Marcos Souza at Asian Open / Photo: Kinya Hashimoto
Winner of the Asian Open black belt division Marcos Souza, the brother of brown belt world champion Roberto Satoshi, has been living through all the tension and anguish of the Japanese people ever since the devastating earthquake that caused the greatest natural disaster in the nation’s history.
“Things are bad, but thank God here, where I live, nothing serious happened. I was dieting for a fight and, for a few moments, I thought I was getting sick from hunger. Only when I saw the lamp shaking did I realize that shaking was an earthquake,” he recounts.
“I tried to talk to my brother Roberto, but the phones didn’t work. Worried, I went looking for him in the street, followed the path to the academy and found him returning home,” adds Marcos.
In Japan, many have rallied together to help deal with the tragedy, and Jiu-Jitsu is there showing solidarity too.
“Thank God nothing happened at my house nor at my academy. But things here are ugly. There’s no more water in the markets and in many regions gas stations no longer have gasoline. The Jiu-Jitsu folks here are rallying to collect food and clothing to donate to the most affected regions. Those interested can contact me by email (marcossouzajiujitsu@hotmail.com). Any help is welcome,” he says in closing.