Clay Brazilian Jiu-jitsu Club: 'Rolling for Resiliency'

Engrained in every Soldier is the Warrior Ethos: I will always place the mission first; I will never accept defeat; I will never quit; and I will never leave a fallen comrade. With such a demanding lifestyle choice, the question is what helps these individuals persevere through their military experience?

Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, a member of the combat sports family, serves as an outlet for many Soldiers and service members to strengthen their resolve by keeping them mentally, emotionally, and physically fit.

“Soldiers got to be ready at all times, and it's not just a discipline thing, it's for physical readiness too,” said Maj. Tommy Clark, head coach of the Clay Brazilian Jiu-jitsu Club and battle major for the operations directorate at U.S. Army Europe and Africa.

Brazilian Jiu-jitsu is a large contributor to the Modern Army Combatives Program curriculum, teaching Soldiers how to respond to armed and un-armed situations using the appropriate escalation of force and providing Soldiers immediate feedback to application under stress-induced scenarios to include live-sparring and tactical-response drills.

“They (service members) got to learn how to defend themselves, and not just defend themselves, but also control themselves,” he said. “In this program we learn a lot of different tactics, but a lot of it is just knowing how to harness personal energy and then knowing when to use that energy.”

The Clay BJJ Club has been active for the past two years at Clay Kaserne in Wiesbaden, Germany, but it is not exclusive in nature. The Clay BJJ Club is open to all military and civilian common access card identification holders; all of which will have the same access to coaches at local and regional tournaments if they choose to compete.

“It never hurts to learn,” said Spc. Kevin Alanis, intelligence analyst with Company B, 24th Military Intelligence Bn., 66th Military Intelligence Brigade. “Growing up, I had a very influential coach who was a part of my life for quite some time and something that he always did was implement community service and leadership into our wrestling program. Now I have the opportunity to be a part of the Clay BJJ Club, and get to implement some of that philosophy here.”

Alanis took first place, earning a gold medal, in the Heavyweight No-Gi Division in the North American Grappling Association (NAGA) Championship held in Limburg, Germany, May 28, 2022. Several members of the Clay BJJ Club competed in the Limburg NAGA Championship bringing home several medals in both Gi and No-Gi divisions. The Clay BJJ Club is preparing for its next competition at the Luxembourg NAGA Championship at the Centre Sportif Romain Schroeder in Frisange, Luxembourg, Sep. 3, 2022.

“It helps me release a lot of stress,” said Christian Weller, care provider at the Wiesbaden Child Development Center. “I've always grew up playing chess, so when I started rolling (Practicing BJJ), I saw it like human chess, so it seemed more strategic for me; and I just fell in love”

The Clay Brazilian Jiu-jitsu Club, open to all common access card holders, meets Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays at the Wiesbaden Sports and Fitness Center in Clay Kaserne, Germany, from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

“This program is open to everybody, it's open to Soldiers, civilians, and anyone who's willing to learn self-defense,” said Clark. “Some of these guys and gals work together, and it's become a little family for us here in Clay Kaserne.”