Martial Arts Style
Brazilian Martial Arts Best Known Sport and Rivals Soccer in Popularity
It seems the only thing that is certain is change, and martial arts aren’t any different. Sure there are styles and techniques being taught in schools today all over the world that have been around for decades if not centuries, but there are times when some systems become more popular than others. Right now Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) is enjoying great popularity largely thanks to the popularity of mixed Martial Arts Fighting competitions in the United States and other countries. Though the combat sport is popular many people don’t realize that BJJ isn’t Brazil’s only contribution to combat sport.
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is probably Brazil’s best known sport and rivals soccer in popularity there. The style traces its origins back to Mitsuyo Maeda a Japanese Judo practitioner who was traveling the world to promote cultural understanding and he did so by teaching Judo. Not long after arriving in Brazil in 1914 Maeda put on a martial arts expedition where he took on Brazilian boxers and wrestlers and defeated every competitor easily. Among those watching were members of the Gracie family who weren’t satisfied to just watch the competition, they wanted to learn the new style.
Carlos Gracie and his brothers began training with Maeda in Rio de Janeiro, but the youngest of them Hélio would become know as the sport’s founder. Though originally developed for self defense the sport aspects took over as the style grew in popularity. Judo remains popular in Brazil today, and Hélio’s one loss was Masahiko Kimura a Japanese Judoka who broke Gracie’s arm with an arm lock. The move is now called a Kimura in honor of the fighter and is often used in Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) matches.
While the Gracie family was developing their style Capoeira which was brought to Brazil in the 16th century by African slaves was already well established in the country. The style looks more like a dance, but that only hid sweeps, kicks and head butts as well as other strikes. It takes a lot of athleticism and skill to perform the dance moves and acrobatics, and at one time the Brazilian government outlawed the practice. Today though the style that combines martial arts, dance, and music is still popular and is considered part of Brazil’s cultural heritage.
Regards of what style you do practice in Brazil the place where the toughest fighters compete is in a Vale tudo match. Vale tudo which is Portuguese for “anything goes” is the Brazilian predecessor to mixed martial arts, but there aren’t any rules to stop fighters from ripping each other apart. In the early part of the 20th century these matches went on in Brazil at fairs and circuses and any style of martial arts could be used in a fight. In order to compete in these competitions Luta Livre a freestyle form of wrestling was developed around the same time as BJJ and includes both submissions and strikes.
If you want to get a handle on The Martial Arts scene today you can look to Brazil and see where many of today’s popular trends originated. The martial artists of Brazil have done a lot to advance combat sports and how competitions are run today, and they should be respected for their contribution. The signs might have change on the walls of the martial arts schools, but what is being taught hasn’t really changed all that much.
Gegard Mousasi The Armenian Assassin HL Crazy MMA KO Pride FC Martial Arts Dream K-1 Fight Japan
|
|
Black Butterfly Bottle Opener Bartender $5.48 Black Butterfly Bottle Opener!… |
|
|
The Original BOTTLEFLY KNIFE Butterfly Knife Bottle Opener (Black) $9.99 The Original Bottlefly Knife. Black Edition. **Also Available in Chrome** Do an amazon search for “Chrome Bottlefly Knife”… |
|
|
Hero (Music from the Original Soundtrack) $7.02 Tan Dun straddles the very different worlds of concert music and film scores, winning admirers in both. He’s perhaps best known for his score to Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, which shares with Hero a visual poetry that transcends the sword-filled action film genre. In Crouching Tiger, Tan Dun’s music was often striking. In Hero he often lapses into repetition and cliché, a failing compensated f… |
|
|
Wu Tang: Gods of Wu Tang/Shaolin & Wu Tang/Wu Tang Swordsman $11.90 Gods of Wu Tang – Two feuding disciples of a magical sect adopt two young followers in the hope that a new generation will carry on their childish squabbling. Shaolin & Wu Tang – An evil Manchu prince coaxes the fighting secrets from a pair of martial arts students, then turns them against each other. Wu Tang & Swordsman – The successor to Lau Tien, master of the 13-Sword style, develops an even … |
|
|
Five-tiger Killing Sheep Cudgel – Ancient-respected Chen-style Taiji Quan $9.95 ( 1 DVD, Chinese/English/Spanish/French subtitles, 45minutes) Five-tiger killing sheep cudgel is a kind of long weapon routine within Chen-style Taiji weapons routines and it has been combined with the special characteristics of both spear and cudgel. With its movement combined with the twisting touching methods of Chen-style Taijiquan, so it has a unique style. This routine is accurately and clos… |
|
|
The Man from Nowhere [Blu-ray] $11.58 Korea’s top box-office draw for 2010, the stylish and violent crime drama The Man from Nowhere is a high-octane adrenaline rush for fans of Asian action cinema. South Korean superstar Won Bin (Mother) made his comeback after military service as “Ajeossi” (or “Mister,” the film’s original title), a pawnbroker in Seoul’s vice district who allows only young So-mi (Kim Sae-ron) into his reclusive life… |
