Special guest, Larry Shealy!

Hey everyone, good news! We’re going to have an Instructor Certification Course later this month. If you are an instructor, an assistant instructor, or just want to be an instructor eventually, you’re exactly who we want to help. Teaching Jiu Jitsu takes a certain set of skills that need to be just as developed as your skills on the mat.

We’re holding it over a three day period, June 25, 26, and 27th. It will be two full days of instruction on Friday and Saturday, then a partial day on Sunday followed by graduation and certification.  It will be at the USA Jiu Jitsu National Training Center, 7841 Rolling Road,Suite D. Springfield, VA 22153.

As a special bonus, we’ll be having a guest instructor, Larry Shealy! Larry has been a member of USAJJ nearly from the get go, and is renown for his involvement in th Jiu Jitsu community. He is also a black belt, and a member of the Black Belt Council.

In 2003, Larry began developing the “Kid-Jitsu®” program along with the “Kid-Jitsu® Values Program”. This trademark registered program teaches children the fundamentals of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu, while weaving targeted values into each lesson within the “Kid-Jitsu®” Children’s Curriculum.

So come down to the NTC and learn proper techniques for teaching Jiu Jitsu to other people. It’s guaranteed to be fun, and it will help you become a better teacher. Register online or call the NTC to reserve your spot now. Cost is free to member schools for the primary instructor, $175.00 for individual members, $250.00 for non-members.

Matthew Barvo is the owner and head Jiu-Jitsu instructor at Team Beast Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. He began his Jiu-Jitsu training in 1999, and has over five years of instructing experience.

Matt is currently training to compete in the No-Gi Panams and No-Gi World Championships. He has cross-trained in Muay Thai Kickboxing, Judo, and Mixed Martial Arts. He is also Boise State University’s only Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu instructor.

Team Beast BJJ offers classes in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu, Fight Fitness and Self Defense. Their training center has over 4,000 sq. ft. of grappling mats and an assortment of over 20 punching bags.

So if you live in or near Eagle, Idaho, stop by and check out Team Beast BJJ & MMA. There can’t be too many people teaching Jiu Jitsu in Eagle, short of going into Boise, so if you want to learn Jiu Jitsu, learn from the best you can, and visit Team Beast.

Matt Barvo, Team Beast BJJ, welcome to USAJJ!

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06/12/2010 Edit

Mr. Barvo’s Brazilian Jiu Jitsu lineage is under investigation by our officials. Thanks to all of those that pointed out the ongoing Bullshido happening over at : http://www.bullshido.net/forums/showthread.php?t=95870

We’ll post our findings as we collect them.

Master Kazeka Muniz

Here is some great news if you live in Lancaster or Palmdale California. Master Kazeka Muniz, member of the Black Belt Council, has opened a new academy in Palmdale, CA.  The new school is named Premium Fitness and it is set to bring some much needed Jiu Jitsu love to the surrounding area.

Master Kazeka Muniz obtained his black belt in Jiu Jitsu from Carlos Gracie Jr. of Gracie Barra academy in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He has trained alongside such world class jiu-jitsu fighters as Renzo Gracie, Ryan Gracie, Roger Gracie, Marcio Feitosa, Draculino, Soca, Pe de Pano, Gordo, and the Machado Brothers.

Master Muniz has lived in Krasnoyarsk, Russia and Tbilisi, Georgia (former Soviet Union) training with world and Olympic champions Adam and Bouvaisar Saitiev under world-renown coach Alexander Karniashvili. Master Kazeka Muniz was the strength and conditioning coach for 4 Olympic gold medalists in wrestling from Cuba. He is still welcome to train with both the Cuban and Russian Olympic wrestling teams.

In 2004, Master Muniz helped create England’s number one MMA gym, the Wolfslair, and was the wrestling coach for former UFC Light heavy weight champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and Ultimate Fighter Season 2 champion Michael “the Count” Bisping.

