I’m an Olympic and MMA champ but after adopting my niece and nephew being a mom is way harder, says PFL’s Kayla Harrison
KAYLA HARRISON is a double Olympic and MMA world champion - but reveals neither was as hard as motherhood.
The American in November officially adopted niece Kyla, nine, and nephew Emery, three, from her mother, taking full custody of the two.
Harrison conquered the mat as a judo champ and the cage as a two-time Professional Fighters League winner.
But unlike being coached through years of practice drills or countless rounds of sparring, no one can prepare you for parenting.
Harrison, 31, told SunSport: “Oh my God, being a mom is the hardest job ever.
“You think winning an Olympic gold medal is hard? You think fighting in a cage is hard? You think someone pushing you in the face is hard?
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“Well, have a child. You’ll be terrified for the rest of your life. It’s hard, it’s scary but I love them so much and I really want to do it right.
“But, how do you know you’re doing it right as a parent? Nobody knows, there’s no handbook. No one tells you what to do.
“You figure it out and I didn’t even know what I was missing. I had a very selfish sort of empty existence.
“I fought, made a bunch of money, I would train, go home, eat, hang out with my dog, maybe have a taco Tuesday with my friends.
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“But it was train, eat, sleep and repeat. But now my life is so full. It’s not even been that long but I can’t even remember a life without it.
“They changed my life and saved my life as much as I hope I’m changing theirs.”
Harrison is the first to admit raising two children while training to be the best fighter in the world is tiring work.
She said: “But to be quite frank, being a single mom is the hardest job in the world. I had no idea.
“To be a single mum, have two kids, to be one of the best fighters in the world, it’s a lot. I’m tired pretty much 24/7!
“I feel like I haven’t slept since I got them. That’s how it feels.”
Harrison first won judo gold in 2012 in London and doubled up her medals four years later in Rio.
But she switched to MMA after leaving the Team USA cycle and in 2018 debuted for the PFL, MMA’s only league format.
It consists of two regular-season bouts, where points are scored for method of victory and the top four qualify to the play-offs.
A semis and final format then follow, where the last two dramatically fight for the $1million winner-takes-all prize cheque.
Harrison has twice won the life-changing jackpot, in 2019 as well as 2021 and returns for a hat-trick this year.
It will be her second season as parent and another opportunity for daughter Kyla to watch her superhero mom in action.
Harrison revealed: “My daughter comes to some of my fights now, she’s old enough to get it.
“She knows what I’m doing and we talk about it a lot.”
Harrison wants to fight long enough to inspire her two kids - but not at the cost of missing their childhood.
She explained: “I want to be a role model and show to them that dream really do come true if you work hard.
“I do want them to see me work hard, I do want them to see me chase my dreams so they can have that same opportunity that I had.
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“But I also want to be there for them. I want to see them. I don’t want to miss those moments, that’s important for me, to be present in their lives, which I am.”
Harrison won the opening fight of her PFL 2022 season, beating Marina Mokhnatkina, 34, and returns against Kaitlin Young, 36, on Friday in Atlanta.
