IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT: Blackbelt classes starting this week!

Atos BJJ Blackbelt, Rodrigo Caporal, pictured above, recently competing in the finals of the blackbelt division of the FBT Open in Bangkok. Photo courtesy of BJJ-ASIA.

Starting this week, Atos BJJ Blackbelt, Professor Rodrigo Caporal of Sao Paulo Brazil, will be teaching 2 times per week at Kowloon BJJ. Great news for everyone as the Professor comes from a gym which had 5 medalist in the blackbelt division alone of the 2009 Mundials! How's that for training partners, mentors and great teachers from which to develop and hone your skills? For a touch of the 'Atos' style, make sure to come in and train as often as you can with the Professor while he is in Hong Kong!

Training times will be the same, but the days on which the Professor will teach may change, so stay tuned to this blog for any last minute training updates and schedule changes. We hope we won't have any (fingers crossed), but you never know.

Below is the current schedule and drop-in fee for non-monthly members:

NO-GI Friday Class Change (drop-in $200):
Prof. Rodrigo will be teaching the No-Gi class on Fridays from now until further notice. This class is provided to regular members at no extra cost. However, the drop-in fee for Friday will be increased to $200 per class in order to cover the Professor's instructional fee. Remember, KLN-BJJ is a not-for-profit gym, so when we raise prices, it is only because we really have NO CHOICE! Sorry. For those only paying via drop-in, please consider becoming regular monthly members if you would like to attend the blackbelt courses.

With Gi Training (drop-in $200):
For this week only (7 Oct.), Prof. Rodrigo will come for the Wednesday night class. After this week(12 Oct. & beyond), he will be instructing the Monday night class, and Wednesday will remain a Beginner's/BJJ-basics Class. Fees for drop-in will be the same as for NO-GI, as explained above.

It also needs to be noted that the blackbelt classes will be covering more intermediate and advanced level techniques geared towards color belts. Experienced whitebelts will benefit from this class, but fresh beginners may find themselves a bit lost and feel the techniques are too advanced at times. We are not trying to discourage beginner's from coming; All members are always welcome to come to all classes at KLN-BJJ. Some classes will just be more suitable for different levels. So please come, but just know that special attention cannot be given to beginners for intermediate and advanced classes.

To find out more about the Professor's Team in Brazil, Atos Jiu-jitsu, check out this article on the Fightworks Podcast:

Who is Atos Jiu-jitsu?

Thank you and see you on the mat!

KLN-BJJ Management

Amatuer Manila Competition Update

Sebastien and Matthew competed in Manila over the weekend winning the gold medal in both the Levi and Medio categories. Sebastein (The Nightmare from Marseilles) fought his way to the gold winning three of his four matches by submission, americana, kimura and armbar.

Sat Open mat with Prof. Rodorigo (Atos Jiujitsu)

Open mat with Prof. Rodrigo

Quick news, I've heard that Sebastian won the gold in last Philippines competition!!! Excellent job, Sebastian!! Also, Matthew showed us his spirit of warrior again. We all respect your attitude towards Jiujitsu.

As we announced, now KLN BJJ has a black belt teaching us regularly. Professor. Rodrigo from Atos Jiujitsu, Brazil. He has modern style Jiujitsu techniques and he is very cool person. Dun miss out (For KLN BJJ members only)!!

The time has come!!!

HOLIDAY REMINDER: Schedule Change

Tomorrow, October 1st, is a public holiday, National Day, therefore, as usual, there will be a schedule change.

There will be a special 2pm to 4pm open mat session for those interested. Anyone is welcomed to share techniques and/or spar.

Regular class in the evenings is generally canceled on public holidays. The evening class will generally only occur if a color belt is willing and able to attend and help run the class. Announcements are usually made after class the day before regarding the possibility of the above. Always contact Kei, Taki, or other gym leaders by phone beforehand just to make sure before coming to a possible empty gym on holidays!

