BJJ: More than just a Martial Art / Sport.

The 2015 UK BJJ Youth Team

As a 9-year old I remember going to Crystal Palace for the first time to compete in the British Judo Association Junior National Championships, yes that is over 40 years ago, and no Dick Turpin didn't hold our coach up. 

After our normal Friday night training session several of us would pile into our Sensei's car and head to his house where we would spend the night prior to heading off to Crystal Palace the next day.

Sensei's Son, my friend and training partner, Richard and his younger brother Danny, plus a few others would have pillow fights, make farting noises with our hands under our arm-pits and eat sweets that we'd smuggled into our room, before finally tiredness overcame excitement and we drifted off to sleep. 

On the Saturday morning we would rise early, Mrs Hornby (or Mrs H as we affectionately called her) would not let us leave the house without having consumed her bacon butties.

Suitably fueled for the day we headed off to Hereford railway station and embarked on a 3+ hour train journey to London Paddington, (in later years this was on the new fangled high speed train, the inter-city 125, the fastest train ever, we were informed, it's funny the things I remember!). If I remember correctly our arrival at Paddington was followed by my first time on the London Underground, another BR leg to Crystal Palace and a night in a hotel.

I remember clearly the smell of chlorine the first time I walked into the Crystal Palace sports hall and was excited to think that after fighting, we could go for a swim.

I do not remember many of my fights from my first trips to the Palace, I know not how many I won or lost, but what I do remember it was an adventure, it was fun and I was with my mates.

Me (centre) Crystal Palace around 1976

I recall on one subsequent trip to the Palace, when I had just hit my teens, that Brian Jacks and Dave Starbrook were there, they were our heroes and we got to meet them.

Both had won medals at the 1972 Olympics, Starbrook (Silver) and Jacks (Bronze), I had seen their photos in the Judo magazine, but Starbrook had recently appeared on the BBC programme Super Stars and was the more familiar face to many (Jacks was yet to appear in the programme).

Smithy, one of our younger juniors was tentatively waiting to get autographs, spotting this Brian Jacks moved towards him as if to start randori with the excited youngster. "Hello young man, what would you like" said Jacks,

"Excuse me Mr Starbrook can I have your autograph" Smithy replied to Jacks, Dave Starbrook nearly fell over laughing. We all got signed photos, and I still have mine to this day.

I would return to fight at The Palace many times, but those early adventures remain clear four decades later.


Last week a group of 21 youngsters from the UK, including two of my own students, traveled to America to compete in the IBJJF Pan Kids Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Tournament.

No inter city 125 to Paddington, for them it was a Boeing 747 to Los Angeles.

After the Competition

I have very few photos of my junior Judo days, so this week it has been a pleasure that my Facebook news-feed has been filled with photos of the kids at Heathrow, at the tournament, some on the podium, with their BJJ heroes, and later on many sightseeing adventures around LA.

Their memories will certainly be reinforced with the number of photos that this trip will generate, but I would imagine, just like me, their memories will last forever.

I hope in years to come they look back on their trip with the same fondness and clarity that I do mine, whether they won or lost, I hope they remember it was an adventure, it was fun, they were with their mates and they made even more friends on the trip.

Post Event Medal Photo

I also hope they remember the people that made the whole experience possible with the same fondness that I do.  The work that Neil Simkin and Jimmy Johnstone put into preparing the UK BJJ Youth Team and making the trip happen should go down in UK BJJ history. No doubt the future holds many more BJJ adventures for these kids, but I'm sure this one will remain very special.


For me my first Judo adventure was made possible by Stan Hornby Sensei, mentor, role model and all round good guy.