Ryan Hall - An Open Letter to the Martial Arts Community

wow... pretty powerful letter, hugely proud of ryan for speaking up and giving us a glimpse inside the TLI camp... holy fk, seriously scary stuff
 
If it wasn't obvious because Ryan didn't name "names"...he said Lloyd Irvin is a jerk and Team Lloyd Irvin is set up like a cult.

Uh, yeah. That was about as subtle as a sledgehammer to the face. :icon_lol:

It was a good read. Appreciate you linking it, Jag.
 
An excellent read and it applies to way more than martial arts.

I have personally seen when people will either ignore or justify the actions of the instructor. You could see people felt very uncomfortable with what was going on but didn't have the courage to speak out. Thankfully the guy got sacked by the gym owner before I made my decision on whether to stay.

I'm even thinking of showing this to my (high school) students. Perhaps it will give them the courage to leave toxic groups.
 
Im going to be the asshole to ask this question. By writing this letter, does he not now stand to profit financially from all this spectacle? If TLI guys leave, not just the chasers but the hobbyists as well, most likely a lot of them will end up at 50/50. Just sayin...

You have to take that into consideration, yes.

But you have to weigh that against what we know about Hall in general. He left Lloyd some time ago, and this letter basically suggests that it was for this exact sort of stuff that he left (it also seems he was made aware of the previous Lloyd rape charges).

If he were the type of person to be motivated by causing a split in the school and taking their students, wouldn't he have done this right when he left? I mean, he had the public eye then too.

It seems to me, based on the timing, that he simply could not, in the face of all the things that Lloyd is doing in the wake of this tragedy with the NYE rapes, hold his tongue any longer. Additionally, the thought and sincerely put into the article just really comes off as genuine, self-deprecating and done in an effort to help BJJ overall.

So yes, everyone has to make their own determination here on whether or not to trust what is written here, but for me, that's an easy decision.

I trust Ryan Hall.
 
Wow.. very well written. Mad respect to Ryan.
 
I trust Ryan Hall.

Although I agree with Ryan that you should never blindly look up to anyone you don't truly know, I'll go as far to say that until I see evidence to the contrary, Ryan Hall will be a good guy and a class act in my book.

If I ever train BJJ in the USA, I will definitely consider stopping by 50/Fifty.
 
Wow what a great read. Very seldom does someone come about that I truly admire because of their beliefs, integrity, and morals. Ryan is one of those people.
 
I bet Lloyd was shaking with impotent rage when he read this.
 
"This can be plainly seen as we have watched numerous less than intelligent, obviously brainwashed individuals grossly overstep their bounds in attacking the immediate family of one of their cult mates when that family expressed justifiable concern over the influences to which their son and brother is being exposed."

I assume this is pretty common knowledge, but what's specifically being referred to here?
 
"This can be plainly seen as we have watched numerous less than intelligent, obviously brainwashed individuals grossly overstep their bounds in attacking the immediate family of one of their cult mates when that family expressed justifiable concern over the influences to which their son and brother is being exposed."

I assume this is pretty common knowledge, but what's specifically being referred to here?

When Tom Callos and Chloe Cornelius (relatives of Keenan Cornelius) posted their wish to have Keenan leave the team, some of the TMI members were very disrespectful.

The most egregious of those was Marcos "bag of douche" Avellan. (I really dislike this guy). Other team members were not as mean, but just as vocally loyal about Lloyd.
 
I thought he was referring to a TLI affiliate, but I've no idea.
 
I thought he was referring to a TLI affiliate, but I've no idea.

Ah. Bout to say, Dave Jacobs has been outspoken, Felipe Costa as well, Lana Stefanac has been very loud about it as well. Great to see.
 
Ryan hall has done our community an incredible service in establishing such monumental opposition to this cultish trend that is sadly accumulating increasingly more desperate followers.
As I said... this will save lives; I'm not being over-dramatic either - its a deep hole one digs for oneself when they subvert themselves to a tyrannical power that controls, manipulates and extorts. Kids look up to the champions in their respective sport - they bear the responsibility of leadership; what kind of community are we cultivating if the medal chasers represent the sports success???


Ryan is absolutely right - more "prominent" members lf the bjj community need to oppose this horrible movement; silence does implicate.
 
I thought he was referring to a TLI affiliate, but I've no idea.

phil is not an affiliate though, he is relson gracie affiliate isn't he? or did i miss something. now, they might have got their website layout from lloyd
 
My instructor's instructor once told me that all of us are black belts at something. I should not be in awe of his skill in BJJ or his belt. Instead, if nothing else, he should be impressed by others who accomplish so much in their lives and still pursue a hobby that requires great deal of dedication and effort.
 
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