Ali’s going for gold

The kingdom’s star martial artist Ali Monfaradi, who has more than 150 medals under his belt, recently secured silver at the 2022 Asian Jiu Jitsu Championship which was held in Bahrain for the first time … and is using his experience to go for gold on Sunday in Abu Dhabi Jiu Jitsu Pro (AJP) Tour starting in Italy.

The 28-year-old professional athlete was delighted to represent the kingdom in the sixth edition of the major competition, which featured around 300 participants.

“Bagging a silver is bittersweet for sure,” said the owner and head coach of Elements Jiu Jitsu Academy. “However, it is an enormous accomplishment and platform as well as an immense honour to carry the Bahraini flag this high. I genuinely know that I did my best, both leading up to, and during the competition.

“The result not being gold, though, does come with a sting. I have won four Asian gold medals before and I would have loved five. Alas, that will have to wait until next year.

“I would like to thank His Majesty the King, Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa and Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa. Their attention, unending support and love of Bahraini athletes are a big reason why I am here competing for podium places.

“I would also like to thank everybody at the academy. From high-level, systematic training to a structured support system and a family that always has my back – they truly offer it all. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!”

Monfaradi participated in five fights, two of the fighters were from the UAE and the others from Kazakhstan, Vietnam and Singapore.

“Each fight got more difficult than the last and it is clear that I need to work twice as hard if I want to stay ahead of the competition,” he explained. “I will be contesting my AJP ranking at the AJP Italy National Pro in Catania, and that will be my first crack at the AJP tournament circuit this year!”

He was awarded the Best Asian Athlete two years in a row, from 2019-2020 and 2020-2021, by the AJP.

“I am definitely making some strategic adjustments, but otherwise, I have to believe in the process and not let one silver medal shake my entire belief system,” explained Monfaradi. “Sport involves losses, that is inevitable, and I know for a fact that I have not yet reached my full potential!”

Monfaradi’s Jiu Jitsu journey started at the age of 12. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu or BJJ is based on grappling and ground fighting, focusing on the skill of controlling opponents through techniques that force them to submit.

As an adult, he spent five years training at the Alliance Headquarters in Sao Paulo, Brazil, under legendary professor Fabio Gurgel and is the first and only Bahraini black belt competitor to have been trained by him.

He won the International Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Federation (IBJJF) World Championship in 2012, six bronze medals throughout the years in the UAEJJF World Professional Championship, a bronze at the Jiu Jitsu International Federation (JJIF) World Championship in 2018 and gold at the Brazilian Championship. He has achieved several gold medals at IBJJF Opens as well as triple gold at the 2016 American Nationals.

He also won the Asian Indoor Games and Martial Arts in 2017 along with the IBJJF German Nationals, the United Arab Emirates Jiu Jitsu Federation (UAEJJF) Al Ain International Pro No Gi and UAEJJF Dubai International Pro No Gi. He also achieved gold in the IBJJF European No Gi Championship in 2019 and silver in the IBJJF Dallas International Open in 2021. He also took second in the AJP Abu Dhabi World Pro in 2021 and third in the same in 2019. He took first place in the JJIF World Jiu Jitsu Championship in 2021.

Last year, he secured triple gold at the Croatia National Pro and double gold at the France National Pro.

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