Nova União has not been shy about sharing their goal with the Jiu-Jitsu community: to win the World Championships once again. And the year 2012 has proven a good start in that direction for the traditional team. “We have just won the Phoenix and Dallas International Open for the second year in a row, and we’ve just won the adult division at the CBJJ Brazilian Nationals in Rio de Janeiro; we’re coming strong for the Worlds this year”, reveals Gustavo Dantas, the leader of Nova União in the United States.
Gustavo Dantas with Nova União's first-place trophy at Phoenix Open 2012 / Publicity photo
Nova União is preparing the team for the 2012 Worlds with two main training camps, in Arizona and Texas. “We understand that this is a big challenge, but we’re going for it,” said Dantas. “We have good talent in the juvenile, female and male divisions coming in from Brazil, plus many standouts from the United States.”
The team standouts include black belt Marcelino Freitas, who will be flying over from the Land Down Under, Australia, to further bolster the heavily stacked featherweight division. The standouts making the trip from Brazil are young talents who come from very humble backgrounds. With the help of the veteran competitor and leader of Nova União Bangu Bruno Bastos and his black belt Fabio Andrade, who organized funding for the competitors from Brazil to travel, the future frontline of Nova União was given the opportunity to fly to the US to pursue their dreams of becoming world champions.
“Bruno has a big heart and does an amazing job with these kids; he literally takes it out of his pocket to support them,” Dantas explained. “Marcio Andre, who won the blue light feather division last year and just won the Brazilian Nationals last weekend will be returning to the fold, but not to defend his title, as this time around he’ll compete at purple belt. Other competitors like Isaque Bahiense and Paulo Silva, who also won the Brazilian Nationals, and Yuri Santos, who recently won at the Phoenix and Dallas Opens, are just a few of the competitors who have benefited from the fundraising programs organized by NU Brazil and NU USA. They come from very humble families, and live in neighborhoods where drugs, crime, and violence are rife. Without Jiu-Jitsu, it is possible that these young men would never leave the state, let alone the country. We help raise money and Bruno opens his arms and home to them because we truly believe in their potential and they deserve to have these kinds of opportunities.”
Team Nova União took first in the overall team contest in the adult male and beginners divisions at last weekend’s Brazilian National Jiu-Jitsu Championship. For the complete results, click here.
Beginners:
1 – Nova União – 23
2 – Alliance – 16
3 – Gracie Humaita – 13
Adult Men:
1 – Nova União – 78
2 – Alliance – 69
3 – CheckMat – 43