Last weekend’s Pan 2010 in California was a barometer to gauge the growth of Arizona’s burgeoning Jiu-Jitsu scene, and it passed. At last weekend’s record-breaking IBJJF tournament, Arizona alone captured 40 medals.
Carlos Farias took black belt gold and bronze home to Arizona. Photo: AZSBJJF website
The standouts from the Grand Canyon State were: Carlos Faria (Lion’s Den), winning the Black/Master Open Class and taking third in the Master/Ultra Heavy, with eight matches; Kristina Barlaan (GD Jiu-Jitsu), who won the Female/Blue/Featherweight division and took third in the Open Class, with a total nine matches in one day; and Phil Brown (GD Jiu-Jitsu), who had six matches to win his Blue/Master/Middle division.
For greater information and complete results, check the Arizona State Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation website.