The Kids Jiu Jitsu class at Premium Fitness

Premium Fitness is a huge gym with plenty of room and equipment for training. And there are a LOT of things to train in. Premium Fitness offers Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, No-Gi Jiu Jitsu, Freestyle Wrestling, Kickboxing, and of course, a combination of them all for the MMA program.

A lot of attention is placed on the childrens classes as well. Master Muniz offers a Kids Jiu Jitsu and a Kids Wrestling class. It’s never too early to have your child involved in a healthy form of exercise, and starting at a young age will set patterns and behaviors that last a lifetime.

So if you’ve been looking for a  Jiu Jitsu academy in Palmdale or Lancaster, CA, look no further. Master Muniz can teach you what you want to know, and he does offer a free week pass. There’s a reason he is such a highly respected member of the sport and one of the governing bodies for this Jiu Jitsu organization.

Did you HEAR it? That’s intense! And with the big gash from the surgery, it looks even crazier in person. The best part, though, is how he just walks off like it’s not a big deal. That’s tough.

Morrison was competing in Mission Submission 1.5 when it happened. When Morrison passed his opponent’s guard, Jay Speight a very talented 16 y/o, he set up a move called a Bicep Slicer. It’s called a Bicep Slicer; bet that’s a little worse than a Charlie Horse.

A Bicep Slicer is a painful move (no, really?)  that super extends the nerves in the bicep and the forearm, but it’s not intended to break any bones. No submission in MMA is intended to break bones – they are aimed at joints and ligaments.  What happened to Morrison was a really freaky accident.

An expensive one too. To the tune of $47,000. that’s a LOT more than a membership in USAJJ.

What happened to Morrison. Both bones snapped.

While we may practice and take precautions against injury, it can still happen to anyone. That’s why it is important to have the insurance. Here’s the breakdown:

General Liability -This program provides protection for your Martial Arts School its owners, directors, instructors and employees against claims of bodily injury liability, property damage liability and the litigation costs to defend against such claims.
Coverage is provided up to $1,000,000.00 per occurrence with a general aggregate amount of $2,000,000.00. There is no deductible and no charge for additional insureds.

School owners register for USAJJ here.

Accident Insurance - All youth and adult students and staff members of the Policyholder are covered while participating in sponsored activities. A member is also covered while traveling, directly and without interruption, to and from any Policyholder sponsored activity and his or her home or place of residence. Coverage is $100,000 per accidents with a $250 deductible.

Individual members register for USAJJ here.

So if you’re not a member, maybe you should reconsider. Unless you carry $47,000 in your back pocket.

The tournament is being held April 15^th, 16^th, and 17^th, and has a total prize value of $150,000. This is one of the largest purses in any Jiu Jitsu event in the world. The absolute champ will take home $12,000. Sure beats working in an office.

The event has the full support of the Abu Dhabi government and is supported personally by his Highness the Supreme Prince and Commander In Chief of the United Arab Emirates National Army, H. H. Sheik Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan.  The tournament is being promoted as the largest in the world. Also new this year, there will be a womens division. It is great to see that women practitioners are gaining the same recognition in the sport as men.

Papa John will be attending with Gilson Fernandes .  One of the reasons they are going to Abu Dhabi is to support Jiu Jitsu International, and our Jiu Jitsu organization,  and discuss its participation amongst other countries. Sylvio Behring, president of the Jiu Jitsu Internationale Black Belt Council, will be there coaching Anderson Silva who is competing at a UFC event April 10th.

Also attending is Johnny Ramirez, who is a member of the USAJJ Black Belt Council and operates a successful Jiu Jitsu school in Los Angeles. As you may know, Johnny won the Abu Dhabi West Coast Trials which took place in Santa Cruz, CA on January 24th

The tournament will be open to everyone. Participation in the trials is not mandatory; however the winners of the trials have an all expenses paid trip to Abu Dhabi for the tournament.

This is a huge event featuring combatants from around the world. We all envy Papa John for his chance to take part in this amazing tournament.  Good Luck to Papa John and ALL the competitors, and have fun!

