Michelle Nicolini came in to work out with the squad today as athletes prepare for No Gi world championships coming soon! @miznicolini is eight time world champion and one of the greatest Jiu Jitsu athletes of her generation. Sometimes I am asked who would be the best role models for female athletes – in truth I make no distinctions in this area – I consider top level female grapplers such as Michelle Nicolini and Kyra Gracie (Jiu Jitsu), Ryoko Tani (judo), Saori Yoshida and Kaori Icho (freestyle wrestling) to be equally inspirational to ALL Jiu Jitsu athletes – not just women. Consider for a moment a females perspective in learning and practicing Jiu Jitsu. Literally every time they go to practice the overwhelming majority of their training partners will be massively bigger, stronger and heavier than them. It would be like you or me walking into a gym as a white belt and every single one of your training partners was a hulking three hundreds on steroids. Imagine how hard it be to learn and perform even the most basic moves under those circumstances. You would have to evolve very efficient mechanics, mostly incorporating your legs, just to survive – and this leg dominant/high efficiency approach is exactly the one we should ALL be aspiring towards if Jiu Jitsu is, as we claim, to be about smaller people defeating bigger people. Due to considerations like these I often study top level female grapplers in various sports and often find they offer valuable insights into problems everyone faces and must overcome. It was a pleasure and honor to see one of the very best get ready for a another shot at a world title today.
