We last spoke with Slovenia’s Miha Perhavec in 2013. Since then, he has moved to Warsaw for his studies. While there he has trained with Alliance Warsaw, competed and medaled numerous times and also come back from a serious injury. He also won double gold at Rome Open and the Polish ADCC. In this interview with BJJEE, Miha talks about the big Polish BJJ scene, his rehab and motivation and what is next for him:

1. Miha, last time we spoke you were still living and training in Slovenia. You last year moved to Warsaw to study as part of Erasmus and have been training and competing on the very strong Polish circuit. Please tell us more about your Polish experience so far.
My experience here has been amazing. With some crafty schedule management I have been able to train almost as a professional, with very competent trainers and training partners. It’s probably not the most extravagant lifestyle, but I’m able to put in 11 training sessions every week, so I am very satisfied. My team has accepted me very well from the beginning and I’m very grateful, for all of their hospitality. I feel like a part of the team here and I do my best to represent what they teach me (beat into me).
2. How big is BJJ/grappling in Poland? Is it already mainstream?
I think Poland is the European BJJ/grappling powerhouse. Not only are there many academies all over Poland, but there are also many that produce world class competitors. I don’t know if it is mainstream yet, but it is certainly popular. The competition scene is thriving here, with some competitions being comparable in size to very big IBJJF competitions. Polish nationals last November for example had well over 1000 competitors. Other big competitions include Polish ADCC Open and XII. Puchar Polski coming up in Konin this May. There are also many smaller regional competitions giving competitors an opportunity to hone their skills.
There are also nice initiatives like Warsaw Sparrings, where once a month people from all clubs roll together. It’s a nice step in a sport where there’s a strong sense of rivalry between academies.

Miha (far left) training in Poland

3. Please tell us more about your academy there and instructor Radek Turek.
Well my instructor Radek Turek has an incredible understanding of jiu jitsu and a clear no nonsense style of teaching. The techniques are straight forward and they work. To add to that, he is also a world class competitor. To put it like this: In the gi he’ll twist you into a pretzel. In no gi he’ll take your legs or your soul, which ever you give up first. His dedication is exceptional; he is a full time school teacher by day and BJJ instructor in the afternoon and evening. At 38 years old, he can give most adult black belt competitors a run for their money (proved it at Nogi Europeans this year, where he won Super-heavyweight).
The academy has many subsidiaries all over Warsaw, where top students instruct their groups (usually beginners or intermediate). The trainings at the main academy in Ochota are divided into groups by proficiency. So in the advance group you can expect some very good Polish brown and purple belt competitors. To name a few: Kamil Uminski (one of top European brown belts and world class competitor in ADCC), Kuba Witkowski, Grzegorz Stanczuk, Piotr Osinski, Marcin Szulc, Adam Parafianzuk and the list goes on…
Especially the purple belt team is training hard every day and it will be interesting to see their impact in the following years when they develop into brown and black belts. At the evening trainings the techniques are basic and usually follow a theme for the week, so you can take away some concepts as well as techniques. Everyone is allowed to develop a style that is most suitable for them. A couple weeks before the competition, sparring intensity increases and there’s more brutal specific training to get everyone ready.

4. You had a serious injury last year and have come back very strong, winning many competitions left and right. Please tell us about your rehab and iron will.
My injury came in October of last year at the Warsaw WPJJC Trials. I won my division pretty easily and was getting ready to do the same in the absolute. In the first fight I made a mistake when I had my opponents back, where I let him cross my feet and yank super aggressively with his legs. Well my leg popped and I suspected something broke or tore. I didn’t tap however (out of sheer guts and anger that I let that happen) and I choked the opponent with a bow and arrow. I was not able to walk, so I did the rational thing and taped my ankle and stepped (hobbled) on the mat again. I was very lucky to catch my next opponent in a reverse triangle, just as he was about to pass my guard. And in the semifinal I fought for 6 minutes against the eventual winner, but I just couldn’t put much together and I lost on points.
The diagnosis was a broken fibula and severely sprained ligaments all around the ankle. Two of the hardest months of my life followed, where I developed loads of mental fortitude to come back stronger. I did everything I could to come back as fast as possible. Probably 30-40% of my mind during those two months was constantly focused on the moment I step back on the mats again. I visited a very renowned physiotherapist, who is a very good grappler in his own right and he helped me shorten my projected timeline of return significantly.
Unfortunately I had to miss the Europeans in Lisbon and my first competition back was the Birmingham WPJJC Trials.

Miha winning the Polish ADCC. -88 intermediate

5. What is next for you and your team in 2014?
My next competition will be the Finnish BJJ Open in less than two weeks, where I hope to win a ticket to the Mundials, so I can afford to prove, that I am an elite blue belt. Enjoy what the Polish competition scene has to offer in my last months here.
After that my goal is just to compete as much as possible in general, improve and be a competitive purple belt right from the start. I will also return back to Slovenia and help my team grow and compete with them. Though I do hope I’ll be able to come back to Poland at least for a while some time in the future. My team is also organizing the ADCC Eastern European open. We hope to put on a good tournament and of course compete successfully.
7. If you want to thank somebody or sponsors, feel free
I would like to say thanks to my sponsor Scramble, for helping me look good in winning or trying. I’m also open to new non-clothing sponsorships; I’ll beat up people for anything that helps me beat up more people 
Shout-out to my teammates back in Slovenia and to BJJEE for putting our grappling scene on the map!
8. Thanks Miha and all the best!