Team Tooke joins forces with 6 Blades to take the 3rd Place Team Trophy at the IBJJF Houston Open Jiu-jitsu Championship

This past Saturday, Team Tooke students participated in the IBJJF Houston Open Jiu-jitsu Championships. The students showed a ton of heart and performed beautifully. We joined forces with the 6 Blades Team and Professor Xande Ribeiro to capture the 3rd place team trophy! There were lots of victories and a few tough defeats. But we competed as a team and win, or lose, we supported and cheered for one another the whole time.

Why Compete in Jiu-jitsu?

I always encourage our students to compete. When I do, I’m met with responses ranging from, “that would be awesome”, to “do you think I’m ready?” to “I could never do that!” Competition leads to excitement but it also leads to fear, anxiety and thoughts of losing, failure and letting the team down. As someone who has competed for over 20 years consistently, I understand these feelings completely. And, I sometimes still experience them myself. However, the truth of the matter is far less consequential. Competition is simply about joining your teammates in an opportunity to challenge yourself to improve, learn from the experience and become a better martial artist. Does winning matter? Of course! You should be trying your absolute best to win. But losing only exists on the scoreboard. There is no real losing in Jiu-jitsu. You either win, or you learn. And your coaches and teammates are going to love and be proud of you as long as you do your best and keep a respectful attitude. Of course, winning will always feel better than losing. But the only way to avoid the potential for loss is to avoid the challenge altogether. But that would be selling yourself short. Remember, we are a team and we support one another no matter what. So get ready for the next competition!

Upcoming Competitions

There are a few upcoming competitions that Team Tooke will be participating in. I hope you will plan to join us.

The American Nationals is coming to Dallas December 4-6th! To register for this event click here

The Grappling Games will take place December 12th. Please click here to register

Finally, the Master World Championships will take place in beautiful Kissimee, FL December 17th-20th. Click here to register! This is going to be a fun one and has become tradition here at Team Tooke!

Check out the pics below to see some of our teammates in action at the Houston Open Jiu-jitsu Championship!