Jiujitsu in the Olympics?

     I just recently ran across a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Training online discussion board talking about students training at multiple schools at the same time. (click here for the thread) I'm not going to talk much about the article. Instead, I'm going to relate some of the comments on the thread if BJJ were to become an Olympic Sport. I think it's really interesting that there is this BIG push by people to introduce Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu or Grappling, who knows what it will be called, into the Olympics. Basically, the thread says that the more traditional types believe that it's one school or nothing, and other instructors are happy as long as their students are doing jiujitsu as a positive addition to their healthy lifestyle.
     Competing in the Olympics has been a childhood dream of mine, and I would love the opportunity to make a run for a spot on the Olympic Team and compete for the Olympic Gold. However, I have a feeling introducing BJJ as an Olympic Sport would could only come about with some serous changes in the way people approach training.
     First of all, the idea of only training with your team would disappear. It would be longer about the team, it would be about getting the medal, and putting yourself in a room with the best training partners to become an Olympic champion. Representing your county is now the team you need to train with. That means getting the best guys in your country together to train. This leads me to my second point, unless your academy is in the same country you are a citizen of, you are now potentially training and teaching someone to compete against your own country. Technically, for those traditional thinkers... You are betraying your country. Finally, the World Championships or Mundials wouldn't tally 'team' points but instead tally 'country' points. People would have to enter as a representative of their country and not their team. The World Championships we speak of at the moment is more of a World 'Team' Championships than anything else.
     Don't get me wrong, I love the idea of training with the team and competing as a member of the team, but there will have to be some serious changes if we are going to see jiujitsu in the Olympics in the near future.

Eliot Kelly

EDH Grappling

916 595 4064

Who are the Olympic Wrestlers for Team USA?

     Can you name these wrestlers? The men and women pictured above are the 2012 Olympic representatives for Team USA.
     At The Wrestling Dojo in El Dorado Hills, CA our wrestlers have been given the assignment of going out and finding the names and weight classes of these wrestlers. The project will be to pick one of these wrestlers and complete a small group presentation. For those of you who don't already know who is representing who in each weight, here is the list. Now, are you able you match these names up with the wrestlers picture above? If not we have some research to complete!
     Learning the names and weight classes of these wrestlers will not automatically make us better wrestlers. However, these are the wrestlers we want to learn from, emulate, and maybe eventually beat in competition! Let's think and look beyond to the highest levels to learn from and aspire to be the best we can be on and off the mat!

Henry Cejudo 2008 Beijing Olympic Gold Medalist 55kg

Greco-Roman
55 kg/121 lbs. - Spenser Mango
60 kg/132 lbs. - Ellis Coleman
66 kg/145.5 lbs. - Justin Lester
74 kg/163 lbs. - Ben Provisor
84 kg/185 lbs. - Chas Betts
96kg/211.5 lbs.- RC Johnson
120 kg/264.5 lbs. - Dremiel Byers

Men’s Freestyle
55 kg/121 lbs. - Sam Hazewinkel
60kg/132 lbs. -  Coleman Scott
66 kg/145.5 lbs. - Jared Frayer
74 kg/163 lbs. - Jordan Burroughs, Lincoln
84 kg/185 lbs. - Jake Herbert
96 kg/211.5 lbs. - Jake Varner
120 kg/264.5 lbs. - Tervel Dlagnev

Women’s Freestyle
48 kg/105.5 lbs. - Clarissa Chun
55 kg/121 lbs. - Kelsey Campbell
63 kg/138.75 lbs. - Elena Pirozhkova
72 kg/158.5 lbs. - Stephany Lee

Eliot Kelly

 The Wrestling Dojo in El Dorado Hills, CA

For a Trial Lesson call: 916-595-4064

"American Spirit" defined by John Smith

      Coach John Smith has been at the top of his trade ever since he was an athlete. He has seen success as a collegiate wrestler, international wrestler, collegiate coach, and international coach. It's no surprise that one of his wrestlers he coached through college and beyond is in the line up to represent Team USA in the London Olympics this summer. 

Coach John Smith

          I ran across a recent interview with John Smith, talking about his thoughts leading up to the Olympics and past experiences as a competitor and coach. Here's his philosophy, "just take nothing for granted. Every day, you don't assume that you're going to win the Olympics. You earn it." Nothing these competitors achieve will be as a result of luck or chance. Each victory is the result of a determined attitude and disciplined training schedule to get to the top. The last few responses were probably the most insightful. 
Q: You mentioned Team USA needing to have an American spirit about it earlier. What did you mean by that?
A: There's just something about the U.S. - we're tough people. Our athletes are tough. The people on the Olympic team are tough-minded people. They're solid and they live by their sport. They live a lifestyle of winning. They push adversity away and go through it. Most of them are living on peanuts but they're following their dream. For that reason it brings out a spirit in them during the Olympics that I've watched for a lot of years. I've watched it as an athlete, I've watched guys on my wrestling team that I thought had no chance at medaling beat people where you thought it was a miracle. I've watched other sports at the Olympics and seen teams and individuals perform completely over their head. America has a history of doing that. I think we have great pride and in that pride, it allows us to have our very best performance because you're not just competing for yourself - you're competing for your country and I think that's the difference. Our athletes believe that they're winning this gold medal for America. And they really are.
Q: Can you take a step back and enjoy this Olympic experience or is it becoming part of your routine?A: I've had the opportunity to be part of six Olympics. In 1996, I wasn't a coach, but I had the opportunity of being recognized as one of the 100 Greatest Olympians. It's such a privilege. I just get fired up about the Olympics. I get fired up more now than I ever have because I have an appreciation for what all these athletes have gone through. They have that spirit, they have that drive, they have that discipline. That's why I love it. I love it because you know there's somebody in archery who wakes up every day at 6 a.m. and shoots for four hours, then takes a break to rest and comes back and shoots four more hours. They do that probably 320 days out of the year because they have a dream. They have a goal. It's not about money or personal gains. It's about the medal. It's about being part of the biggest event in sports. For the public when they're watching these athletes, I wish they all can see their past three, four, five years of sacrifices and adversity they experienced because they'd all fall in love with them.
To read the full article click here

Eliot Kelly

916-595-4064

EDH Grappling and Wrestling

"John Smith and the American Spirit."