Seven Spears Jiu Jitsu

Here is the first thing that popped up when I searched for real blind martial artists: Joshua "The Jedi" Loya: A 100% visually impaired martial arts sensei, surfer, skateboarder, snowboarder, and adventurer with five black belts and ranks across seven styles. Loya lost his sight in an accident with nunchucks when he was 15 and lives near San Diego, California. You can watch a YouTube video of Loya training with William Christopher Ford while blindfolded in episode 21 of 52 Masters. Lee Hoy: A legally blind MMA fighter who has won amateur boxing bouts and competed in Brazilian jiu jitsu tour source, 2024 ↗

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I dropped in at the university of jiu jitsu when it was still open in San Diego. After spending all day at the zoo with my kids, the warmups wiped me. What was unusual was how they paired up to roll. They’d line up by rank around the main mat, and the highest rank would pick his partner. Then the next highest, etc. after 7 pairs (what they fit on the main mat) everyone else just paired up on their own on a different mat. As a visiting brown belt, I was picked EVERY FUCKING time, by the 4 black belts and 3 higher ranked brown belts. For seven 7 minute rounds. I died 3 times before losing source, 2023 ↗

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