10/05/2026
We had competitors on the mats at Pans and Grappling Industries, and I’m incredibly proud of how everyone represented our gym.
Hayden competed at Pans and had some great exchanges, almost finishing the ankle lock he’s been torturing everyone in the room with. He took a solid groin strike and kept fighting through it. He’s right back at it next weekend at IBJJF Toronto.
Neo stormed through Grappling Industries with a 100% submission finish rate.
Dan started a little slow, had a minor cut that our team medic took care of, then went on to take GOLD in both Gi and No-Gi.
Nico competed in his first tournament, got his first armbar submission and lost a tough gold medal match against a kid who pretty much wrapped his arms around himself to keep Nico from arm barring him. I’m proud of his effort, and maybe even prouder that he did it with a stuffed animal there with him. It reminded me of Gage sitting in his mom’s lap before going out and pinning the who’s who of youth wrestling.
Our kids finished one medal away from third place as a team.
If we ever get all of our competitors on the mats at the same tournament, look out for us.
On the adult side, Chris stole the day.
Chris took second in Gi and first in No-Gi. Competing in the adult division when you’re over 40 is no joke. He had at least 14 points that I thought should have scored and didn’t—and still walked away with gold and silver.
I had the honor of awarding Chris his blue belt on the podium. Chris is everything a competitor should be, and I was incredibly proud of his performance.
Ielfri went in already injured and had some very tough matches. I watch Ielfri in our room and know the talent and skill he has. It didn’t really come out in this tournament until his last match. He came in with a limited training schedule and not much tournament time, but we left on a high note. We’ll build on that rolling into ADCC in December.
Mike jumped into the tournament without much prep time. I think he had 10 or 11 rolls since joining us and went 1-3 on the day. Considering where he is in his training, that was a great performance. Even when he was exhausted and out-skilled, he continued to fight. He showed heart and a determination to win.
Medals are great, but I’m even more proud of how our people competed.
We’re getting better. We’re getting more people out there. And we’re building something.