New dates for Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship announced

'World Pro' to take place from February 23-27 in revised 2021 calendar

The Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship has been a roaring success. Ravindranath / The National

The twice-postponed Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship will take place from February 23-27, the UAE Jiu-Jitsu Federation (UAEJJF) announced while unveiling the new 2021 calendar.

The championship, also known as the World Pro, is the highlight of the UAEJJF’s calendar and is usually staged in April as the season-ending event followed by the Grand Awards to crown the world champions.

However, the new season has been revamped to provide athletes access to more competitions and greater opportunity to develop their skills, with the added incentive of a significantly increased total prize fund of Dh5 million.

The changes announced for the domestic season include the creation of the UAE National Championship, a new individual rankings system across three categories – Under-16, Under-18 and Adults – and an increase in the number of rounds for the Vice President’s League and Mother of the Nation League, from three to five.

The new season begins with the Mother of Nations League Round-1 on January 15 followed by the Vice President’s League Round-1 on the following day. The President’s Cup Round-1 for females and males is scheduled for January 29 and 30 respectively.

The Abu Dhabi Grand Slam is set for April 1-3 and the AJP Tour Asia Continental on July 9-10.

The UAE National Championship, with double ranking points, is scheduled for October 1-2. The President’s Cup's third and final round on October 15-16 concludes the season.

“Our goal has always been to promote and nourish the sport of jiu-jitsu in the UAE,” Mohammed Salem Al Dhaheri, vice president of UAEJJF, said during the virtual launch on Monday.

“After analysing the tremendous success of our previous domestic seasons there was a great appetite for a longer season and more events.

“These changes are designed to ensure that athletes get more competitive mat time and the chance to consistently test themselves against high-quality opponents.”

Fahad Al Shamsi, general secretary of the UAEJJF, said that all events for the season would be held in strict adherence to local and federal health and safety protocols.

The UAEJJF pioneered a safe return of competitive sport in Middle East back in May and has implemented stringent health and safety protocols across all its competitions and training venues.

“We have issued a detailed list of health and safety measures to the jiu-jitsu community and will be implementing comprehensive measures at all tournaments to protect the health and safety of all our fighters, coaches, and support staff,” Al Shamsi said.

“Having organised multiple tournaments amidst restrictions brought on by the pandemic, we are confident that we will deliver a season of high-quality action and excitement in a safe and secure environment which gives our athletes the best platform to perform.”