The Weekly Roll: ED4
Owen Livesy gives us insight into his coaching style 🌳 And Danielle Tighe talks about morning motivation ☕
The days are getting longer and the skies are getting clearer!
This week we have the northern powerhouse that is Owen Livesey giving us his take on coaching and reliving the most notable events in his career.
If you know someone whose story is worth telling, whether it’s an athlete operating under the radar or a coach with a story to tell, email us at contact@grapplestuff.com or comment at the bottom of the newsletter! 🤙
TL;DR News
Mackenzie Dern is set to make her return to submission grappling at ADCC worlds.
IBJJF Pans took place and you can see the results here.
Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson enters IBJJF Pans at masters brown belt and comes out on top.
Polaris GP ran at the weekend and was an explosive event that saw PJ Barch come out on top and walk away with the $20k prize.
Interviews & Profiles
Athlete Interview
Danielle Tighe
Danielle is a brown belt competitor and professional firefighter training out of ESG in London. She is an accomplished competitor having competed in the majority of UK Invitational events most notably Danielle won gold at the No-gi Euros shortly after obtaining her brown belt.
Path to Discovery
Q: “Can you share the story of how you first discovered Jiu-Jitsu and what resonated with you? Was there a specific moment or experience that solidified your passion to pursue the sport, and what keeps you consistent?”
A: “Literally a gym opened at the end of my road, where I used to live. I’d never done martial arts before. Eventually, I went in. That’s where it all started. 4/5 months later I did my first white belt gi tournament and was hooked.”
Innovative Techniques
Q: “Every athlete brings their unique flair to their sport. Is there a technique or strategy you've developed or particularly enjoyed over the years?”
A: “Honestly I don’t think I have anything perfected… does anyone really?! 🤔 There are certainly little things I have a preference towards, like for example I love a half Nelson for control.
I’ve been working from the bottom position a lot lately, getting comfortable being underneath my opponent, something I honestly used to view as a ‘losing position’. I recently did a session learning from Levi Leary-Jones (what a legend) and it was really helpful towards attacking with underneath.”
In Your Eyes
Q: “In Grappling, when you think of the word “successful”, who’s the first person who comes to mind, and why?”
A: “Straight away Ffion comes to my mind. She is undeniably the best, in both Gi and Nogi in multiple rule sets too. Wow.
As a side note, I always love and admire those athletes who still hold down regular jobs, have kids/families to look after, and don’t have big-name sponsors.
People who compete like a boss but have a regular life too. Big ups.”
Daily Routines
Q: “What do the first and last 60 minutes of your day look like?”
A: “I get up around 6.30 am to get ready for training, cuppa tea (always a must) sit and mong for 15mins contemplating my life, then out the door to tackle the m25 😭.
At the end of the day, I usually fall asleep on the couch like a slob with the latest episode of something still playing (which I’ll then have to rewatch the next night…and probably fall asleep again (FYI currently watching Guy Richie’s The Gentleman)).”
Coaches Corner
Owen Livesey
Owen Livesey is a notable figure from the UK, excelling in judo, submission wrestling, and mixed martial arts. He has represented Great Britain and England in judo competitions across the globe as well as represented the UK in various quintet tournaments with his UK & EU grappling peers. His most well-known achievement includes clinching a gold medal in the Men's 81kg judo category at the 2014 Commonwealth Games held in Glasgow.
Owen is well known for his ability as an athlete but in this edition, we chose to delve into the other side of grappling, the coaching side.
Path to Coaching Mastery
Q: “As a grappling coach, what pivotal experiences or insights led you to transition from being a practitioner to coaching Jiu-Jitsu? Can you share a defining moment that shaped your coaching philosophy, and how has it influenced your approach to training athletes?”
A: “I’ve been an athlete for the best part of 15 years now, as in a full-time athlete. I started Judo at 8 years old, and I moved away at 16 to train full-time. I don’t have a defining moment. I’ve worked with loads of world-class coaches over the last 15 years and just took a little bit from each and every one of them.
I believe you get out what you put in and I try to pass this across to everybody I work with. I will be here to help you every single day of the week, BUT, I expect the same back. If you give me that back, I think we can go a long way. As soon as you don’t though, I’m not really bothered either.”
It’s not for me to force it, you need to want to do it yourself in my eyes.
Building Community and Culture
Q: “The community and culture within a gym can significantly impact a student's growth and experience. What steps do you take to cultivate a positive and supportive environment, and why do you believe it's important?”
A: “Again, I’ve been lucky to be in good environments all the way through my career.
Firstly, I treat everybody with respect, unless I get a reason not to. I don’t treat people differently because they are better or at a higher level. Everybody gets the same chance with me. If you are consistent in your training, you listen and you ask questions you can go as far as you want, and I make that as clear as possible in my training room. I make sure everybody knows they can go wherever they want if they work for it, whether that be as an athlete or a potential coach in the future. I also believe nobody is bigger than the gym. So, if anybody in the room is bringing the atmosphere down in one way or another that will be nipped in the bud instantly.”
Off-the-Mat Wisdom
Q: "Coaching extends beyond the physical aspect of training. Have you integrated any non-traditional wisdom or life lessons into your coaching style that go beyond the technical aspects of Jiu-Jitsu? How has this holistic approach contributed to the development of your athletes?"
A: “My approach to coaching is very simple. I have a lot of experience and I pass that on the best I can. That is experience in terms of technique, how to train, how to handle yourself off the mat, how to handle competition days, how to travel for training, and get out of your comfort zone. I constantly drive this into my athletes. On top of this, I never stop learning myself. I travel for training myself even though competition isn’t a massive focus for me anymore.”
I constantly travel and learn to better myself as a coach, as well as study daily to bring new things into the gym. I believe this is a must, as soon as you stop this you’re dead.
Learning From Failure
Q: “How has a failure, or apparent failure, set you up for later success? Or, do you have a favourite failure of yours?“
A: “I’ve never enjoyed failing, I can’t remember a single one that I have enjoyed. My biggest failure was dropping out of Olympic Qualification for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, and I think that will hurt forever. I was within the world's top 18 until the last 2 tournaments of qualification and fell out. This was a lifelong goal of mine. I guess this has made a transition to grappling easy as I’ve been going against some of the biggest names in the sport over the last few years and I can’t say I’ve been phased one bit, to me, this is easy compared to how we lived, trained and competed in the judo days.”
Bang For Your Buck
Q: “What’s something in the last 6 months that you’ve spent £100 or less on, that’s been a huge benefit to you, would you recommend it to anyone?“
A: ”Haha... BPC 157! My body has started to show the signs of 20 years in combat sports. I’d never used BPC 157 till the other week, and it’s done absolute wonders for my joints. Sorry, you were probably expecting something a bit more exciting but it’s a lifesaver!”
Community Catch Up
Reader Submission
Nothing this week! Make sure to email, comment or DM us if you want to be featured!
Upcoming Events
Main
March 29th: ADCC Las Vegas Open
March 30th-31st: ADCC North American Trials 2.0
April 6th: Fight To Win 250
Local
UK April Comps - Grapple Comps UK
US April Comps - Grapple Comps US
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