t get beat up today.”

Kelly Credits BJJ For Helping Her Escape Bullying

Despite that bullying, Danielle Kelly was able to turn her situation around.

She started with Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in middle school, then wrestling, and says that those outlets helped her gain the self-esteem to stand up to her tormentors:

“I feel like joining sports like that, I gained a lot more confidence. And then over time, I was creating friends and in a good environment from the sports. So that kept me going and kept me motivated and busy. I’m just distracted, not thinking about school stuff.

“That really helped me a lot, focusing on competing when I was a kid, just because of good people that wanted to see me succeed. I think that’s why I’m still sticking with jiu -jitsu – because it’s my escape.”

Kelly knows firsthand just how sports and martial arts can have a positive impact on all children, especially those who are victims of bullying.

Now living her dreams on the biggest stages and competing against the planet’s best athletes, the submission grappling queen says that BJJ and wrestling saved her from an entirely different life:

“If I had a daughter, a kid that was in my shoes, I’d tell them to get into sports. I think if I didn’t get into sports when I was younger, I don’t know what I would be doing, but I don’t think I’d be doing anything good right now. I would say just find something that you’re good at or you enjoy, and stick with it.”