Late MMA fighter Victoria Lee: ONE Championship and Evolve gym announce award, scholarships in her name

Mixed martial arts fighter Angela Lee has posted a touching tribute to her late sister Victoria Lee on what would have been her 19th birthday, with the promotion ONE Championship also announcing multiple new programmes to honour her legacy.

Chairman and chief executive officer Chatri Sityodtong said that Jan 13 would be “Victoria Lee Day” in ONE Championship every year.

Nicknamed “The Prodigy”, she was set for her next fight in Bangkok on that date in 2023, before her death on Boxing Day last December in Hawaii, where she was born and raised and had lived with her family.

Chatri added ONE would give out the Victoria Lee Award every year to a fighter who “goes above and beyond the call of duty” in giving back to their community through charitable efforts and contributions, with the first recipient to be chosen later this year.

Singapore-based gym Evolve MMA, of which Victoria Lee was a member along with her siblings and fellow ONE fighters Angela and Christian Lee, will also award scholarships to “deserving youths who wish to pursue their dream of becoming a world champion in martial arts”.

The pool of candidates will be selected from youth and amateur MMA organisations around the world, Chatri said.

“Angela, her family, and I have had multiple discussions over the last several months on the best way to honour Victoria’s life,” he added. “We would love to ensure that her legacy of selfless love, beautiful kindness and raw authenticity lives forever.

“Let us join hands with the Lee family to keep Victoria’s spirit alive every day around the world. Together, we can spread what Victoria started.

“Happy birthday, Victoria. We miss you more than words can express. We love you forever. Thank you for inspiring all of us.”

ONE’s atomweight MMA champion Angela Lee, 26, thanked Chatri and ONE in a post on Instagram “for joining my family in honouring Victoria for all she was and all she wished to accomplish”.

“I promise you sis, this is just the beginning. We will change the world, together,” she added.

In a separate social media post on Wednesday, Angela wished her “beautiful baby sis” Victoria a “happy heavenly birthday”.

“I feel so lucky and so grateful to have known someone as great as you. There is no one quite like you … I miss you so much,” she said.

“Today and every day, we celebrate you Victoria. Wise beyond your years and kind beyond compare.

“These are Victoria’s words that I would like to share: ‘Everything you do affects someone. Your words hold weight, even when you say it with no value, the people you love are listening. And it is only their ears that matter. Give credit to the people who shaped you and don’t hold back on praise. Because when your actions and words of love never show, no one knows if the love is real or even there.’

“The world needs more love and kindness. Let’s do our best to #LiveLikeVictoria.”

Angela’s 17-year-old brother Adrian Lee, an amateur fighter and Hawaii high school state wrestling champion, also posted a tribute to Victoria.

“Happy 19th birthday bro, love you always!” he wrote alongside a picture of the two of them as children.

Angela Lee’s husband and fellow ONE fighter Bruno Pucci – with whom Angela has a two-year-old daughter, Ava Marie – also honoured Victoria’s birthday in an Instagram post.

“VLee, today I would like to thank you,” the 32-year-old Brazilian wrote.

“I’ve always admired your maturity, your talent for countless activities and how selfless you are. You shared a lot with us about your future plans and I was always amazed that such a young person understood so much about life.

“You understood that we all need to give more than receive. The amazing thing is that you demonstrated this by action and being genuine. You are the real translation of ‘don’t ever lose your smile’!

“I am grateful for having a younger sister like you, who taught me how to be a better person. Thank you for your unconditional godmother love to Ava.

“We miss you so much! Happy birthday! Love you and keep shining.”

It is unclear when or if Angela and her 24-year-old brother Christian Lee – ONE’s lightweight and welterweight MMA champ – will return to action in the Circle.

Chatri has said the Singapore-based martial arts promotion is set to book an interim atomweight title fight “with Angela’s blessing” between Ham Seo-hee and Stamp Fairtex.

This article was first published on SCMP.