The Weekly Roll: ED5
Stuart Duffy talks about siezing opportunities 💪 And Claudio Brudny talks Mountain Biking to aid Jiu-Jitsu 🚵
We hope you had/are having a nice easter break! We took a break last week to enjoy the time off and hope you did too.
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
Kade Ruotolo is Officially Invited to ADCC Worlds at under 77.
Nicholas Meregali is set to face Vagner Rocha In WNO 23 this Wednesday.
And that’s it! A pretty quiet time right now it seems!
Interviews & Profiles
Athlete Interview
Claudio Brudny
Claudio is a Scramble sponsored Black Belt training under Jeff Lawson at Ippon in Bournemouth & hailing from Poland. Claudio is an avid competitor and coach who has made Jiu-jitsu his life. He is a multi-time IBJJF Gold medalist as well as a Polaris veteran with his sights set up more gold in the future.
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: “One dude at school submitted me with RNC and I decided I need to learn this shit too. I’m still deciding if this is the right path for me haha! But for now, that moment definitely was my first medal on nationals after 3 months of training.”
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: “I think I was the very first guy at my gym who started inversions, but I genuinely think my Jiu-Jitsu and philosophy around it is completely outside the box. I’m always trying weird shit, first on my girlfriend, and then all the way up until I’ll hit this during the round.”
Creative Cross-Training
Q: "Is there an unusual or unexpected form of cross-training you've found beneficial to your Jiu Jitsu practice, something that might not seem immediately related to martial arts?"
A: “Yeah I’m doing a lot of downhill mountain biking. I believe it helps with balance, cardio, overall body strength and conditioning. I’ve been playing some airsoft recently too, it definitely helps to stay competitive. I used to surf a bit but cold water it’s not something I like, especially at 6am! Im looking to start paragliding, it will help with getting over some fear for sure.“
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: “I would say my coach Jeff, he owns an academy, teaching for a living and his son, Leo, is becoming a very accomplished competitor.”
Daily Routines
Q: “What do the first and last 60 minutes of your day look like?”
A: “First 60 min I’m drinking coffee and taking a 💩 last 60 min chilling on the sofa with my girlfriend.”
Coaches Corner
Stuart Duffy
Stuart is a Tatami-sponsored Black belt under Charlie McDonald and Mario Sukata, A Polaris competitor & the Head coach of Team Sukata in Wrexham.
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: “In all honesty when I was promoted to black belt I was happy teaching the beginners class under my coach Charlie McDonald and had no intention of opening a school.
When the opportunity arose for me to run my own club it just seemed like the right thing to do, Jiu-Jitsu changed my life in every way for the better. It felt like the time had come to give something back and help other people potentially change their lives for the better too. There’s no philosophy other than turn up, train hard and leave your problems at the door when you walk in.”
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: “It’s about making a fun and friendly environment but also being realistic in realising you can’t make everyone happy. Be there for the students on the mat and off it if needed, it’s a team!”
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: “Being a coach doesn’t give you any additional wisdom to be advising people outside of teaching the art but you do build up friendships along the way, just be a good person and help People if you can along the way”
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: “That’s a crazy one to answer, every single failure has led me to this point, they’ve all played a pivotal role in some shape or form. Nobody is perfect and mistakes will be made, what I can say is embrace them and learn from them it’s all you can do”
Adversity & Resiliance
Q: “Coaching often involves guiding athletes through ups and downs. Can you share a story where you helped an athlete overcome a significant setback or challenge, and what lessons were learned?“
A: ”I think as a coach you help all the team members at some point or another, they all face little battles from the first day they walk in the door and learn to improve. As a pretty young club I can’t think of major event that springs to mind other than the typical plateaus that everyone faces and trying to micromanage each person differently through that period as and when it comes.”
Community Catch Up
Reader Submission
This week's submission comes in the form of this beautifully artistic photograph from Fraser Carson.
”My name is Fraser Carson and I’m located in Wiltshire/Hampshire area. My full-time role is a Firefighter however during my spare time I’m a photographer my main expertise is weddings and Portraits however recently I’ve come across sports photography the main sports I’ve covered are Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, CrossFit and Powerlifting. I'm enjoying Jiu-Jitsu the most as it is art itself, I’ve found this can help create art-like images which can really show the energy from the sport. I’ll be venturing more into photography for the sport so do follow me on Instagram.”
You can find, and potentially book Fraser’s photography on Facebook, Instagram or his website.
Upcoming Events
Main
April 13th - Subversiv 10 info
Local
UK April Comps - Grapple Comps UK
US April Comps - Grapple Comps US
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