Source: Borneo Bulletin
Kuala Belait’s premier Brazilian Jiu Jitsu academy, The Refinery, recently welcomed a class field trip from Year 6 students of Ahmad Tajuddin Primary School. The students were accompanied by Headmistress Hajah Harinah binti Haji Md Shara along with four teachers.
The Refinery’s Head Coach, Nobel Lee, welcomed the group and gave a brief introduction to the martial art.
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) focusses primarily on grappling, with no kicking and punching involved. Learning BJJ at a young age is beneficial for children as it teaches them to defend themselves.
Coaches Abi Umamah Ali and James Chiew demonstrated how to take down an opponent and control them in order to subdue them with an ‘armbar’.
They also showed how to perform a ‘sweep’ in order to get into a more dominant position, and how to submit the opponent by applying a ‘chokehold’ from the top position.
Students had the opportunity to participate by trying to defend against an opponent who was trying to choke them from the top position. This required them to ‘bridge and roll’ in order to reverse the position to get on top and finish with an ‘armbar.’
The Refinery runs BJJ classes in Kuala Belait throughout the week, offering classes for beginners, intermediate level, kids’ classes for ages five to 12, and a women-only class. The rapid growth of BJJ in Brunei has seen the opening of four BJJ gyms in three districts across the country over the past year. While BJJ is generally a male-dominated sport, it is also quickly gaining popularity among women in the country.