Calder Grove's young martial arts star Elsie May ready to take on the world

Elsie May, 12, has trained in various forms of martial arts, starting with karate when just three-year-old.

At five she started learning Brazilian Jujitsu (BJJ) and her love of the sport led her to start competing in various competitions locally and then all over the UK where she has been successful in winning an array of medals.

Alongside BJJ at nine years of age Elsie started attending Kettlethorpe Guardians Boxing Club where she found she had a natural flare for striking.

Her coach believed in her abilities and a year later he entered her into her first amateur boxing bout, which gave her great experience and enjoyment of performing to a crowd.

On April Fool’s Day 2023 Elsie was competing at the BJJ Yorkshire Open in Huddersfield where Tom Crosby, AVT Leeds and Team England Youth MMA coach spotted her potential.

He contacted her parents and invited her to come and train with him and his team at AVT. Elsie had found her new home, with Tom’s coaching, support and guidance along with the other AVT coaches and the support of her fellow teammates Elsie thrived.

She expanded her skill set to incorporate grappling, striking and kick boxing alongside her beloved BJJ – here she would find herself falling in love with the sport of mixed martial arts (MMA).

In May 2024 Elsie was invited to go and train with the Amateur England MMA Team, which led to her securing a spot on the England Youth team in February to compete in the IMMAF (International Mixed Martial Arts Federation) European Championships in Serbia.

And she did more than just compete as at the of age just 11 years old Elsie proudly won a bronze medal for her country.

Her hard work and dedication to the sport has further paid off as she has now secured a spot on the England team once more. The Calder Grove girl will be travelling to Abu Dhabi in July to compete in the IMMAF World Championships.

"Elsie is excited and proud to have this honour given to her,” Dianne Lodge told the Express about her granddaughter.

"Having the opportunity to showcase her talents on a world stage is a dream come true.

"She is also very excited to be sharing her dream with nine of her fellow AVT teammates, who have also been selected for the England Youth MMA team, which gives huge credit to her coaches at her home club and the talent of the young athletes they are producing from the same gym.

“Elsie is very committed and works hard, dedicating five or six days a week to her MMA training schedule. An average week will see Elsie train anything between 15-20 hours, she absolutely loves it and one day dreams of becoming a professional MMA fighter in the UFC.”

Elsie’s family have started a gofundme fundraiser to help with the expenses of competing at the World Championships, which can be found at https://www.gofundme.com/f/elsie-mayhem-lodge-to-compete-at-the-immaf-world-champions?

On the page Elsie says: “I’m currently floating around on cloud nine.

"I’m very proud to share that I have secured my spot on the England Amateur MMA team to represent my country at the IMMAF Youth Championships in UAE Al-Ain, July 2025.

“This is a huge honour to have been selected once again to compete for England. Earlier this year at just 11 years old, I was chosen for the England MMA youth team. I travelled to Serbia where I made my amateur MMA debut at the European IMMAF Championships. I fought so hard and managed to bring a bronze medal back home for my country.

"My hard work and on going dedication to my sport has paid off and I have been given another incredible opportunity to level up and compete on a world stage. This is an absolute dream come true. Not just for myself, but for my family and to be able to represent for my beloved home training club, AVT.

"This sport is my number one passion and I want to do my country, family, friends and home team proud. I work really hard, fully committing myself to bettering my skills and techniques as an amateur MMA athlete.

“However, this incredible opportunity is entirely self funded. It’s down to my family and I to be responsible for covering the immense costs of flights and travel, accommodation, entry fees, medical and insurance and ongoing training expenses. This is why I’m reaching out for sponsorship support from individuals and businesses who want the opportunity also to be a part of this exciting journey.”