Tom DeBlass has been appointed as the Vice President of Grappling at ONE Championship, marking a significant move for the organization as it continues to expand its presence in submission grappling.
DeBlass, a respected figure in the sport, joins Checkmat co-founder and grappling legend Leo Vieira in this leadership role.
In an interview with Grappling Insider, DeBlass expressed his excitement about the position:
For me, it’s a huge, huge honor to be invited to run this.
When ADCC asked me to organize their Trials I took it to the next level, and that was undeniable.
I organized it like it’s never been organized before.Made it bigger than they ever were.
Really made it professional.We want to get the most exciting grapplers in the world out there so when it does pop up and people say: “What is this jiu-jitsu stuff?”
They’re like: “Holy smokes I absolutely love to watch this.”
DeBlass aims to make submission grappling entertaining for a broad martial arts audience.
He emphasized the importance of showcasing exciting grapplers, stating:
It’s not just the best grapplers in the world, it’s people who are marketable, people who have a social presence.
All these things matter.Or people who are at least willing to do things necessary to develop a social presence.
And they have to have the skill and be a good person.All these things matter.
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Sloth Jiu-Jitsu: you can be slow and unathletic and still kick butt in Jiu-Jitsu.
Sloth Jiu-Jitsu: you can be slow and unathletic and still kick butt in Jiu-Jitsu.
