First Kids NAGA Tourney

[Bry]

Went to my first kids NAGA. I was really caught of guard as to how aggressive and skilled some of these young kids are. I am talking in the 6-8 year olds. Two of our kids were brand new to competing, and I made a damn coaching mistake, and let them bump both kids up a level. One of the kids after getting choked in his first match, refused to do his second, and I don't know if he ever will do a competition again. The second child, 8, who is my son, got choked, and wanted to be done. I made him do his second match, and he had a kid more on his level, but that kid was crying before he even started.
So a couple of takeaways for me:
1. Watch and be familiar with how things had advanced before taking kids to a competition
2. I know my kids, don't let someone else tell me which category to put them in, if I think they are a beginner, stick to my guns.
3. Make sure we train to competition level before a tourney.

My first coach only allowed kids to work takedowns and position for kids under 12, We train submissions, but in a very controlled environment. We don't have injuries in the kids program.

Thoughts?

Bry

 

[Was at Pride GP 2000]

6 year olds getting choked. What do you mean he didn't tap?

Personally I dont think kids should compete in submission competitions until 12 to 15.

 

[Aed]

I admit I don't know the rules of children's brackets in NAGA, but that seems a little young for chokes. I know judo didn't allow them until the children were 13 (this may have changed, it's been a while). I'm not a doctor, so I don't have any real evidence to back this up, but it seems like a bad idea for children that age to be getting choked.

I just looked up the rules and I guess you mean they were moved out of novice when they were bumped up.

"No submissions are allowed in the Children’s Novice Division."

It probably would have been better if they had competed under the novice rules first because that seems like a better environment for first timers. Hopefully, you can get them back in there and they'll have a better experience next time.

 

[Grrrr]

If they are brand new to competing then bumping up is probably a bad idea. Hopefully your kids bounce back from the bad experience. And yes some kids are aggressive and skilled at a young age. My youngest did his first bjj competition when he was 9....but he had been wrestling competitively since he was 5 so to him it was just another tournament.

 

[SummerStriker]

6 year olds getting choked. What do you mean he didn't tap?

Personally I dont think kids should compete in submission competitions until 12 to 15.

One of the clubs I trained at wasn't a Judo school, but they followed the Judo rules for childrens' submissions. I think it was no chokes before 13 or joint locks before 15.

Kids younger than 13 just wrestled and won by holding position.

 

[Bry]

They both tapped.
My understanding is in the beginner class, they break them up when they get position. The one younger boy got caught in a rear naked, and to be honest, it scarred the heck out of him. Ref let it go a bit as the boys face was real red.

Live and learn.

Bry

 

[esteven]

You might also consider in-house kids' tournaments, if you have the numbers for it. It'll give them an idea of what to expect when the real thing comes along.

My favorite way to do this:

Weigh them all, and then bracket them in a reverse-seed; put the biggest and most skilled at the top, and the smallest and least skilled at the bottom. Basically rank them in order of likelihood of winning. That should be pretty easy. This way, their first matches are as evenly matched as possible.

At the start of each match, give points to even disadvantages. For example: 1 point per 5lb weight disadvantage, and 1 point per stripe/belt difference. Since you probably don't have the kids, time, space, or people to run a billion different divisions, that will help even them out while keeping them in the same pool.

I've done this a couple of times, and we had good energetic matches, and only one kid cry.

For added realism, get some adults to stand in as opposing coaches.

 

[jack36767]

Ahh youth sports, the most overrated, mismanaged thing in American athletics

 

[Forceof1]

I run a youth BJJ / Martial arts program. I've seen what you're describing.

First- what is the goal of your program? I designed our kids program, and I made the decision to make it more well rounded than just a traditional bjj program. I have a karate, self defense background as well so I included a great deal of stand up striking, Judo take downs, anti-bullying, etc. It is not optimal for kids to compete in serious tournaments, but I made a conscious decision to do that. We are more of a family style gym, and it fits our atmosphere.

I also don't use the IBJJF belts for ranking, primarily because we are not a IBJJF school- so I don't care.

However, I don't let kids under 7 do submissions, and I don't start teaching chokes until our orange belt (approx 1.5 - 2 years into training). Basic armlocks come into play around 6 months to a year, depending on age.

The BJJ curriculum I teach is solid, and does serve well for kids who want to compete. But you have to be realistic about the brackets you put them in, especially if you know about other gyms who have kids competing.

In our area, we have two established BJJ schools that really emphasize youth teams and competition- my wife refers to them as the "cobra kai" gyms. They have some really good competitors, but they are not afraid to "push" their definitions of what brackets kids could be in. (In my sons first tournament, 7-9 beginner, under 9 months- there was a kid from one of those gyms who said it was his 4th tournament). Technically my son had been training for probably 12-14 months, but for his first tournament I put him in the beginner division. I'm glad I did, as watching the other levels showed he would have been in over his head. It was rewarding to see him beat the cobra kai kid though #parentbrag

We've started participating in some "scrimmages" with other gyms, which has been great- gets kids rolls in a more competitive atmosphere without all the hoopla or pressure of a tournament, and we customize the rules for each match (submissions / no submissions, let a kid up after 20 seconds, etc).

So to summarize-
Know what type of program you want to run, and teach accordingly
Know the event and who the competitors are, and enter your students accordingly.
Do scrimmages with other gyms.

 

[Grrrr]

Ahh youth sports, the most overrated, mismanaged thing in American athletics

Adult attitude and politics have a way of tearing apart something that's supposed to be good for the kids. My kids have been active in wrestling, football, baseball, and bjj for years and I've seen issues from adults in each and every sport.

 

[jack36767]

Adult attitude and politics have a way of tearing apart something that's supposed to be good for the kids. My kids have been active in wrestling, football, baseball, and bjj for years and I've seen issues from adults in each and every sport.

And especially in wrestling, technique for winning "now" just exacerbates the problem

 

[Grrrr]

And especially in wrestling, technique for winning "now" just exacerbates the problem

I agree 100%

 

[Bry]

Thanks for the tips.
We have two schools in the area we can use.

Thanks

Bry