The Kittle family is talented! George Kittle might be the San Francisco 49ers’ weapon, but the athlete’s strength lies in his family. A family who not only supports him in his career but also does everything to make him smile and succeed.

On one hand, Kittle is loved by his father, Bruce Kittle, who writes handwritten letters to him. While, on the other, his sister, Emma Kittle, shares one of the deepest brother-sister bonds with him in the world. Let’s dig deep to learn more about her.

Emma Kittle was also a sports star!

George Kittle has numerous accolades like First-team All-Pro, Second-team All-Pro, and Pro Bowl selections in football. But he credits a part of his success to his older sister, Emma Kittle. Like brother and father’s athletic foot, Emma too, competed in NCAA Division I sports. However, contrary to what her family chose, she opted for volleyball, instead of choosing the family’s traditional games – basketball like dad or football like Kittle. But that’s not all!

Before joining the University of Iowa’s Hawkeyes, Emma was highly accomplished. She was named as the Press Citizen’s 2009 Female High School Athlete of the Year for leading West High School to the State Volleyball Tournament. But her span of studying in Iowa University was short, as she later transferred to the University of Oklahoma to continue her Division I volleyball career. But her sports career overlapped with another interest of hers. After college, she initially planned to pursue a career in law, and she even passed the Law School Admission Test. However, that too didn’t work for her, as she eventually discovered her call for yoga.

Emma’s been George Kittle’s yoga buddy since his college days at Iowa. When George injured his foot back in 2020 and only played eight games, Emma’s yoga expertise really came in handy. Since then, he’s barely missed any games in the last couple years. Just four, if you can believe it!. Talking about it to NBC sports Bay Area, Kittle quipped “(It’s better) the more flexible you can get because sometimes when you get tackled, you land in awkward positions and stuff like that. I have learned that when you’re more flexible, stuff like that (injuries) doesn’t happen sometimes, where you just kind of tweak something. Hopefully, that will help me to stay healthy.”

Emma runs Thunderbird Performance with her father, Bruce. Besides that, she works as a yoga instructor for WON members of San Francisco, benefitting many women of Niners’ group. Additionally, when TE Kittle appeared in comedian Theo Von’s show, the host praised Emma, saying, “She’s the best, man. She’s kinda like lady-like and motherly, but like a sensei kind of… She’s like a vibe surfer or something… And she was always interested in the next, like staying on the pulse of yoga.”

Emma utilizes her extensive training in yoga, such as Vinyasa, Kundalini, Sculpt, Yin, and Pranayama. Additionally, one of her key programs, the Mindful Athlete Program, trains players to stay focused in intense game moments. Emma is indeed contributing a lot to the society, and now she is a happily married woman.

Emma Kittle married a sports star!

George Kittle’s sister married her longtime partner and best friend, Cody Joe Ponce, who pitches for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters of Nippon Professional Baseball. The couple got engaged in January 2022, and later tied the knot last year on June 2 at Santa Fe, New Mexico. The moment when Emma said “I Do,” brought cheer and a lot of emotions for the entire Kittle family who graced their presence at Emma’s big day.

That was a cheerful and emotional day for proud George, who shared the glimpses of his sister’s wedding on his official Instagram account. In one of the posts, he could be seen giving a tight hug to his sister, who looked beautiful in her bridal gown. Kittle shared photos from the wedding along with a caption for Emma: “Happy days!! My Seester got married! An incredible weekend in Santa Fe🤍 congrats to Emma and Cody for finding their best friend it makes life really fun. Lots of love for them! #dane.”

The kittle siblings’ bond epitomizes a close knit family who supports and helps each other in their endeavors.