Keene State offers a variety of clubs and activities for students to participate in. One in particular is the Brazilian Jiu-jitsu club which focuses on a ground-based fighting style where opponents grapple and try to take down their opponent and get them to submit.
“We want to build skills in students but also we want them to find themselves and develop to learn something they didn’t think they could do or like. When they try it we want them to realize this is something that has meaning for them,” Faculty Advisor Peter Greene said.
The team meets every Tuesday where members are provided with gis. They then do warmups and Greene leads the members through drills. Finishing off the night, members work on live sparring and apply what they learned that night and practiced into their fighting.
When members are signed up for the club, they are allowed to attend the Monadnock Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu academy and train there for free. Greene owns and runs the academy while offering a variety of levels of Jiu-jitsu. Members often attend the classes at the academy several times a week.
“The whole philosophy is using leverage to overcome strength and was originally designed so a smaller person could leverage against a bigger person. It’s difficult but it’s a very rewarding experience,” President Jack Shea commented.
According to Shea, Jiu-jitsu is a very physical sport that requires patience and an understanding that sometimes you lose in a match.
Shea said, “When you first get started you lose a lot. Jiu-jitsu will get you comfortable with failing and that’s what I appreciate about it.”
Members do not have to have any previous experience with this form of art prior to joining. Brazilian Jiu-jitsu is a form of fighting that we often see but don’t recognize. It’s often used in UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) fighting and has become more popular with the world of social media, according to Revel Jiu-jitsu.
Greene encouraged students by saying, “Don’t prejudge it and have an open mind but don’t be intimidated. It can be intimidating to think and see what’s happening, but the people that are there want to help. Everyone at that meeting is there to help teach you.”
Olivia Casale can be contacted at
ocasale@kscequinox.com
