Profile – Van Do

Van wins a No Gi match at 2007 Pan Ams

Van was born in Saigon, Vietnam and lived in the United States for most of her life. Her training began with Tae Kwon Do when she was 12 years old. She has also trained in several other styles, including Aikido, Karate, and Vovinam (Vietnamese martial arts). In 2002, kickboxing piqued her interest because it was the fastest way to start fighting in competitions. Seeking out the best in kickboxing training, she found Cung Le, world champion fighter who turned her into a national San Shou champion within only four months of training.

She later started training in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in 2005 under the guidance of Black Belt Garth Taylor in California, and later under Paul Schreiner. She has won championships in several prestigious BJJ competitions, including the US Open, the Pan Americans, and the Worlds. Van currently holds a Purple Belt, awarded by her trainers Paul Schreiner and Garth Taylor in October 2008. She moved to New Zealand in 2009.

Highlights from her BJJ and Fight career:

• 2009 IBJJF Mundials Purple Belt Super Feather 3rd Place (Long Beach, CA)
• 2009 Hook and Shoot 115 lb MMA Semi-Finalist (Evansville, IN)
• 2008 US OPEN XIII BJJ Blue Belt Super Feather 1st Place (Santa Cruz, CA)
• 2008 Princesses of Pain 52kg International MMA Champion (New Zealand)
• 2007 K-1 Kickboxing Champion 112 lb (Las Vegas, NV)
• 2007 Pan Americans BJJ 1st Place Blue Belt Super Feather with Gi (Carson, CA)
• 2006 Cage Combat MMA Champion 105 lb (Santa Rosa, CA)
• 2006 US Open XI BJJ 2nd Place Blue Belt Super Feather (Santa Cruz, CA)
• 2006 Pan American BJJ 3rd Place Blue Belt Rooster (Carson, CA)
• 2005 World Wushu San Shou 3rd Place 48 kg (Han Noi, Vietnam)
• 2005 USAWKF USA San Shou Team Member
• 2005 US Open X BJJ 1st Place White Belt Rooster (Santa Cruz, CA)
• 2005 IKF USA Featherweight San Shou Champion (San Jose, CA)
• 2003 USAWKF USA San Shou Team Member
• 2003 Arnold Classic San Shou First Place Featherweight (Columbus, OH)
• 2002 USAWKF San Shou National Champion Featherweight (San Francisco, CA)