ABU DHABI, (Pakistan Point News - 29th Jul, 2018) Abu Dhabi Grand Slam jiu-jitsu returned to Tokyo for the first leg of Season 4 (2018-19), where top athletes in all belt and weight categories from all over the world gathered at the OTA Gymnasium for a full day of action on the nine mats.
Lucrative cash prizes of over US$125,000 were to be awarded to the competitors.
The event began with the national anthem of the United Arab Emirates and Japan, in the presence of UAE Jiu-Jitsu Federation board member Mansour Al Dhaheri, Abu Dhabi Grand Slam Director Tareq Al Bahri, and President of Japan Jiu-Jitsu Federation Takamasa Watanabe.
"After four years, we have developed a lot, compared to the first season. I have seen the improvements year after year. There were a lot of challenges when we first came here to Tokyo; the language, logistics, players, and more, But the events have always been successful.
"We have doubled the number of participants compared to last year. In the first season we had competitors from 15 countries and today we had competitors from 44 countries. We had one broadcaster and now we have 25 broadcasters covering the event in 120 countries. The media, tv, fans and participants are slowly but surely understanding what is our mission and vision with the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam, which is to become the most prestigious jiu-jitsu event in the world," said Al Bahri.
"This is the fourth year hosting the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam here in Tokyo/ We have been improving the quality of the event, the number of competitors and spectators every year. This year we had to close the registration lines two days before the deadline, due to the high demand and our reaching full capacity. Next year, perhaps, we will have to make it two days because the demand is too high," said Watanabe.
Vitor Shaolin, who defeated Daisuke Sugie on points in a closely contested match, said after his victory, "What a great event here in Tokyo against one of the best players in Japan. I congratulate Daisuke for his performance; he was really strong and aggressive. I am very happy to win the Legends match. I would like to thank the fans, the UAE Jiu-Jitsu Federation, and especially His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, for supporting jiu-jitsu and shining a positive light among all of us."
