MARINE CORPS AIR STATION IWAKUNI, Japan -- Local Marines competed in the 4th annual Chugoku-Shikoku Jujitsu Championship at the Hiroshima Minami Ward Sports Center June 6.
Shaun Green, white belt in Jujitsu, walked away with first place in his weight class and first place in the absolute, a competition between all white belt weight-class winners, white-belt tournament.
Hugh McClenney, blue belt in Jujitsu, took first place in his weight class and fourth in the absolute blue-belt tournament.
Benjamin Cosgrove, white belt in Jujitsu, took second place in his weight class.
Ivan Ortega, white belt in Jujitsu, was a firsttime competitor and like his two other fellow Marines went into the competition with very little experience but a lot of determination.
The competition brought together different various regions of Japan and Brazilian Jujitsu practitioners to battle against each other for the first-place title. Green came into the competition a rookie, having never owned or learned how to properly wear a gi, a commonly used martial arts uniform, and dominated his competition.
“I practiced the day before the competition for probably one hour to learn some of the rules so that I didn’t go in completely blind,” said Green. “That was my first practice ever.”
Green was able to apply much of the wrestling techniques he learned in high school and use his size to his advantage.
“Jujitsu and competitive wrestling are very similar,” said Green. “You have to control your body and your balance, but some of the small techniques, like using the gi, can be a little difficult.”
Green was not only able to pin his competitors but end the matches before the 5-minute time limit.
Cosgrove was also a first-time Jujitsu competitor but had been practicing Jujitsu for approximately ten months prior to the tournament.
“I love practicing Jujitsu with a gi,” said Cosgrove. “The moves and techniques you can execute with a gi are so much broader than without.”
Sergio Esquivel, second-degree black belt and instructor in the Marine Corps Martial Arts Program, was at the competition providing motivation and coaching support to the Marines during their matches.
“He’s great,” said Cosgrove. “When you are in there grappling, you can’t see what someone else watching can see. He can tell me what I need to do.”
“It’s always helpful to have a third-person perspective,” said Green. “It was definitely helpful for the Marines there, especially the white belts.”
Win or lose, the Marines were able to take away lessons learned from the tournament.
“It’s not all about power,” said Cosgrove. “You have to be able to outsmart your opponent.”