The origins of BJJ
Club lineage
Sub Club Grappling is proud to be part of the UK Bitetti Team. Our head instructor, Dan, is a black belt under Roberto Almeida – Head of the UK Bitetti Team – who himself earned his black belt from the legendary Amaury Bitetti. This strong lineage connects us to some of the most respected names in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and we take great pride in the legacy that shapes our approach to training, teaching, and growth on the mats.
Kanō Jigorō
Mitsuyo Maeda
Carlos Gracie
Carlson Gracie Senior
Amaury Bitetti
Roberto Almeida
Dan Merritt
Kanō Jigorō
Kanō Jigorō (1860–1938) was a Japanese educator and martial artist who founded Judo, one of the first modern martial arts. A visionary thinker, Kanō combined techniques and philosophies from traditional jujutsu schools with his own ideas to create a system that emphasized efficiency, discipline, and personal growth. He not only revolutionised martial arts training in Japan but also introduced Judo as a global sport, eventually making it an Olympic discipline. Kanō’s influence extends far beyond Judo, laying the groundwork for arts like Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and promoting values of respect, perseverance, and continuous self-improvement.
Mitsuyo Maeda
The Father of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, also known as Count Koma, was a pioneering Japanese Judoka and the key figure responsible for introducing Judo – and ultimately Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) – to Brazil in the early 20th century. A student of Jigorō Kano and a fierce competitor with over 2,000 fights to his name, Maeda traveled the world demonstrating and teaching Judo. In Brazil, he taught a young Carlos Gracie, whose family would go on to adapt and evolve the art into what we now know as Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Maeda’s legacy lives on as the foundation of modern BJJ.
Mitsuyo Maeda’s Journey
1.
Born on November 18th 1878 in Funazawa village, Aomori prefecture, Japan.
2.
As a child, Maeda originally dabbled in sumo but, lacking the ideal build for the sport and hearing tales of a burgeoning art’s success in grappling matches throughout the country, soon switched to Judo instead.
3.
Moving to Tokyo to attend university, Maeda took the opportunity to enroll at Jigorō Kano’s legendary Kodokan Institute. During his years here at the heart of Judo he became known as a ferociously prolific competitor, to the extent that the great Judo technician Kyuzo Mifune regarded him as one of the finest promoters of the art due to his unrelenting success against practitioners of other grappling styles.
4.
After defeating 8 opponents in a row at one particular tournament, Maeda was awarded the rank of fourth-dan black belt (yondan).
5.
In 1904, the Japanese legation in Washington D.C. requested that the Kodokan send several teachers to promote Judo in the United States. Maeda enthusiastically accepted the invitation and, along with several others, set sail from Yokohama harbour on November 16th.
6.
Arrived in New York City on December 8th 1904.
7.
Over the course of the next few months, Maeda and his fellow teachers gave public demonstrations at several locations across the east coast, including Princeton University and the West Point military academy. During these demonstrations Maeda would often make a point of inviting enthusiastic challengers from the audience, invariably throwing them with ease.
8.
Opened the first Judo club in New York in 1905. The membership consisted mainly of Japanese expatriates, alongside a lone American woman called Wilma Berger.
9.
On December 8th 1905, Maeda took on a local wrestler in a prizefight in Atlanta, Georgia. The contest was decided by the best of three falls (pins) – two with the combatants wearing jackets and one without. Maeda won the two rounds with jackets and lost the one without.
10.
Moving ever onwards through the likes of the UK, France, and Spain (where he acquired the nickname “Count Koma” – Count Koma), in December 1908 Maeda landed in Mexico City. Here, alongside his usual public demonstrations, he announced a challenge whereby he would pay 100 pesos to anyone he couldn’t throw, and a further 500 pesos to anyone who could throw him. Local newspaper The Mexican Herald does not record anyone ever having been able to take his money.
11.
Arriving in Havana, Cuba in July 1910, Maeda was joined by three fellow Japanese Judoka alongside whom he would continue to wrestle all comers. Together the four men became known as “The four kings of Cuba,” and Maeda gradually worked his way south through the Americas until they reached Brazil.
12.
On January 16th 1916 in Belem, Maeda responded to a challenge from Australian Greco-Roman wrestling champion Nagif Assef, throwing him off the stage on which their bout was fought before submitting him with an armlock.
13.
In January 1917, a 14-year-old Carlos Gracie witnessed one of Maeda’s demonstrations in Belem and, awestruck by the effectiveness of Maeda’s grappling, decided to learn Judo. He was accepted by Maeda as a student and would ultimately bring the art – then also known as “Kano-Ryu Ju-Jitsu” – to be rebranded as Gracie Jiu-Jitsu – to his new home city of Rio de Janeiro.
14.
In 1922, Maeda opened his first Brazilian Judo academy. Initially a 4x4m shed, over subsequent decades it expanded and moved through several different locations, always producing tough competitors with a strong focus on newaza (groundwork).
15.
Maeda died in Belem on November 28th 1941, having been awarded his 7th-dan black belt the previous day and having won over 2,000 prizefights over the course of his life.
