ABU DHABI // Jose Junior and Nathiely Melo de Jesus celebrated their black belt world No 1 titles last night with victories in their heavyweight division finals at the ninth Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Junior, 32, outclassed Christopher Bowe of Ireland 2-0 in the 110-kilogram final and De Jesus got the better of compatriot Talita Nogueira 4-2 in the 90kg at the Ipic Arena.
Junior spent a sleepless night despite securing the title from Gabriel Arges, his closest challenger and another Brazilian, after reaching the final on Friday.
“I couldn’t sleep because I knew today was another important day for me,” Junior said. “I couldn’t control my emotions. A lot of things were going through my mind and I didn’t know how to react.
“Three years ago, I wouldn’t have even imagined I would be competing at this level.”
Junior had given up competing when, in 2009, he took up the job of a jiu-jitsu instructor with Palms Sports, the technical arm of the UAE Jiu-Jitsu Federation.
“I have to thank my employer for the encouragement and backing they provided me to compete again,” Junior said.
“At first, my intention was to lead by example. We were teaching them a combat sport and I wanted to show them what it takes to win at competitions.
“With success in the local competitions, and by competing against several black belts, my interest grew. Then I started training more seriously, particularly in the last three years.
“I’m not surprised with the result, though. I spent a lot of time and made a lot of sacrifices to achieve this feat.”
The World Ranking table is an initiative of the UAEJJF and comes with a bonus prize of US$25,000 (Dh91,812).
De Jesus, 21, was also ecstatic for reaching the summit in her first year as a black belt.
“My journey began 10 months ago and I’m quite surprised that I could finish as the world No 1,” she said. “As my first year in black belt, my objective was to compete in as much competitions as possible to gain experience. I started winning almost every competition that I took part and it just took off.”
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