Jordan Military during troop maneuvers

Here is some exciting news. “Papa” John Gorman has been honored with an invitation by King Abdullah II bin al-Hussein of Jordan to visit his country!

The official invite came on behalf of the kings military. There, Papa John is planning to discuss the Modern Army Combatives Program with the Jordanian military.

The goal of Modern Combatives is to build real combative ability by teaching realistic training methods and growing self sustaining indigenous Combatives programs within units and organizations. It is focused on hand to hand combat, and Jiu Jitsu is a fundemental part of the system. It was developed by Matt Larsen, a member of the USAJJ Black Belt Council.

Papa John is also going to invite members of the Jordanian military to come to Fort Benning in Georgia to train. Fort Benning is the home of the United States Army Combatives School, started in 2002.

The school offers four levels of instructor certification, and it would allow Jordanian soldiers to learn here in the States, then return home and pass on the instruction. Also, instructors from the USACS could travel to Jordan, allowing for a mutually beneficial cross cultural training exchange.

And possibly even more exciting, Papa John is going assist in founding Jiu Jitsu Jordan, which will be yet another national organization under the Jiu Jitsu Internationale banner. Every country that joins our Jiu Jitsu organization brings us one step closer to our dreams of participating in the 2016 Olympics in Rio.

So good luck Papa John and have a safe trip!

Philip Smith and SmithBJJ Club

Phillip Smith was introduced to Jiu Jitsu in 1996 at Warner Air Force base in Robins, GA. In 1997 Smith began to train with Romero “Jacare” Calvalcanti. After several years training in the sport, and a brief hiatus to earn his Master’s Degree in International Relations, Smith trained under and received his Black Belt from Roberto Traven. He still trains with and is affiliated with Roberto Traven and the Brasa team.

Under the Jiu Jitsu Professor LLC umbrella, Smith owns and operates his academy, Smith Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, in McDonough, GA. Here, Smith has 26 students and four other highly decorated instructors, including a law enforcement specialist and MMA trainer. His top student and fellow instructor Chris Haraszti won his division in the Pan American with no points scored against him.

Smith feels that the future of BJJ is with the children involved in the sport. To further this end, Smith has developed his own children’s program, Dragon Power-Jitsu.  The core of the program is based on developing coordination, self-discipline and agility, as well as setting a solid foundation for Jiu Jitsu. It also incorporates activities from other sports, so that the child is well rounded and prepared for any activity he may be involved with. Smith also likes to include the parents in the training session, and often invites them to join their child on the mat.

Smith joined our Jiu Jitsu organization because he shares our vision of Jiu Jitsu in the Olympics. He feels we are more disciplined and organized than other organizations and will succeed in our dream. Working from that perspective, Smith joined because he wants to be involved from the beginning.

So Phillip Smith, we welcome you to USA Jiu Jitsu and thank you for sharing our vision!

Donnie Tinsley and Team Sprawl and Brawl

Donnie is a 3rd Dan Black Belt in TKD and a Blue Belt in Jiu Jitsu under Morrison Butler. Donnie has been studying martial arts for over 15 years. He started practicing TKD in high school with his parents as a family hobby. Donnie really got into martial arts because, although team work is important, once he’s in the ring, it’s on him, win or lose. Donnie got into Jiu Jitsu after sparring with a wrestler and realized how critical ground technique was when he lost.

Now he operates at the Tae Kwon Do Institute of Self Defense, which has locations in Elizabeth City and Hertford, NC. The Tae Kwon Do Institute is the longest running Martial Arts School in Northeastern NC. With over 20 years teaching experience in the Martial Arts, they offer programs in TKD, submission wrestling, Thai boxing, and MMA to people of all ages. He has about 55 students under his wing.

Donnie is also the co-founder of Team Sprawl and Brawl, the first amateur MMA team to bring Championship recognition to North Carolina. Team Sprawl and Brawl was founded in Elizabeth City June of 2000 by Donnie Tinsley & Mike Kellar. The team has members that practice at both Elizabeth City & Hertford locations. Donnie welcomes all people to join their team.

