Abu Dhabi, UAE, 13 January 2017: The Abu Dhabi Grand Slam Jiu-Jitsu World Tour descended in Abu Dhabi for the first time in spectacular fashion as UAE players won a total of 45 medals at the first day of the competition. The event began with the national anthem of United Arab Emirates in the presence of UAE Jiu-Jitsu Federation Chairman, His Excellency Abdulmunan Al Hashemi and UAE Jiu-Jitsu Federation CEO, Mr. Fahad Al Shamsi.
“We delivered a great event, from the production, to the fights which were really exciting, to the fans attendance at the venue, the atmosphere was buzzing. We dedicate this event to the UAE martyrs, who lost their lives in Afghanistan. Our thoughts and prayers are with their families.” Said H.E Abdulmunan Al Hashemi UAEJJF Chairman
“This is the first time in the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam world tour that we have over 450 Emirati players competing. The level of the competition is really high, so it is a great experience for the juveniles and also the adults to test their skills among the best.” Said H.E H.E Abdulmunan Al Hashemi UAEJJF Chairman
The 2,164 fans in attendance at IPIC Arena in Abu Dhabi and the viewers across Abu Dhabi Sports TV and the 12 broadcasters from around the world, witnessed six hours of great thrills and were treated to some exciting and high paced set of fights.
Faisal Al Ketbi and Marcos Costa was arguably the most exciting fight of the day at the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam. The marquee showdown was a story of attack vs. defense, as Faisal started with his usual attacking style, Marcos tried to lure Faisal in and take the fight on ground, but wasn’t very successful in his tactic. Faisal remained patient and calm throughout the match and won the gold by points.
“I want to thank my opponents today. It was some good grappling. I played the way I usually do, I like to attack, it was a tricky fight but I really enjoyed it and I am very happy to win Gold again. I look forward to the Gi competition tomorrow and the aim is the same.“ said Faisal Al Ketbi
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Please click HERE for the full results
Black Belt Results
Master 1 – Male
60kg – Antonio Santana beat Andre Silva by referees decision after a tough match that ended in a tie.
67kg – Thiago Marques and Bruno Lopes gave all they had, but after 6 minutes the score was a tie. The referees pointed Marques as the champion.
75kg – Michel Maia caught Thiago de Souza with a choke from the back to win the division in a thrilling final.
92kg – Felipe Bobrick beat Celso Junior 1-0 on advantages to become the division’s champion.
108kg – Paulo Pinto outscored Pablo Leite 3-0 to claim the gold medal.
Adult – Male
67kg – Wellington Lima outscored Abdallah Nabas 6-0 with a dominant performance to claim the gold medal.
75kg – Adriano Araujo was able to score one advantage on Nicholas Robinson to secure the gold medal in a close final match.
83kg – More active throughout the match, Faisal Al Kitbe became the champion after a referees decision win over Marcos Costa.
92kg – Thiago Pessoa fought hard against a powerful Pablo Popovitch to win the title with a 2-0 lead.
108kg – Jiddu Lemos scored one advantage on Mauricio Lima to claim the gold medal in the heaviest weight class.
Day two of the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam in Abu Dhabi continues tomorrow, 14th January for the Gi divisions from 11am to 6pm, at the IPIC Arena. The event will be broadcasted live on Abu Dhabi Sports TV in the UAE & MENA region and 12 international broadcasting partners [on delayed & live].
In the master 1 brown belt division, crowd favorite Yahya Al Hammadi made all the way to the gold medal with two wins. In the 108kg final, he beat Tyler Edworthy 11-0 with a dominant performance.
The UAE National Team players had some eye-catching performances today on the mats and won a total of 45 medals.
UAE Players Winners List
Gold
Faisal Al Ketbi
Ahmed Suhail Al Ketbi
Yahya Mansour Al Hammadi
Musabah Khatri
Hamad Al Falasi
Hamad Nawad
Omar Al Fadhli
Omar Mohamed Al Shehhi
Khaled Al Ali
Abdullah Al Qubaisi
Omar Ahmed Al Hosni
Ali Taher Menhali
Abdulrahman Al Awadhi
Mohammad Rashed
Ali Banai
Khalifa Al Balushi Nasrta
Silver
Ibrahim Al Hosni
Zain Al Karbi
Ahmed Musabi
Ibrahim Al Mazmi
Khalid Al Darmaki
Salem Sultan Al Dhaheri
Khalid Eskander
Abdullah Saleh Al Hammadi
Ali Abdulrahman Al Junaibi
Ali Al Mashkari
Rakan Al Mashkari
Hazza Braiki
Mana’a Braiki
Mohammed Al Balushi
Mohammed Al Shamsi
Mohammad Al Mehairi
Abdulrahman Al Barghouthi
Saeed Al Mazroui
Mubarak Al Kendi
Bronze
Mohammed Abdullah Al Darmaki
Ali Mohamed Al Mehairbi
Ahmed Yasser
Mohammed Ali Al Suwaidi
Sultan Al Ali
Zayed Braiki
Hamdan Al Balushi
Mohammed Mubarak
Sultan Thraim
Sultan Salem Al Dhaheri
In the teams’ competition, the podium was: 1st) Al-Ain Jiu-Jitsu Club – 2560pts; 2nd) Al Jazira Jiu-Jitsu Club – 2360pts; 3rd) Team Nogueira Dubai – 1840pts.
About UAEJJF:
UAE Jiu-jitsu Federation was established in November 2012 as the official authority for jiu-jitsu in the UAE. The Federation plays a leading role in supporting jiu-jitsu and contributing to building a strong generation of UAE athletes to excel at the local and international levels. The Federation’s role is to implement policies that develop the sport in collaboration with various government entities, educational institutions and other partners in order to advance the sport locally, regionally and globally. Like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter @uaejjf, follow us on Instagram @uaejjf and visit us online at https://www.uaejjf.com
