Story by Isaiah Montoya
Fight Photos by Herman Delgado Photos
Glamor photos by Big O Photos
El Paso’s Stephanie Han is now the WBA (World Boxing Association) female lightweight champion and she ranks it as one of her greatest accomplishments; alongside being a wife, a mother, a model, a beauty pageant contestant and a policewoman.
Han beat Hannah Terlep in front of a hometown crowd at the El Paso County Coliseum, now securing a 10-0 record, but she’s not going to stop there. She has her eyes set on unifying her world championship status by also attaining the WBC (World Boxing Council), IBF (International Boxing Federation) and WBL (World Boxing League) belts. “I want them too,” she says.
Setting her priorities and training in order may one day allow her to accomplish her upcoming boxing goals, yet like many El Pasoans she is first off dedicated to her family and a distant second is her career. She also attributes to her husband the leeway to go above and beyond. “I thank my husband, 100%,” states Han. “His support allows me to chase my dreams. I’m truly blessed with him and my 10-year-old son and seven-year-old daughter. I’m proud to be El Paso’s latest world champion but I’m most proud of being a mom to two beautiful children.”
Stephanie’s older sister Jennifer Han (who has been featured in CityBeat Magazine multiple times) was the IBF featherweight champion from 2015 to 2020. She finished her career with a 18-5-1 record with three no contests and she was instrumental in Stephanie’s training. City beat has followed Jennifer’s career over the years. Her older brother Abie Han also was a professional fighter who finished his career with a 26-4-1 record. He now owns a martial arts studio on El Paso’s Westside.
Stephanie says of her sister, “She supported me and helped keep me mentally strong.” Jennifer utilized her knowledge as a seasoned champ to help her younger sister overcome any potential obstacles. “She pushed me to put 100% effort in and not be nervous of the pressure. Growing up in martial arts and having the discipline to compete also added to her love and support for me.” Their father is Master Bae H. Han, a ninth degree black belt. His martial arts studio has also been featured in CityBeat Magazine.
Stephanie grew up amidst her father’s school in El Paso which gave her a background for proper combat and conduct during a confrontation which comes in handy at her other profession as a local police officer.
“I became an El Paso police officer in 2017,” says Han. At this point she has naturally progressed to being an instructor at the El Paso Police Department Training Academy. “One of the things that I do is I assist with defensive tactics,” she says. “We do boxing conditioning. It’s not part of our defensive tactics program, but they do get exposed to boxing. I truly love it because I grew up teaching boxing and other tactics. I love making a difference and I’ve had a lot of support within the department…and a lot of haters.”
Such is the life of a police officer. Of course, Han wasn’t always an instructor for the EPPD. She has seen her share of patrolling the streets and has indeed utilized her self-defense skills as a means of completing the job. “Obviously, I’ve had to defend myself, and as a traditional martial artist it’s not like I’m going out there saying, ‘Let me kick your butt’. The only times when I’ve really had to use force while on the job is when the person was intoxicated. I used my skills to de-escalate the situation.”
Balancing her professional careers which both sometimes include life threatening circumstances along with her home life can be strenuous but Han says it’s about love and dedication. “Sometimes I sacrifice my sleep in order to get all of these things done but with my support group I can say it’s worth it.” For these reasons she is delving into new arenas of accomplishments, such as modeling and beauty pageants.
On March 15th at Hotel Paso Del Norte Stephanie combined her combat and public service skills with modeling and public speaking. The pageant was won by Danielle Kaufman and Han came in third place! For her it was about confidence and representing herself, her family and El Paso.
According to a Miss Sun City news release, Han is in line with their vision, “Beyond the competition, this is about giving women a platform to share their stories. Every contestant has a journey – a story of perseverance, ambition and resilience. This pageant is about amplifying their voices, celebrating their achievements, and empowering them to step into their full potential.”
Regarding her modeling and beauty pageants Han says, “I felt like such a girl while modeling and the event was such a great experience. I enjoyed every moment of it. I might compete again in the future but I should be boxing again soon so my focus is on that now.”
Han may be defending her title as soon as July so she is obviously in for some major training and as an El Paso native she is proud of doing it here. As a person of partially Korean descent she feels El Paso is accepting. “El Paso is different from other big cities. Plus my whole family lives here including my neices and nephews.” She is not going to be leaving The Sun City anytime soon.
As a sign of recognition for the boxer and her whole family El Paso Mayor Oscar Lesser has proclaimed August 13th as Stephanie Han Day in El Paso.
Reflecting upon her life thus far Han is proud of all she’s learned and accomplished and she looks forward to a productive future. Despite all the accolades and responsibilities and all it draws from her, she boils it down to this one maxim which the family oriented city of El Paso can relate to, “For now, I’m content to be a mom and a wife.”
