What's it like competing in the Mundials?

[ZeMino]

if anyone here has competed in the mundials or the pan ams or even Abu Dhabi, can you give us a glimpse of:
(doesn't matter what belt you are)
1.what its like to be competing in the biggest jiu jitsu stage?

2.(if you've made it to the medal round)what was it like? how did you feel before and after competing?

3.Does the crowd really affect your game?

4.Did you have a gameplan or was it "go with the flow and face every challenge."?

5.Were you able to give it 100%?

6.If you guys have pictures of preparation for the tournament or during the tournament, pls feel free to post..

7.If you feel like saying anything about your experiences in the tournament, pls feel free to share..

I've been doing jiu jitsu since I was 16,turning 21 soon, but because the championships are too far from where I lived(like half way around the world), I never got the opportunity to compete, so I was just curious on what goes on within a fighter on the biggest stage....
Be nice if some proffessional grapplers/fighters would post...
thanks alot...

 

[Gsoares2***]

hard?

 

[VagabondMusashi]

pretty damn hard is what he was trying to say

 

[Stoic1]

Barra teJuca is loud. It's big. But its just like any other tournament. You weigh in, you fight. Things are a big more amplified...

Like weight. If you travelled 200 miles and didn't make weight its no big deal. But when you travel 2000 miles and spend 2000 dollars to get there and compete making weight is suddenly a very very big deal considering you will be disqualified for going over.

Training before the tournament. You won't be in familiar territory with your same group of guys being comfortable. Instead you are training at gyms where you are the enemy. You are trying to fumble around a country where you don't speak the language. Trying to order food you cant pronounce. Trying to figure out what bus goes where.

In short, it is just like any other tournament. The same pressure. Just all the other environmental factors are multiplied by 100x.

 

[guardpasser]

it is an awe striking event, you get to see all the best bjj guys in the world, eat at churrascarias, train with lots of brown and black belts, meet every one that is famous...then you compete...and get beat by some brazilians.
i loved it

 

[powerhockey17]

well I guess if you dont speak the language it can suck..but otherwise brazil can be a fun place to go..competing or not! I got around fine when I was there and never had any trouble..speaking portugues helps a great deal!

 

[kneecompression]

it is an awe striking event, you get to see all the best bjj guys in the world, eat at churrascarias, train with lots of brown and black belts, meet every one that is famous...then you compete...and get beat by some brazilians.
i loved it

and after you get beat by the brazilians, you go out to the clubs and "borrow" their women


that pretty much sums it up.....i didn't eat any churrascarias though, just alot of acai, which turns your poop purple after awhile

 

[guardpasser]

i hear ya.
we celebrated at the clubs.
acai every morning, big bowls of it with granola when available