I survived yet another Brazilian jiujitsu competition. The last time I went to Hong Kong to compete in a BJJ tournament was in November of 2006 and I took second place in the white-belt divsion in my weight category. This time, though, competing as a blue-belt, I didn't do so well. 

The Copa de Hong Kong 2 was held on April 26-27, 2008 in Hong Kong. The club I train at, Taiwan BJJ, sent an army of 19 guys and one gal over to compete. Personally, I lost all my matches during the gi and no-gi days of competition but I fared much better than I expected. The guys I went up against were good and had a lot of experience in competing. I was only submitted twice. Heck, I was expecting to be submitted more than that.

As a team, we rocked, taking second place in the gi category and first place in the no-gi competition. I had a great time and  learned a lot. For some of the guys on our team, the competition in Hong Kong was a test of their worthiness for their next rank and our coach Andy Wang promoted them to their next belt level.

Every time we go to compete, especially abroad in another country, our team grows closer and the bonds that bind us together get that much stronger. The guys and gals on our team are like family to me now, and it was great that I was able to train and compete and have fun with such a dedicated band of athletes yet again. Now, it's time for some rest before we gear up for our next big tournament, which will be held here in Taipei at the end of summer.

For a bunch of picts of the tourney, check out the photo gallery on our club's website: taiwanbjj.org .