Atos Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Cagayan de Oro will be holding a block screening for Guardians of the Galaxy on April 25, 2017 at 9PM, at Centrio Cinema 1 a day ahead of the regular schedule.
“It’s a fundraising event for competing Kagay-anon athletes in the upcoming Dumau Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Competition in Cebu this coming June,” said Candice Saligumba, Centrio Cinema Manager. “Tickets can be purchased from our ticket booth at the 3rd floor or at ATOS BJJ CDO gym at YMCA.”
“The purpose of the event is to raise funds for a couple of things: One is to subsidize the expenses of our students who have potential to succeed in international competition but have little to no budget. It has been a practice nga kami mag amot–amot (that we will contribute) but we decided to have a fundraising event instead,” said Paul Clarence “Popo” Juarez, head instructor.
“Second, we’ll have to buy gear and equipment for our scholars. They are chosen students that we want to take under our wing to impart skills and values that would help them in the future. Sa karon (For now), I’m helping out a few people nga (who are) trainers daan (already) for capacity and skill building.”
“These ‘scholars’ are street children from Kuya Fish (KFA) or Ark Foundation who are being groomed by our partner foundation so that they become positive role models in their community. Gamay pa ni sila (There are just a few of them), but we’re expecting this integration program to be successful.”
Queries for assistance and information can be coursed through Proverbs Fernandez, Vice President-Kuya Fish Campaign, with mobile #0927-227-5419.
ATOS BJJ holds Jiu-Jitsu classes at the YMCA-Cagayan de Oro City from 7 to 9 p.m. every Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays.
In a previous article published in SunStar Cagayan de Oro, Juarez describes Jiu-Jitsu as a martial arts derived from judo but which stresses ground fighting and submissions.
“Its most popular form is the Brazilian Jiu-jitsu (BJJ). Japanese judoka Mitsuyo Maeda brought the art to Brazil. Its popularity rose because of its success in the Unlimited Fighting Championships (UFC), showing its effectiveness against other martial art forms,” Juarez said.
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu promotes the concept that a smaller person can successfully defend against a bigger, stronger, and heavier opponent by using proper technique, leverage, and most notably, by taking the fight to the ground (Wikipedia).
Juarez has been training for nine years and has been affiliated with Atos Philippines for four years as an accredited instructor.
“We are the only Atos Philippines branch outside Metro Manila and we have produced champions in local and international tournaments. Atos is an international Jiu-Jitsu team consistently ranked among the best Jiu-Jitsu schools in the world,” Juarez said.
Juarez was trained by Ali Sulit, head of Atos Philippines, a Judo 4th degree Black belt, a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Blackbelt, and head coach of the Ateneo de Manila University Judo and Jiu-Jitsu program.