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A BRIEF HISTORY OF BRAZILIAN JIU JITSU

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu was originally founded by Helio Gracie of Brazil as a result of years of training in a form of Japanese Ju-Jitsu brought to Brazil by Mitsuo Maeda. Maeda also taught Luiz Franca ju-jitsu, and he also continued the tradition in Brazil.

However, it was because of the small size and inferior strength of Helio Gracie, that Gracie Jiu-Jitsu developed into the art known as Gracie Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is predominantly a ground-fighting art. The Brazilian Jiu-Jitsuka’s strategy is to avoid punches and kicks while attempting to clinch his opponent, take the fight to the ground, and use Ju-jitsu techniques to defeat him there, where the attacker’s strikes are weak. The Brazilian Ju-Jitsu techniques are based on leverage, making it possible for the practitioner to beat stronger and heavier opponents. The key is keeping your base and using leverage against the opponent.

Mitsuo Maeda brought Jiu-Jitsu to Brazil. As a member of the Kodokan, Maeda went to America as a Judo ambassador. Maeda was born in Aomori Prefecture in 1878. There he learned Tenshin (Tenshin Shin’yo) Jiu-Jitsu. He moved to Tokyo when he was about 18. He began practicing Judo in 1897. Maeda was a small man, but very talented. In 1904, he traveled to the U.S. with one of his instructors, Tsunejiro Tomita. The only place they demonstrated judo together was at the U.S. Army academy in West Point. There Maeda was challenged by a wrestling champion. Maeda accepted the challenge and put his opponent in a joint lock forcing the wrestler to tap out. Maeda toured the US for a while longer and eventually traveled to Spain, where he took on the ring name Conde Koma in 1908. Continuing his travels, in 1915 he ended up in Brazil. He engaged in challenge matches and became famous throughout the region. Maeda was to continue his role as a judo and jujutsu sensei and taught police, army cadets, and Brazilian citizens. One of them was a teenage boy by the name of Carlos Gracie.

In 1925, Maeda began to assist the Japanese immigrating to Brazil. At the time, there were anti-Japanese sentiments in the US, so Maeda felt Brazil with its more open policy towards immigration was the ideal environment for Japanese settlers. Maeda became a very prominent member of his community. He was given executive positions in many companies and even received land from the government.

Maeda thought of the old judo as the ultimate form of self-defense. To him boxing and wrestling were only sports. Maeda’s strategy was to strike his opponent, go for a throw and then finish his opponent off on the ground with a choke or joint lock.

Maeda stated in his autobiography that he took Kodokan judo techniques and also took elements from Taryu Shiai Judo – those judo techniques specifically used for matches against other schools.

Carlos Gracie was born in 1901 to Gast;o Gracie, a Brazilian scholar and politician, Carlos was the smallest and skinniest of five brothers. His brothers were Osvaldo, Gasto, Jorge, and Helio. He was raised in a wealthy family, and he became a student of Maeda when he was 19. Carlos’ father, Gastao introduced Carlos to Maeda, and eventually, Carlos taught his brothers jiu-jitsu.

Carlos and his brothers made a name for the family by fighting in demonstrations and street fights using Jiu-Jitsu. Carlos only took one year of lessons from Maeda. However, Carlos continued studies with other students of Maeda as he developed his own style based on his real fighting experiences. Carlos Gracie opened up the first jiu-jitsu school in Belem, Brazil in 1925. Carlos Gracie died in 1994 at the age of 92.

At 17, Helio first stepped into the ring in Frontao against a boxer named Antonio Portugal. Helio won in 30 seconds. He also defeated a Japanese Judoka, Namiki, in 1932.

This was the first jiu-jitsu/Judo match of his career and also the first time he wore a gi during a fight. Helio ended the fight with Namiki in his guard when the bell rang a only seconds before Namiki submitted.

Helio won fights against Japanese Judo players, Miyake and Kato. Helio was easily thrown, but used his ground fighting experience to get Kato in the guard and choked Kato unconscious.

The Japanese decided their best Jujitsuka must go to Brazil and defeat Helio. This was Masahiko Kimura.; He was the All-Japan heavyweight world Ju-Jitsu champion. So, in 1952, at the gym next to the largest soccer stadium in Rio, the fight began. It was a no-striking fight, and gi’s had to be worn. Helio was now 45 years old and only 139 lbs. Kimura was near 200 lbs and younger.

The fight went 15 minutes with Kimura trying without success to submit Helio. Finally, Kimura applied a Reverse Ude Garame on Helio, and Helio submitted.This technique is still fondly regarded as the Kimura in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu today. Kimura was impressed at the development of JuJitsu in Brazil based on his inability to submit a man much smaller and older than him in 15 minutes. This fight greatly increased the fame of the Gracie family in Brazil.

Helio’s last fight was with Valdemar Santana, one of his own students. Santana was much bigger than Helio, and challenged Helio to fight. Helio accepted, and when the fight happened, it lasted three hours and forty-five minutes. It is the longest recorded JuJitsu fight in history. Helio lost after being kicked in the head.

But this loss did nothing to diminish the family name in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Carlson Gracie, the son of Carlos Gracie defended the honor of his family at age 17 and took revenge for his family by defeating Valdemar Santana.

The male descendents of the Gracie clan are all taught the family fighting art and encouraged to represent the family in the Gracie Challenge, an ongoing invitation to accept challenge matches to prove their fighting art’s superiority. In the 1980’s this challenge finally came to world notoriety with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. In this contest, Gracie’s would challenge all other martial arts, and defeat them all. The martial art world was turned upside down! How could Royce Gracie, son of Helio, a smaller and weaker opponent easily defeat all other martial arts? What was this Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu?

It was the first time the world got to see what really works in a fight and what does not. From that day forward, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu would take over the martial arts.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu continues to evolve. The Gracie family still practices their original art in several schools around the world. There is now a world championship of Jiu-Jitsu wearing the Gi – the Mundails in Brazil, and not wearing the Gi – the ADCC Championship in Abu Dhabi.