HISTORY  

IN THE EARLY 1900'S, A JAPANESE JIU-JITSU INSTRUCTOR BY THE NAME OF EASAI MAEDA WENT TO THE STATE OF PARA IN NORTHERN BRAZIL. THERE HE BEFRIENDED GASTAO GRACIE, AN INFLUENTIAL BUSINESSMAN WHO HELPED THE JAPANESE GET ESTABLISHED. TO SHOW HIS GRATITUDE, MAEDA, ALSO KNOW AS "COUNT KOMA", OFFERED TO TEACH THE TRADITIONAL JAPANESE JIU-JITSU TO GASTAO'S OLDEST SON CARLOS, WHO IN TURN TAUGHT HIS BROTHERS, MOST NOTABLY HELIO CRACIE.

ONE DAY WHEN HELIO WAS 16 YEARS OLD, A STUDENT SHOWED UP FOR CLASS AND CARLOS WAS NOT AROUND. HELIO, WHO HAD MEMORIZED ALL THE MOVES AND WORDS OF HIS OLDER BROTHER, OFFERED TO START THE CLASS. WHEN THE CLASS WAS OVER, CARLOS SHOWED UP VERY APOLOGETIC FOR HIS DELAY. THE STUDENT ANSWERED, "NO PROBLEM, I ENJOYED THE CLASS WITH HELIO VERY MUCH, AND IF YOU DONT MIND I WOULD LIKE TO CONTINUE WITH HIM". CARLOS AGREED TO IT, AND HELIO BECAME AN INSTRUCTOR.

HELIO SOON REALIZED THAT SOME OF THE TECHNIQUES HE HAD MEMORIZED FROM WATCHING CARLOS TEACHING WERE NOT VERY EASY FOR HIM TO EXECUTE, DUE TO HIS SMALL SIZE AND LACK OF STRENGTH. HE THEN STARTED TO ADAPT THOSE MOVES TO HIS FRAIL BODY ABILITIES,  IMPROVING THE LEVERAGE IN THE EXECUTION OF THOSE TECHNIQUES. HE DARED BREAK AWAY FROM THE TRADITIONAL JIU-JITSU HIS BROTHERS HAD LEARNED AND WERE TEACHING, AND THROUGH TRIAL AND ERROR, THE "GRACIE" OR "BRAZILIAN" JIU-JITSU WAS BORN.

HELIO EVENTUALLY FOUGHT 17 FIGHTS INCLUDING MATCHES AGAINST THE WORLD WRESTLING CHAMPION WLADEK ZBYSZKO, AND A QUALIFYING FIGHT AGAINST THE #2 JIU-JITSU FIGHTER IN THE WORLD, KATO. HELIO CHOKED KATO UNCONSCIOUS IN 6 MINUTES. THIS VICTORY ENABLED HIM TO ENTER THE RING WITH THE WORLD CHAMPION, MASAHIKO KIMURA, WHO OUTWEIGHED HELIO BY OVER 80 POUNDS.

HELIO GRACIE HOLDS THE RECORD FOR THE LONGEST MATCH IN HISTORY FOR A BATTLE AGAINST HIS FORMER STUDENT, WALDEMAR SANTANA, WHICH LASTED AN AMAZING 3 HOURS AND 40 MINUTES! HELIO, THE FIRST SPORTS HERO IN BRAZILIAN HISTORY ALSO CHALLENGED BOXING ICONS PRIMO CARNERA, JOE LOUIS AND EZZARD CHARLES. THEY ALL DECLINED.

THROUGHOUT THE YEARS, THE GRACIE FAMILY AND IT'S STUDENTS MET ALL CHALLENGERS IN THE MOST ADVERSE CONDITIONS TO ENSURE THAT THE SYSTEM THEY CREATED, WAS IN FACT, THE MOST EFFECTIVE MARTIAL ART STYLE IN THE WORLD.

 
HELIO GRACIE