Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is popular in the Netherlands.
In this blog, I'll explain where it all started and where we currently stand with BJJ in the Netherlands.
BJJ schools in the Netherlands
A recent study by Dutch champion Emily Swinkels shows that there are currently approximately ninety BJJ schools in the Netherlands. This is separate from classes added to the offerings of various kickboxing schools or other such gyms.
Pioneers
The individuals who have influenced Dutch BJJ since the 1990s are primarily Remco Pardoel, Harold Harder, and the Peters brothers.
The Rickson Gracie association (EGJJF) has the most BJJ schools in the Netherlands, with no fewer than seventeen official schools. Jiu-Jitsu Factory and Gracie Barra also have their own chain of schools in the Netherlands.
What is a lineage?
In every martial art, there is a certain lineage, as it is called. It is simply a track record that you can follow to see who your instructor trained under. An example of my lineage = Helio Gracie>Rickson Gracie> Harold Harder> Raoul Hiwat> Abdel Ziamari. If there is no track record, then some alarm bells should start ringing.
Let me be very clear, a lineage says NOTHING about a person.
If your teacher is a BJJ World Champion or a "black belt" under the best people in the world, but treats you and your fellow students like a doormat, then your teacher is simply an jerk.
Where did it all begin?
It all started with Remco Pardoel, a Dutch judo champion who won a Japanese Jiu-Jitsu world championship in 1993.
Here he met Fabio Gurgel and Romero Cavalcanti. They introduced Remco to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, which he had vaguely heard of.
Shortly after, the very first BJJ seminar in the Netherlands took place, with 14 people attending. The beginning of Dutch BJJ was born.
Why did it become popular?
Ino Alberga, the founder of KO Magazine, published a call for an open fighting style tournament (UFC). If you think you have the best fighting style, come prove it, the message read.
Gerard Gordeau had already preceded Remco and had fought the very first MMA match ever in UFC 1. Remco lost in the semi-finals to Royce Gracie by submission.
Gordeau also lost to Royce with the same type of technique.
The remarkable thing about this, and the reason BJJ eventually became so popular, is that for the first time, it showed that a larger and stronger person was not superior to a smaller person with the right technique and timing!
Watch the fights below.
Remco Pardoel vs Royce Gracie- Fight lasts 3:07
Gerard Gordeau vs Royce Gracie- Fight lasts 1:58
Spread throughout the Netherlands
In 1996, Remco conducted a Jiu-Jitsu seminar in Bercy, where Harold assisted.
Here, contact was made with none other than Rickson Gracie!
Pure coincidence. They naturally could not refuse an invitation to participate in a seminar. Three weeks later, Harold traveled alone to Paris to attend a seminar by Royce and Rorion Gracie, the founder of the now world-famous UFC.
Harold ran his own Tang Soo Do school in Drunen, which he transformed into a BJJ school. After this, many trips to Los Angeles followed to train with Rickson. It can be said with certainty that almost everyone from the first Jiu-Jitsu generation earned a blue belt under Harold Harder.
BJJ level in the Netherlands
The level in the Netherlands and Europe has increased enormously since the 1990s. Although there is still a catch-up to be made with the American and Brazilian world elite, I foresee a few BJJ world champions from the Netherlands in the future. In those countries, you start wrestling or Jiu-Jitsu at a very young age. In the Netherlands, sports like football, kickboxing, or judo are more often among the first options.
More and more parents are finding their way to BJJ, and hopefully, that will only grow over the years.
Seminars
The level of seminars in the Netherlands has also increased. The Ribeiro brothers, Lovato Jr., Rickson Gracie, Dean Lister, Demian Maia, and members of the Danaher Squad regularly come to our country to spread knowledge. It is always nice to talk to other teams and other practitioners of the sport at such events.
Tournaments
BJJ and Grappling tournaments in the Netherlands are growing just as fast. Whereas before you would always meet the same two opponents in the heavyweight class, that is now truly different.
Three hundred participants at a tournament is very normal nowadays, especially at tournaments like Dutch Open and Flevo Open.
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Request a trial lessonThis article was originally published in Dutch. Read the Dutch original.
