Finding your “soulmate” on the mats is hardly uncommon. Jiu-jitsu creates friendships that can last a lifetime, and for some people, it can also create love that lasts forever.
This was the case for BJJ purple belt Luke Morton and blue belt and MMA fighter Melany Ward, who first met at a FUJI tournament.
Luke told the Jiu-Jitsu Times about the couple’s relationship. “She was working the tournament and I was competing. She ended up seeing me warming up,” he says. “We made eye contact right before I was about to go on the mat, and she turned to her friend and started laughing. I thought she was making fun of me… turns out it was the opposite.”
Luke won both his matches, providing Melany the perfect opportunity to hand him his medal and get the conversation started. “We started dating a few months after that tournament. By March, her and I were pretty much inseparable. I talked to her mom at the beginning of May if she was ok with me marrying her daughter, and she was. I waited till September to ask her, though, to make sure we both weren’t rushing things and had time to talk about adult details of the relationship.”
When the time came to propose, Luke sprung into action. “I went looking on a Thursday, bought the ring I knew was perfect, and proposed on a Friday. My professor and best man, Michael Cox, helped me with my plan to propose Friday morning, and we put the plan into action that Friday night at open mat.”
The actual proposal involved some trickery to pull off. While the couple rolled together that evening, Luke faked a hurt arm to create the distraction needed to get Melany out of the room in time to get the ring situated. And then… well, you can see for yourself:
Luke credits jiu-jitsu not only with introducing him to the love of his life, but also with helping both him and his fiancee through good times and bad. “Honestly, jiu-jitsu brought us together, helped both of us through rough times when we were together and before we met, and it’s what Mel and I do for fun every week so I can definitely say jiu-jitsu has had a positive impact on us as individuals and as a couple.”
Congratulations to the future bride and groom!
