150,000 BJJ black belts Globally?

[Quebec Nick]

You'd be shocked with how common it is for me blue belt comp was harder than purple just from the sheer amount if crazy sandbaged guys.

I live by if you're at that skill level, you get the belt. No need for unnecessary delay

We should have age groups instead of belt grouping, Would love to see the best 16 yo against each other, then the 17 yo... all the way to maybe 21, then the adult class, then the masters class

In the masters you can have belt level, it's pretty much participation trophies anyway. And it's cool to have older people having fun competing even if they started late. Same thing for local comps, I don't really care, the more different brackets, the more fun

But for IBJJF world major comps, I don't care to see a real 16 yo blue belt compete against a 19 yo blue belt who is already 2 times blue belt world champ.

I would love to follow the sport and knowing that there's that 18 yo kid coming up who already won the U16 and U17 world title and that he might jump in the adult bracket early...

Like people love to watch college sports to know the players that will be the big league next big star or world juniors in hockey or U20 FIFA tournaments. It's really engaging.

 

[Ivaylo Ivanov]

I have organised several Jiujitsu events, and thats what I can say:

- Every division is full of sandbaggers.
I had guys, who have over 20 MMA bouts, 15 years of grappling, to claim white belt division, so they can put another medal in the bag.

- Belt division is stupid.
It should be:
Beginners ~1 year of training (wrestling, judo, mma, sambo included).
Intermediate ~3 years of all of the above.
Masters +5 years of all of the above

Weight divisions and age divisions.

 

[ChickenBrother]

A "friend" of mine may have taken 15 years to blue... There was a period of 8-10 years total off during that period or periods of very intermittent training(once a week). This "friend" may have massively progressed by simply returning to training 3-5 x a week haha.

Competing at white belt would be a bit rough in that case.Training wise, who cares. I trained with an ex olympic level wrestler who was a 2 stripe white belt in the gi. He purposefully didn't wrestle when he wore the gi and played a technical bolo/bottom game for a bit of fun. He even let people take him down who didn't know his wrestling.

I admit I also have a very close "friend" who may have taken 27 years from his first BJJ class until finally getting promoted to blue, after training at 5 different schools with years off in between due to frequent moves for work. IMHO this "friend" even though he was older and coming back to BJJ after years off the mats, easily deserved (and would have happily accepted) a blue walking in the door on account of 10 years prior experience in Judo, wrestling and BJJ but his instructor made him stay white for almost a year and even "made" him compete at white belt during that time.

 

[ChickenBrother]

I have organised several Jiujitsu events, and thats what I can say:

- Every division is full of sandbaggers.
I had guys, who have over 20 MMA bouts, 15 years of grappling, to claim white belt division, so they can put another medal in the bag.

- Belt division is stupid.
It should be:
Beginners ~1 year of training (wrestling, judo, mma, sambo included).
Intermediate ~3 years of all of the above.
Masters +5 years of all of the above

Weight divisions and age divisions.

+1

I'd also add that BJJ is the only combat sport that holds "world" championships for any division other than open/advanced and that just invites sandbagging. In any other ruleset, open/advanced is the only division that matters and winning novice or intermediate division is like winning the special olympics. Tournaments at those lower skill levels only exist at local or regional events which is the way it should be.

 

[Ivaylo Ivanov]

+1

I'd also add that BJJ is the only combat sport that holds "world" championships for any division other than open/advanced and that just invites sandbagging. In any other ruleset, open/advanced is the only division that matters and winning novice or intermediate division is like winning the special olympics. Tournaments at those lower skill levels only exist at local or regional events which is the way it should be.

The elephant in the room is money.

Everyone gets a medal.

 

[Thrawn33]

+1

I'd also add that BJJ is the only combat sport that holds "world" championships for any division other than open/advanced and that just invites sandbagging. In any other ruleset, open/advanced is the only division that matters and winning novice or intermediate division is like winning the special olympics. Tournaments at those lower skill levels only exist at local or regional events which is the way it should be.

I like how in Judo you are fighting in the seniors novice or advanced division (unless you are in the Masters..old guy...then they'll take any rank to get a pool of fighters) And the Seniors Advanced division is really the only thing that matters.

 

[Ivaylo Ivanov]

I like how in Judo you are fighting in the seniors novice or advanced division (unless you are in the Masters..old guy...then they'll take any rank to get a pool of fighters) And the Seniors Advanced division is really the only thing that matters.

Thats pretty much it.

And the way it should be in Jiujitsu as well.

Faster track to Black Belt, and only Black Belt divisions at the Worlds.

 

[Thrawn33]

Thats pretty much it.

And the way it should be in Jiujitsu as well.

Faster track to Black Belt, and only Black Belt divisions at the Worlds.

Don't get me wrong, happy to see Masters Worlds...old dudes in Judo have my undying respect (am old judoka) but even they know it's second to Senior National/Worlds/Olympics

The fact I don't have to include "novice" or "[belt color]" before "national/world/Olympic" should say it all on how I'd love to see BJJ get away from lower belt championships.