In 19 years of history, the World Jiu-Jitsu championship was the stage for all of the greatest talents ever produced in Jiu-Jitsu.
Even among such abundance of talents, a elite few stood out and was able to pile on gold medal after gold medal.
For today’s post, we went after the lessons this super-champions left us through their acts and words.
After you read their wise testimonies on how to be so successful, don’t forget to register for the 2015 Worlds.
The final deadline is May 18, so click here to register now.
GRACIEMAG’s coverage of the 2015 Worlds in brought to you by Hayabusa.
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Roger Gracie
Ten times world champion, with seven titles in his weight division and three in the open class division. Roger Gracie is also the only black belt to have submitted all of his opponents in an edition of the Worlds. In 2009, he won double gold with 9 chokes in nine fights. The picture shows the last one of the sequence, on Romulo Barral, in the absolute final. Asked what he thought was his greatest quality as a competitor, he answered:
“I think it is my perseverance. You have to believe in what you want and go after it until the end. That’s what happened to me. The fact that I lost the open class final so many times in a row* was an extra incentive to train more and go back the next year and try again.”
*Roger lost four absolute finals in a row from 2003 to 2006.
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Marcus Buchecha
Also a three-time absolute champion, Buchecha is the strongest candidate for biggest star of the 2015 Worlds. A fourth open class title would catapult him to a level that maybe only Roger could be compared to. After the 2014 Worlds, Buchecha talked with GRACIEMAG and gave out a few clues on why he is so successful.
“I don’t put extra pressure on myself because of other people’s expectations. I fight because that’s what I love to do. My Professor Rodrigo Cavaca used to say that I am the hard-working talented guy. I never give up, even if there’s only five seconds on the clock.”
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Xande Ribeiro
Two-time absolute champion and four times champion of his weight division, Xande Ribeiro is another great example of the highest level of competitors ever produced. With amazing overal technique, Xande wrote his name in history with close to perfect performances, like in 2006 and 2008. He also shares his secrets to being great. Just before the 2013 Worlds, he told GRACIEMAG why he was still competing after winning it all.
“I love the challenge of proving that my Jiu-Jitsu can still be effective against this 23-year-olds now that I am 32. I see today a lot of people doing a lot of fancy positions while they still don’t know how to escape from the mount or avoid the opponent from getting to side control.”
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Bruno Malfacine
The fourth guy with six gold medals is small only in his size. Bruno Malfacine is the owner of the roosterweight division. He comes second only to Roger Gracie on the number of titles on a weight division. Asked once what is his secret, he said:
“I think I’m dedicated, I try to train as much as I can and give my best every day. I always say that the competition begins many months before. I live in a daily fight with myself until the big day. It’s like every day I suffered in training (with diet or even with sleepless nights due to body aches) take me closer to my goal, the gold. Believe me, there isn’t a better feeling than that. Another thing is to acknowledge my faults. I have several flaws and maybe I cannot solve this flaws, but I will die trying.”
