Angela Lee was raised in a mixed martial arts home where both of her parents were avid participants. They introduced her to mixed martial arts when she was only six years old. Angela Lee is a former professional mixed martial artist who fought in ONE Championship’s atomweight and strawweight divisions. She created history as the first ONE Atomweight World Champion and was unbeaten in that weight class.
Angela Lee became the youngest individual in MMA history to win a world championship on May 5, 2016, at the age of 19 years and 9 months. Lee defended her title five times before retiring in September 2023, capping up a historic seven-year championship run, the longest in ONE history. Tragically, after the death of her younger sister, Victoria Lee, Angela announced her retirement from MMA at ONE Fight Night 14 on September 30, 2023.
Angela Lee’s parents, Ken and Jewelz Lee
Angela Lee was born on July 8, 1996, in British Columbia, Canada, to parents Ken Lee and Jewelz Lee. Her father, Ken Lee, is of Chinese-Singaporean descent, while her mother, Jewelz Lee, is a South Korean-born Canadian. When Angela was seven years old, her family moved to Hawaii. Angela’s parents are both martial artists, which led her to start practicing at the age of six. Her father, Ken Lee, has a lifetime interest in martial arts, earning black belts in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, pankration, and taekwondo. In addition to his successes, he owned many gyms in Vancouver.
He also served as the head coach of the Canadian Sports Jiu-Jitsu Association and the president of the Canadian Pangration Federation. Similarly, Angela’s mother, Jewelz Lee, is a two-time Canadian silver medalist with black belts in taekwondo and hapdosool. The Lee family exposed their children to martial arts at a young age, making it a shared family activity.
Eldest of the Four Siblings
Angela is the eldest of four siblings, including Christian, Victoria, and Adrian. Their father served as a coach for all of the siblings, leading them through their MMA careers. Christian, one of Angela’s younger brothers, also participates in MMA, while Adrian trains in martial arts. In May 2019, Angela’s younger brother Christian Lee won the ONE Lightweight World Championship, making them the first sister-brother combo to win mixed martial arts world championships.
Unfortunately, Angela’s younger sister Victoria, who also competed in ONE as a mixed martial artist, died in 2022 when she was 18. Victoria was primed to thrive and perhaps exceed Angela’s accomplishments, having already won three battles and earned the nickname ‘The Prodigy.’
