King Charles has suggested that the growing martial art of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu could be used to help young people, as he met leading figures from the sport during a visit to one of the world’s top academies in London.
Royal Visit to Roger Gracie Academy
The King toured the Roger Gracie Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Academy in Hammersmith, west London, watching students take part in training bouts on the floor. Among those on the mats was rapper Tinie Tempah, who told the King he took up the sport thanks to actor Tom Hardy.
Tempah described how Charles brought up the idea of using martial arts to help children. “He was basically saying that he’s been wanting to champion this in some capacity for ages, and that he has been talking to Idris (Elba) about it, and maybe I could be of service in some capacity. Because he wants to use it to help young people, and I said to him that that is basically my ambition,” Tempah said.
Tempah’s Vision for Youth Outreach
Tempah added: “I want to set up some sort of charity or infrastructure where we can get young people from year nine and upwards who are a bit disenfranchised, maybe they’re from challenged backgrounds, things going on at home, maybe on the verge of going into gangs… to just come (to a club) because there’s hundreds of this around London and the country, hundreds of these clubs.”
The rapper, who earned a purple belt after seven years of training, said the martial art had “changed my life,” giving him discipline, father-figure role models, and a global community. His two young daughters “love it so much,” he added.
Reorg Charity and Veteran Support
The King also met with Reorg, a charity founded by Sam Sheriff that teaches Brazilian Jiu Jitsu to military personnel, veterans, and emergency service workers. Charles joked “I’m too old to learn these things” after chatting with a group of serving and ex-service personnel who said they all benefited from the charity.
Among them was former Royal Marine commando Mark Ormrod, 42, who lost both legs and his right arm after stepping on an improvised explosive device in Afghanistan on Christmas Eve 2007. He has since set records, including the fastest triple amputee 1km swim and raised over £150,000 by running a 5km (3.2 mile) run in prosthetics.
Ormrod said: “It might sound ridiculous, but this sport has given me so much. The gift of being in combat with another man, the gift of being challenged every time I step on the mat and the gift of the community that surrounds Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. There’s no egos in this sport, nothing outside of here matters. We have people from all walks of life, from high ranking military and emergency services personnel, world champions or people just joining the sport. There is honour, respect and patience, and that’s what the King saw today. It was a pleasure for him to visit.”
Historical Day for Jiu Jitsu
Before leaving, the King presented a black belt to a recipient and was gifted a white belt, the first rank in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Roger Gracie, a 10-time Jiu Jitsu world champion and grandson of the founder Carlos Gracie, said: “This was a very historical day, not just for us here but for all of Jiu Jitsu. For our community and for everybody who has ever trained to better themselves. To have the King attend our academy was a great honour. Our sport embodies everything about the community. People come here to train and to celebrate the human spirit and it reflects in everyone around them.”
