Ana Lowry BJJ Seminar February 8th
On Saturday, Feb. 8th we will host Ana Lowry for a BJJ seminar studying Jiu-Jitsu as Art. It’s only $30 to attend!
Ana is a brownbelt No-Gi World Champion, & Brazilian National Champion in her weight and absolute divisions. She has numerous major titles at purple & bluebelt, fights under Cicero Costha PSLPB in São Paulo, Brazil, & has been training under Absolute World Champion Murilo Santana since 2008.
Ana will teach a special women’s only session from 12-1 pm & then a co-ed seminar from 1-3 pm. (*Note: open mat is from 11 am-1 pm & the women’s session will be held on one end of the mats during open mat starting at noon.)
Topic: Jiu-Jitsu as Art
The Seminar will be about better understanding the jiu jitsu game, learning to adapt to different body-types/styles, modifying moves to work better for you personally, & learning how to get good training no matter who your training partners are. But above all, it’s about Jiu Jitsu as an Art & developing your own style. The seminar is inexpensive & it’s designed to benefit every type of person, at any skill level. It’ll be fun!
August 2013 News
Julio Fernandez BJJ Camp Oct. 11-13
Julio “Foca” Fernandez, Eric’s instructor & 6th Degree Black Belt under Carlson Gracie, will be traveling to Richmond to offer a weekend campat Richmond BJJ Academy October 11-13. The camp will be Friday night, all day Saturday, and half of the day on Sunday. Mark your calendars now and be ready to reserve your spot. This camp WILL sell out fast with only 30 spots available. Sign-ups start Monday, August 12th!
Congrats to Jake Majeski
Congratulations to Richmond BJJ Academy student Jake Majeski for his fantastic performance at the US Grappling Grapplemania XVI in Henderson, North Carolina on July 20th! Jake won five of six matches– four of the wins by submission! Jake won a Gold Medal in his No-Gi division, and Silver in his Gi division! We’re proud of you Jake!
Women’s BJJ
Women’s BJJ classes are offered twice a month on Saturdays from 1-3 pm. We had a 2-month hiatus in the summer but classes will resume in September.
The Mid-Atlantic Grappling Girls open mat series had a well-attended event in Virginia Beach on August 3rd. The next event will be in Maryland in September. Go here on Facebook to stay up-to-date on the open mats. The open mats are always free, and open to any woman, regardless of affiliation or experience level.
January 2013 News
Richmond BJJ Academy 11 Year Anniversary
On Wednesday, January 2nd, 2013, our Academy celebrated our 11th Anniversary!
We had packed Muay Thai and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu classes, as well as a brief speech by Head Instructor Eric Burdo, a group photo, and Academy Manager Liz Sussan even baked a wonderful cake for the students and staff! Richmond BJJ Academy student Brian Rule filmed the BJJ class, and we have just released a 2nd Technique of the Month video with the footage! Our Bonus Technique of the Month video and January Technique of the Month video are linked below in the newsletter.
Training Focus
With the New Year upon us, now is a great time to focus on our goals for 2013. Whether it be to train more and/or be more consistent with training, get in better shape, eat a more healthy diet, be a better & to be a more supportive training partner to your teammates, work toward achieving a higher rank, and/or setting competition goals, now is the time to plan out how you can achieve those goals. Eric, and the rest of the staff at Richmond BJJ Academy would love to hear from you and be a part in helping you. Our Academy strives to be a positive, healthy part in our students’ lives. Please plan out a course of action, touch base with our Instructors, and let us help you! Every action starts with a thought. Thoughts become actions, and actions produce results!
Congratulations to Promoted Students
Promotions are evidence that hard work and consistency pay off. Congratulations to the following students who were promoted to Blue Belt in December: Anh Vuong, “Big” Jon Antonelli, Matt Tracy, Lance Patel, & Ahmad Fanahi.
Women’s BJJ
Women’s BJJ classes are offered twice a month on Saturdays from 1-3 pm. In January, the classes were offered on January 5th & 12th.
Richmond BJJ Academy is also hosting a women’s open mat on Saturday, January 19th from 1-3 pm. This event is open to any woman, regardless of affiliation, and is totally free of charge. We are expecting 20-30 women, including women from North Carolina and Maryland, to attend for the opportunity to train with a large group of women.
October News
Julio “Foca” Fernandez Seminar Dec. 8th
On Saturday, December 8th, Julio “Foca” Fernandez, Eric Burdo’s instructor and the co-head of BJJ Revolution Team, will be returning to Richmond BJJ Academy to teach another stellar seminar. This will be the biggest event at Richmond BJJ Academy this year, and a great way to end our 10th year as an Academy! Come and learn from a legend! Julio’s bio is here. Read how he started BJJ and how he received his nickname “Foca”.
Saturday, December 8th, 11 am to 2 pm
Promotions Ceremony starts at 2 pm
$60 pre-pay by Dec. 1st, $70 after Dec. 1st
Contact Liz@RichmondBJJ.com to register and arrange payment.
IBJJF US Nationals, Pan No-Gi, & Atlanta Open Results
Congratulations to Shane O’Hara and Liz Sussan who competed at the IBJJF American Nationals in LA in September. Shane took home a Silver in Blue Belt No-Gi and Liz took home a Bronze in the Gi at Purple Belt.
Congratulations to Shane O’Hara and Brett Millea for competing at both the IBJJF Atlanta Open and the Pan No-Gi tournament in September. Shane took home a Bronze medal in his Blue Belt divison at the Pan No-Gi in New York. That means with 51 people in his division, he’s was in the top 3!
Upcoming Tournaments
October 27th: US Grappling Virginia Beach (Richmond BJJ Academy will be open that Saturday)
December 1st: US Grappling Richmond Submission Only (Ashland, VA) (Richmond BJJ Academy will be closed that Saturday)
George Pendergrass Class Tournament Results
Matt Tracy: Gold Intermediate No-Gi Medium Heavy, Gold White Belt Medium Heavy
Brett Millea: Gold Brown Belt Lightweight
Andrew Smith: Gold 30+ No-Gi Advanced Absolute
Intensive Positional Study at Richmond BJJ Academy in October: The Mount Position
October’s subject will be Mount. We will work on achieving mount, maintaining mount, and attacking from mount. We will sharpen our attacks, and link them together to be at our most dangerous!
Week 1: Thursday, October 4th from 7-9 pm
Week 2: Thursday, October 11th from 7-9 pm
Week 3: Thursday, October 18th from 7-9 pm
Week Four: Thursday, October 25th from 7-9 pm