Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt Jeff Wiley of Regina, came to Yorkton over the weekend to give what he said was a very successful seminar on Brazilian Jiu Jitsu to a small group of locals, looking to improve their skill and strategy in the martial art.
Jiu-Jitsu is a martial art, combat sport, and a self defence system that focuses on grappling and especially ground fighting.
"Seventy-five to 80 per cent of it is on the ground," says Wiley following the completion of his seminar.
"It's submission holds."
Wiley, who said he was third in the world in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) in 2007 said the course went by well on Saturday even though there is still plenty of room for all to improve.
He even invited them to train with him at one of his clubs in Regina and encouraged them to come out.
"They've got a willingness to learn," he told the paper. "It's a bunch of young guys. All they need is access to the knowledge."
Wiley taught a class of 10 or so and said the turnout was good was but hoping to see even more of the younger kid come out and try to promote the sport to the youngest possible age group.
"I don't know why there's not 20 kids doing this here," he said at the end of the seminar, which ran just over three hours Saturday at the Yorkton Martial Arts Training Centre.
"Mike (Forster) is doing a great job (promoting it here)," says Wiley, referring to the chief instructor at the YMATC.
"You can learn some real Jiu Jitsu here," adds Wiley, noting that the Brazilian model is by far the most popular and well recognized.
"I think it's top 2-3 for martial arts in all of Saskatchewan. It's ridiculously popular."
Forster holds training in BJJ three times per week at his gym on Broadway Str., in Yorkton.
Wiley owns five gyms across the province, including Elite Fitness-Wiley Brazilian Jiu Jitsu based in Regina.
"Brazilian Jiu Jitsu encompasses everything," he told the paper. Allthough it focusses mostly on groundwork, Wiley said that the art mixes a little more to help fighters become more well rounded.
"It's mostly submission holds (but) the way it's modernized, it uses a lot of wrestling too," he explained.
In North America, wrestling is a lot more popular, he added.
Wiley mentioned that the martial art in Saskatchewan is not looked highly upon nationwide or internationally, however Wiley said he hopes to see that change and added that the more the students come out to practice BJJ, the better they are going to get.
"We're not known for martial arts in Saskatchewan," he told the group on Saturday.
The art of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu was derived from the Japanese martial art of Kodokan judo in the early 20th century.
It teaches that a smaller, weaker person can successfully defend against a bigger, stronger assailant by using leverage and proper technique-most notably by applying joint-locks and chokeholds to defeat the other person. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu training can be used for sport grappling tournaments (gi and no-gi) and mixed martial arts (MMA) competition or self defense .
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu emphasizes taking an opponent to the ground and utilizing ground fighting techniques and submission holds involving joint-locks and chokeholds also found in numerous other arts with or without ground fighting emphasis. The premise is that most of the advantage of a larger, stronger opponent comes from superior reach and more powerful strikes, both of which are somewhat negated when grappling on the ground.
BJJ permits a wide variety of techniques to take the fight to the ground after taking a grip. Once the opponent is on the ground, a number of maneuvers (and counter-maneuvers) are available to manipulate the opponent into a suitable position for the application of a submission technique. Achieving a dominant position on the ground is one of the hallmarks of the BJJ style, and includes effective use of the guard position to defend oneself from bottom, and passing the guard to dominate from top position with side control, mount, and back mount positions. This system of maneuvering and manipulation can be likened to a form of kinetic chess when utilized by two experienced practitioners. A submission hold is the equivalent of checkmate in the sport, reflecting a disadvantage which would be extremely difficult to overcome in a fight (such as a dislocated joint or unconsciousness).
Along with BJJ's great strengths on the ground comes its relative de-emphasis of standing techniques, such as striking.
To remedy this comparative lack, there is an increasing amount of cross-training between the sports of BJJ and wrestling, Judo, or Sambo, as well as striking based arts such as Muay Thai, kickboxing, and boxing.
Wiley said he opened his gym in Regina nearly 15 years ago and said he hopes to be able to put some of his students through the training they need in order to make it on the global stage.
Wiley said there five levels of BJJ skill and they are highlighted by colours: white, which is beginner, he said; blue, purple, brown and black belt.
Black belt can take between eight and 11 years to accomplish, he said.