And as if he isn’t busy enough, Donnie is the owner of Coastal Combat Circuit, which is his organization to host tournaments all over the NE North Carolina area. While just by itself it’s great that someone is bringing MMA and no-gi tournaments to this area, Donnie also contributes a percentage of ALL profits to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation from all of his events. The CF Foundation puts the largest percentage of its donations to research of all other CF charities. Donnie has two students with CF and feels this is a great way to help people with the condition.

Donnie joined USAJJ because of the sense of community and support. There are not many choices in his area for martial arts, especially Jiu Jitsu, and as a member of our rapidly growing Jiu Jitsu organization, he and his students now have more options for learning and competing. He also thinks that our goal of getting Jiu Jitsu in the Olympics is a great idea.

So once again, Donnie, welcome to USA Jiu Jitsu!

Larry, a Gracie Jiu-Jitsu black belt instructor, believes that training in Jiu-Jitsu should be learned with consistent and intelligent practice, with impeccable technique, with constant repetition and with excellent use of leverage and timing versus strength and explosiveness. His philosophy is to “train for 30 years, not 30 minutes.” Thus, safety and knowing when to “tap” is paramount. Senseless injuries have never made anyone a better Jiu-Jitsu Player!

Jacksonville Brazillian Jiu Jitsu

Larry’s main goal is to promote the growth of BJJ, and his main method of encouraging this growth is through children with his trademark registered “Kid-Jitsu” program. The program teaches children fundamentally sound principals and techniques of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, while also addressing 26 core values that are at the heart of the Kid-Jitsu Values Program. The techniques taught work for children of all sizes, shapes, temperaments, and athletic ability. Classes are taught in a fun, fast paced, and friendly environment. A significant amount of time is spent on the mat safely sparring with teammates.

Kid-Jitsu is not a program that is running kids through the belts based on how many classes the parents pay for, but instead, belt promotion is based on how much the student learns and progresses. The student must earn the promotion.

And while Larry see’s Kid-Jitsu as the best way to ensure the future of our sport, he doesn’t neglect the adults. JaxBJJ offers many different classes, from beginner to advanced. He also offers several courses based around Jiu Jitsu, including a women’s only self defense class.

So if you live in the Jacksonville area, stop by and talk to Professor Larry Shealy at JaxBJJ. There is a program
for everyone.

And take a look at Larry’s Kid-Jitsu page if your interested in incorporating Kid-Jitsu in your school.

USAJJ officially 501(c)(3)

USA Jiu Jitsu has finally been approved for 501(c) (3) tax-exempt status! We are one of the only Jiu Jitsu organizations in the country to have this status. Here is an explanation of why this is so important to our cause.

We are now recognized by the U.S. Government

A 501(c) organization, like USA Jiu Jitsu, or simply “a 501(c)” is a tax-exempt, nonprofit corporation or association. Section 501(c) of the United States Internal Revenue Code, provides that 26 types of nonprofit organizations are exempt from some federal income taxes. USAJJ is type 3 which includes organizations that are Religious, Educational, Charitable, Scientific, Literary, Testing for Public Safety, to Foster National or International Amateur Sports Competition, or Prevention of Cruelty to Children or Animals . Obviously, we fall under the International Amateur Sports Competition heading. By law, 501(c)(3) orginizations are subject to limits or absolute prohibitions on engaging in political activities.

So what does all this mean?

It means that USAJJ is officially and legally non-profit.

It also means that as a member of USA Jiu Jitsu, you belong to an organization that has no motives other than to promote the sport of Jiu Jitsu. We have always firmly believed in an organization that is free of politics and egos.

We hold that the promotion and support of Jiu Jitsu as a whole must come before any individual concerns. We will never promote any political party, or be used as a political tool.

And most importantly of all, these facts are recognized by the United States Government.This brings us one step closer to our goal of having Jiu Jitsu in the 2016 Olympics.

Today is a wonderful day in the world of Jiu Jitsu.