Judo/Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu History

I will begin with the sport of Judo, a sport that is steeped in tradition and history. As you may or may not be aware Judo is an exciting and challenging sport that has its roots dating back to 1882 when Jigoro Kano created Judo, meaning “the gentle way”. The essence of this system he expressed in the axiom "maximum efficient use of energy", a concept he considered both a cornerstone of martial arts and a principle useful in many aspects of life. Kano integrated what he considered the positive points of the arts he studied with his own ideas and inspirations, he established a revised body of physical technique, and also transformed the traditional jujutsu principle of "defeating strength through flexibility" into a new principle of "maximum efficient use of physical and mental energy." The result was a new theoretical and technical system that Kano felt better matched the needs of modern people. Kano felt that if his idea of balance were true (which was and still is) then both Tachi-waza and Ne waza would have to be of equal importance to the Kodokan. Ne Waza (ground techniques) of Kodokan Judo included three divisions: Katame Waza (joint locking techniques), Shime Waza (choking techniques), and Osae Waza (holding techniques). Worried about Tachi-waza disappearing, Kano introduced a new set of rules, in 1925, limiting the amount of time a Judoka could stay on the ground (Ne waza). These set of rules stipulated that techniques had to start from Tachi waza and was to be 70% tachi waza and 30% Newaza. These rule set became known as, Kosen Judo, and is still studied, although in minimal places, in Japan today. When Japan hosted the 1964 Olympics, Judo was given its first opportunity as an event, thus, making it no longer just a Japanese sport but developing into an international sport. It must also be said that Judo is certainly alive and well here in our community.

As I stated above Jigoro Kano created Kodokan Judo, but, not before learning the Japanese art of Tenjin Shinyo-ryu and Kito-ryu styles of classical “jujutsu”. In 1895 a young man by the name of Mitsuyo Maeda arrived at the Kodokan and immediately caught the eye of Kano. According to the inspiring book, “Mitsuyo Maeda: The Toughest Man Who Ever Lived” by Nori Bunasawa & John Murray, after years of training and perfecting the art, Maeda thought of judo as the ultimate form of self-defense. To him, western arts such as boxing and wrestling were only games with a set of rules. Maeda's strategy in an anything goes fight was to set his opponent up with an elbow or low kick. He would then go for a throw and then finish his opponent off on the ground with a choke or joint lock. In 1904 Maeda, along with one of his instructors, Tsunejiro Tomita, traveled to the United States to demonstrate the art of Judo. Maeda continued his travels throughout North, Central, and South America, Great Britain, Belgium, Spain, and the islands of the Caribbean, most notably Cuba, (which up to the year 2020 ranked fourth in Olympic Medals in the sport of Judo), engaging in fights against other styles thus, eventually, landing him in Brazil in 1915 in a town named Belen. While in Brazil, he agreed to take a wayward boy as a student, that boy was Carlos Gracie. In 1925, Carlos opened his own clinic in Sao Paulo and renamed what he'd learned from Maeda and others, Gracie Brazilian Jiu-jitsu. Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu has followed a different course in the last 80 years, it is divided into three broad categories, each mutually supportive of the others; self-defense (including striking techniques and unarmed techniques against armed opponents), free fighting competition (commonly referred to as "vale tudo" or "anything goes" events, now popularly called MMA), and sport grappling with and without the gi (matches that include a wide range of submission holds, but no striking). The innovations of the Gracie family, most notably by grandmasters Carlos and Helio Gracie, and continuing with BJJ fighters today, through constant testing and refinement, has resulted in this unique style of Jiu Jitsu.