Rio Grappling athletes pack in the medals
Senior members from the Rio Grappling Club in Springs competed in the Pride Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Grappling Championships on March 12 in Pretoria.
The tournament, which was founded by Jurgen Putter, head coach at the Rio Grappling Club, consists of two divisions.
“The first division is fought with gi and the second with no-gi,” says Stefan Pretorius (23) who competed in the tournament.
Darren Allen (27) competed in the gi and no-gi division in his category and received a silver medal in the gi division and bronze in the no-gi division.
Another member who took part in the tournament, Shaun Naudé (35) didn’t place as he sustained an injury early in the day but continued to compete in both divisions.
Stefan competed in both gi and no-gi divisions and also entered into a heavier weight class.
He fought his way to four finals, one of them the gi absolutes.
Stefan didn’t manage to win in the finals, but took home four silver medals.
“I’m not doing it for the medals but for myself. I want to see how far I can push myself,” he says.
