Yesterday I my wife was talking to a guy who use to teach our children at their primary school. He told her he was competing in his first BJJ tournament as a novice. When I heard this I was interested in going along and seeing what it was all about. My knowledge of BJJ is very limited. I have not practised it myself and all I know of it is based on the Gracies and the UFC. I wasn't sure what to expect but I wanted to be among New Zealand BJJ practitioners and get a feel for the type of people they are. I also wanted to see my daughter's ex-teacher having a go.
So I managed to get to the tournament after my daughter's soccer game and watch not only Adam's novice bouts but many others as I was waiting around. The first thing I noticed was the great sportsmanship shown by everybody there. Not only the practitioners but also members of the crowd. The crowd always applauded the winner, no matter who they supported. Credit given where credit is due.
I had a great conversation with a guy I met there. He was a father and his whole family was involved in the MMA gym there. He and his daughter practise BJJ and his son goes to parkour which is also attached to this gym. His family had tried BJJ and then left for awhile to try other sports but had come back because the of the great atmosphere.
During the bouts, the competitors shook hands before and after and during one of the more elite bouts where only two men were in the division, they were smiling and chuckling as they were rolling.
This was a real grass-roots competition at an amateur level and the atmosphere was chilled out and friendly. I was pleasantly surprised. There was no posturing because you spoke with your actions out on the mat. You won or you lost...end of story.
The guy I went to see did well for himself. He won both his bouts. First with an arm bar and secondly with a choke. He was really humble about it all, but man, he could move. He was fast and he was balanced. I don't know if he will continue with tournaments but he certainly has potential.
All in all it was a very positive experience.
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