Article written by Richie Bolger-
I was born in Ireland in 1981 in Kilkenny. I grew up playing every sport available in particular soccer and an irish game called hurling. When I was 12, I started to box and feel in love with martial arts. I trained in Kung Fu, Mauy Thai and kickboxing for about 12 years. After i finished my undergraduate degree, I decided I would like to travel abroad and train in different countries. Something which was inspired from watching old samurai movies and seeing the samurai travel around training and fighting. I’m lucky that my job as a lecturer allows me in some way travel along a similar path.
I was born in Ireland in 1981 in Kilkenny. I grew up playing every sport available in particular soccer and an irish game called hurling. When I was 12, I started to box and feel in love with martial arts. I trained in Kung Fu, Mauy Thai and kickboxing for about 12 years. After i finished my undergraduate degree, I decided I would like to travel abroad and train in different countries. Something which was inspired from watching old samurai movies and seeing the samurai travel around training and fighting. I’m lucky that my job as a lecturer allows me in some way travel along a similar path.
First stop was Thailand, where I trained mauy thai for 9 weeks and had a fight in Pathong stadium. After that, I still had a week to train so I decided to try some MMA training. This was my first ever experience of Jiu Jitsu. I’ll never forget it. I was 220lbs at the time, and rolled with a Thai Jiu Jitsu fighter that was about 100lbs. He destroyed me. Sweeping me at will, taking my back, and choking me when ever he liked. I couldn’t believe that this little Thai guy was able to control me with such ease. I decided then that Jiu Jitsu was the next martial art I had to learn.
Next stop for me was Rio De Janeiro. I stayed for another 9 week training camp. I went around looking for accommodations and somewhere to train. A lot of places didn’t have instructors that spoke English. I eventually came across a place called Epuipe Fabricio, which had an English speaking instructor. I decided to train there. It was very small, but the guys there where very friendly. I began to learn the basics. About six weeks in, my trip was cut short due to a family member becoming ill. So, I had to return home having trained for 6 weeks. My obsession with learning Jiu Jitsu had truly manifested itself.
Upon returning home, I searched for somewhere to train. I found a small group of people being trained by a blue belt from Poland named Marcin. Marcin was passionate about Jiu Jitsu, and I began training there. We shared technique and training twice a week.
My next trip was influenced greatly by my trip to Rio. The conversations I had with the guys there about the best Jiu Jitsu practitioners. I had asked the question who was the best Jiu Jitsu practitioner alive? The ensuing argument resulted in numerous names and clubs that I was not familiar with. I began to look through various websites and competition footage of the fighters I had heard about. I came across Saulo and Xande and watched all the video I could find and decided that I would try to find them and train with them assuming they where still in Brazil. To my surprise they both lived and trained in the United States. San Diego, California to be exact. So I booked a flight for the next summer, and spent 9 weeks training out there achieving the grade of blue belt. I was so happy to be graded there and by such accomplished fighters and instructors.
The next summer I was excited to travel to San Diego again. I wanted to train hard and try to learn as much as I could to bring back to my training partners back home. I realized very quickly that the University had something special going on. The guys I had trained with some 9 months previously had improved by leaps and bounds since I had been away. I couldn’t get over the level at which some had improved. Which is a credit to the teaching and training that they had received, I was eager to learn more and progress my game as much as I could. It was a great summer and my bond with the guys grew even more, making it feel like a home away from home.
The following year at home I had begun to travel around the country to train in different clubs to see what the level was like. Sadly, it wasn’t anything close to what I had experienced in the states with the exception of SBG and Darragh O’Connail’s club, now named Ribeiro Jiu Jitsu Ireland. I decided to make the two hour trip up to Darragh’s to help with preparations for the following summer of training. Darragh’s club was similar in intensity and style to that of training at the University. Which was great for me. I learned a lot while training there.
The following summer I floated with the idea of going to Japan for the summer and training Judo and Jiu Jitsu. When I looked into the cost, I was deterred and immediately booked San Diego knowing I would learn loads and have a good time while doing it. This summer I trained as hard as I have ever trained two and three times a day exclusively Jiu Jitsu. I found that my game was starting to take shape and was beginning to think about Jiu Jitsu on a different level. I had passed the stage of collecting movements, and progressed on to transitional movement and linking movements and techniques together. Topping off the trip I was promoted to purple belt by Saulo Ribeiro, after an unforgettably gruelling session with him. It was the night before I was to return to Ireland.
I have to say, the guys in the University are an inspiration to watch. In particular, the younger one’s, who’s technique and progression is phenomenal to watch. From white belt to black belt, they have world class practitioners to train with. And have a humble, friendly orientation constantly.
Jiu Jitsu for me is chess with the human body. With combinations which are unquantifiable and endless. This is why so many people find, that once they begin to survive in Jiu Jitsu, they become completely addicted to it like me!
Richie Bolger
