TCU student and Olympic hopeful competes in Judo Junior World Championships
Jayda Fulp first entered the world of judo at 8 years old because her grandfather wanted her to use the sport to hone her take-down skills to enhance her Brazilian jujitsu.
However, the moment she stepped foot on the mat, she found her calling. Fulp remembered the moment she fell in love with martial arts.
“I just wanted to do it,” she said. “Like, literally, my grandpa took me to a jujitsu practice, and he told me not to go on the mat. And he left to go do a surgery, and I got on the mat without telling him, and I choked someone. I was like, ‘Yeah, I want to do martial arts. This is awesome.’”
The 18-year-old, who is also starting her freshman year at TCU, earned a spot on Team USA for the Judo Junior World Championships. While most of her classmates are adjusting to their course load, she was in Lima, Peru, this week for the competition.
Fulp has traveled across the globe with judo. She said the favorite place she has gone was the statue of Christ the Redeemer in Brazil, where she also met one of her idols, Olympic gold medalist Rafaela Silva.
Fulp explained how she juggles being a world-class athlete and college freshman while still finding time for ROTC.
“I put all my classes in the morning because I knew at night, I’d have things to do, like I have practice, I have other things that I need to get to,” Fulp said. “Also, I teach kids on Fridays, and I run an after-school program that we have at Chandler Dojo, so like, I made sure that I scheduled my time. I do my homework during the day, try and get all those things done, as well as manage ROTC on Tuesdays and Thursdays for the Air Force.”
Fulp is a movement science major on the pre-med track who hopes to become a plastic surgeon or physical therapist, following in the footsteps of her mother, a cardiothoracic nurse.
She talked about how her family has supported her journey and some of the hardships of competing.
“It’s a little hard, just because our family doesn’t come like, we don’t come from a lot, so going to other places, it’s hard to get funds. We use GoFundMe and stuff like that to help raise money to go to other places,” she said. “They’re great supporters. Like, they’re always always cheering me on from home, making sure, right after I fight, they text me or they FaceTime me. Keeping a relationship while I’m out of the country is like a thing that I love the most from them. It’s amazing.”
Those interested in donating to help Fulp’s journey can find it on GoFundMe.
This is Fulp’s first year on the junior team after previously competing with the cadet teams in years past, and she hopes this tournament will help her achieve an even bigger goal coming to Los Angeles in 2028.
“We’re trying to work on our way to being top 16 in the world for seniors in order to directly qualify instead of going to the Olympic qualifiers,” Fulp said. “So we’re working on our way there. This is the start of it. If I win a match at junior worlds. This will be the start of me growing and growing up to the ‘28 Olympics.”
Judo Junior World Championships results
In Peru, Fulp lost in the first round to the world’s No. 1-ranked junior in the 78-kilogram class, France’s Lila Mazzarino, a competitor two years her senior.
“So the experience of competing was amazing, I mean, I know I lost, but I went against the European champion,” Fulp said. “... We’ll be back next year, hopefully striving to place.”
Fulp believes she can make it to the Olympics, and that’s in part thanks to her coach Carrie Chandler, who runs Chandler Judo Academy and was once the No. 1-ranked judoka in the U.S.
“She’s just always saying to me to remember that you’re No. 1, you can do this,” Fulp said. “Don’t be scared. Don’t be afraid, you are the best. And not many of my other coaches did that, and so having her by my side gets me in my zone, and she makes sure I’m focused outside of judo as well. Always just making sure, like, I’m on top of my things, I’m doing the right thing, like I’m not, going out and partying like everyone else is, or missing my school or anything. I’m always on a strict schedule, and it’s literally from her.”
Chandler praised Fulp’s ability to stay on schedule and trust that her efforts and sacrifices will be rewarded.
“She’s special. I say this all the time, but Jayda is not afraid to win. She’s a really strong competitor,” Chandler said. “Like a lot of times, kids get out there, especially on the world tour, if you go out for the first time, you’re on a jumbotron, there are fans, reporters, cameras everywhere, and they get scared to win, and Jayda is not scared to win. She really likes being out there under the lights and performing and putting on a show.
“Credit to her for just trusting in that process, because it’s hard to do, especially at her age, and she’s a really popular girl. She’s got a lot of people wanting a lot of pieces of her time, and so that’s something that we talk about, too. And she just always stays the course.”
This story was originally published October 4, 2025 at 11:01 AM.
