The United Arab Emirates has had a long history of supporting  supporting BJJ and Submission Grappling. Ever since the Abu Dhabi Combat Club (ADCC) began holding the ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championship in 2001, top-level athletes in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Wrestling, Judo, Sambo, Shooto and Mixed Martial Arts have flocked to Abu Dhabi and later Sao Paolo, Brazil and the USA for a chance to win the coveted tournaments.

On September 27th of this year, they’ll do it all over again in Barcelona, Spain – spreading the gospel of the mats and competing for one of the highest achievements in our sports’ competition in the 2009 ADCC Championships. Athletes such as Marcelo Garcia, Kron Gracie, Pablo Popovich, Robert Drysdale, Roger Gracie, and Braulio Estima are just a few of the athletes slated to participate in this year’s edition of the the bi-annual tournament.

On that day, another landmark event for Brazlian Jiu-Jitsu and Submission Grappling will also be taking place in the birthplace of  the Abu Dhabi Combat Club.

The 27th will be a landmark, we’re already counting down. There will be more than 20 thousand kids in 42 public schools practicing Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu,” explains the teacher responsible for the project dubbed School-Jitsu.’

Professor Santos is heading a team of 81 Brazilians slated to teach a BJJ curriculum to children in the UAE.

Every day is fun. Putting several powerful people together always yields something new. But the folks surprised me, as they all gelled as a team so quickly, even the ten girls, which was a complicating factor. Technically, I’ll highlight Michel Maia and Jose “Cientista” Junior, who arrived from Araruama with a silly look on his face but is really tough.

This year we’ll also have for the first time a student championship along the lines of the Brazilian Team Nationals, with each school sending five representatives. I hope all goes well so that next year doors will open for more professionals here in Abu Dhabi. Once again I thank the boss, Sheikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, for the opportunity he granted Jiu-Jitsu,” Carlao says in finishing.

Indeed, a considerable amount of gratitude should be granted to Sheikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who has been the individual supporting this initiative, as well as those of the Abu Dhabi Combat Club for years because of his own interest in the sport. Thanks to him, BJJ has reached national sport status for the first time since the sports’ inception. With support from other leaders and educators around the globe, the sport’s growth can only expand from here.