Wednesday, August 09, 2006

GRACIE MAG IN INGLES !


GRACIE Magazine in English
The world’s most traditional Jiu-Jitsu and MMA publication reaches a much broader audience
Almost all Brazilians that are successful in America have strange stories to tell from the old times, when they had just arrived in the United States. Rickson Gracie, for example, used to teach his family’s Jiu-Jitsu in a small garage; Royce and his wife had almost nothing to eat on their refrigerator; and more recently, two-time world open-class champion Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza was giving his first classes in California when he tried to teach something new to his student: “Move your ‘pe,’ move your ‘pe,’” said the phenomenon from Amazonas, meaning ‘foot.’

As you see, GRACIE Magazine had several great examples to follow before coming closer to American readers. But for sure this good news could get lost in translation. That is why the magazine born in Rio de Janeiro ten years ago waited a little bit longer than expected to launch its English version. Finally it happens, nearly one year after the 2005 ADCC World Championships, when the idea started gaining muscles.

“We are coming out with our English version soon […], within a year or so,” said in that occasion editor Luca Atalla, happy with a special issue about the event in his hands, less than 60 hours after 2005 ADCC’s last fight.

Like a fighter who trains for years before getting his big tournament belt, GRACIE Magazine has been treading this pathway for more than a decade. At the end of 1989, a young crew started to produce Jornal Gracie. In the beginning, the newsletter was circulated only in the South side of Rio. But the goal, since then, has always been to spread, to the four corners of the planet, information about Jiu-Jitsu and other martial arts that had been proven effective. As traditional media didn't give the subject any coverage, they decided to do it themselves.

Then the UFC came along and Jiu-Jitsu became known all over the world. Fighters from many different styles started to incorporate Jiu-Jitsu into their game and Jornal Gracie was transformed into GRACIE Magazine and became known in Brazil (and by many specialists around the world) for the speed, quality and professional approach with which it produced coverage of the martial arts world.

However, GRACIE Mag still had its Berlin wall: the language. Even though its contents were produced with the best professionals from all corners of the Earth, the final product was still limited because it was written in Portuguese. Not anymore. The traditional publication is now bilingual. The wall has collapsed.

No surprise, therefore, that tradition and modernity meet in the brand new GRACIE Magazine. In the cover story, Renato Babalu introduces 23 tips to help you become a 21st century fighter; current welterweight UFC champion, Matt Hughes shows in an exclusive interview that he isn't intimidated by Royce's heroic acts in the early years of the event and guarantees that he, Hughes, has more experience than his opponent; Royce says what he thinks of Hughes; Chuck Liddell's gym helps Ronaldo Jacare in his MMA trainings – and much more.
As you will see (read), Babalu, Hughes, Royce, Jacare, Rodrigo Minotauro, Ricardo De La Riva, Frank Shamrock, Roger Gracie and the Chute Boxe crew now all speak the same language. And more, they are able to spread their ideas and techniques either to people sitting on the London underground or fellows lying on a hammock in a small village in Northeastern Brazil. So, “move your feet” and go to the nearest academy to get your new GRACIE Magazine.

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