Henrique Saraiva teaches Jiu-Jitsu in Dublin. Photo: Divulgation
“Sit down. Be humble”. With this mantra on the wall, Professor Henrique Saraiva resumed Jiu-Jitsu classes at his schools in Ireland in September, after more than a year of closed gyms in the country.
Son of the great master Orlando Saraiva, the professor celebrated the new phase in Dublin and shared the teachings with our team.
“I think the greatest learning I could gather during this difficult period for everyone comes from an analogy I made with Jiu-Jitsu”, reflects Henrique. “Which is: in life, we don’t have control of many things. In times of difficulty, it is necessary to be wise enough to wait for the right time to react, the important thing is not to waste energy unnecessarily. Nobody throws themselves into a sea to face a storm, nor is there any point in embarking without wind”.
Saraiva took advantage of the forced stoppage to promote changes: “On my way back, I started again in September in a new dojo, in a region that still didn’t have any Jiu-Jitsu academies. I hope to grow a lot around here. The academy in D15 continues as well, so we grew in the end.”
Henrique Saraiva also took the opportunity to keep up with the conversation, and the teachings, up to date in Brazil. “I flew to Brazil at the beginning of the pandemic and so I was able to enjoy my family. Since I moved to Ireland, I couldn’t spend as many months with them. Even when I lived in Brazil, I had never been this close to my parents. It was a great opportunity, I was able to talk a lot with my father and absorb as much of his experiences and his great stories on the mat, with masters Carlson and Paquetá.”
According to Saraiva, the Irish team returned more excited than ever, and they have already started to plan their return to the championships as well. “I think Jiu-Jitsu in Ireland will be even stronger, the spirit of the young ones was renewed. I see it in the children of our team, who are even more excited, wanting to spend all that piled-up energy. I hope to see my students fighting at events across Europe soon. We’re getting there, at last.”
