The Brazilian Martial Arts
Brazil is now known worldwide for its deep Brazilian martial arts heritage. However, the export of martial arts really only started in the early 1990s. The primary art it is known for is Brazilian Jiu Jitsu , a devastating ground based system that is derived from Japanese Judo and Jujitsu. The Japanese arts found their way to Brazil in the early 1900s and were taught most notably to the Gracie family. Helio Gracie was one such student and due to his small size and stature, he modified much of what he learned to make it more leverage based. This vastly improved the system and allowed it to flourish in popularity.
This popularity was eventually exported to the United States and the rest of the world.
Contrary to popular belief, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is not the only form of martial arts practiced in Brazil. Luta Livre remained a major rival to Brazilian Jiu Jitsu for many years. Luta Livre means ‘free fight' and it was a system based on jiu jitsu, wrestling, boxing, and kickboxing. The art was/is more of an athlete's art and opts to stay away from training in the traditional gi. Some of the more popular Luta Livre fighters over the years include Marco Ruas and Waldemar Santana. The latter fighter had a famous fight with Helio Gracie that aided in establishing the popularity of Luta Livre for decades.
If there was one truly original Brazilian art it would be the very intriguing system of capoeria. The art of capoeria is trained in the form of a dance. This is because it was originally a fighting system practiced by slaves when slaves were banned from learning such techniques. As such, they hid their movements in the form of a dance. The dances of capoeria are also designed to help condition and strengthen the body to a great degree.
These are the three most famous of the Brazilian martial arts and many more may be developed in the future.
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