Thanks,

Kowloon BJJ Management

Guest Visit: Makoto Ogasawara of Taiwan BJJ

Kowloon BJJ friend Makoto Ogasawara center, choking out enthusiastic child (Anthony)

If Ikuta's great seminar wasn't enough, attending Kowloon BJJ members were also treated to a master class with none other than 2008 Mundial's Masters Brown-belt Champion, Makoto Ogasawara. The 'funniest man in SEABJJ circles, and quite possibly the world, for that matter' graced our humble gym with his inspiring and uplifting class on Monday. If anyone can mix great technique, instruction, and a good time, Oga-san can!

In addition to his Mundial win in Brazil, Oga-san, as his friends call him, also placed second in the leve brown-belt category in the IBJJF Asian Championships in November of 2008. And he most recently cleaned house at the FBT Thailand Open this September, taking home the Most Technical Fighter Award for the gi division as well! But winning and placing in high level international competitions isn't the only thing Oga is good at, he's also a talented, patient, and extremely entertaining instructor.

If you are interested in training under Makoto Ogasawara, he can currently be found teaching and training with our good friends at Taiwan BJJ (taiwanbjj.org.en), an awesome gym with awesome members.

Thank you from all of us here at Kowloon BJJ for a great class, Oga-san, and please come back soon!

Seminar Report: Professor Makoto Ikuta

Professor Ikuta 'the little demon' Makoto vs. Kei 'the tequila nightmare' in a post-fight exhibition pro wrestling match at Art of War 14. Ikuta won via flying helicopter oppai-crusher.



Ikuta vs. Andre Galvao at Copa de Hong Kong 2, April 2008. Photo courtesy of www.bjj-asia.com



September 2009, Professor Ikuta Seminar at Kowloon BJJ. Blurry photo courtesy of Hoin. Note, 2008 Brown-belt Masters Mundial Champion, Makoto Ogasawara can be seen choking child in foreground.



Ikuta winning the 2009 All-Japan BJJFJ Championships

This past weekend has been one heck of a barn-burner for Kowloon BJJ members. First, a great Art of War event Saturday evening, then, with no rest for the wicked, back to the gym for an extended advanced guard techniques seminar by the little Marcelo of Japan, BJJ-Yoda, or whatever nickname you want to give him, Pro. Ikuta.

Professor Ikuta is the owner and head instructor of Trust Jiu-jitsu Academy in Nagoya Japan (http://trustjj.com/). A respected teacher and active competitor, Ikuta recently competed in the 2009 Mundials in California, although falling short of the medal rounds, he fought wonderfully, especially for his first time at an international event of this level.

Within Japan, Ikuta's competition success is well documented and includes a list of tournament wins too long to list here, but a few recent highlights include 1st place in the BJJFJ All-Japan Championships this past April, and 3rd at the Rickson Gracie Cup in June, only losing via advantages to none other than Robson Moura, the legendary 7x Mundial Champion!

When I said an 'extended' seminar on Sunday before, I meant what was supposed to be an unspectacularly long two-hour period initially, went on for nearly five hours! Why? Questions, questions, and more questions by members of which the Professor unceasingly answered enthusiastically as always. The Professor also demonstrated a range of great techniques in detail over his advanced open-guard game that has fought off even the likes of world champs Galvao and Moura in competition!

Off the mat, Ikuta is equally liked and respected for his kind and generous demeanor as well as his laid-back and fun-loving approach to jiu-jitsu and life. Ikuta firmly believes BJJ is a thinking-man's art, and stresses and lectures on the principles behind the details over merely 'copying the moves'. As he says, "Great Jiu-jitsu fighters and players learn to fit techniques to their own unique body types and physical skills, but this can only be done if you understand the principles and purposes of the details. If you don't, you will make errors in your execution and the technique won't work."

We are proud to call Professor Ikuta and his students friends and honorary members for life of Kowloon BJJ. For those interested in future classes with Professsor Ikuta at Kowloon BJJ, please stay tuned to this blog.

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