A group of athletes from Elite Martial Arts Academy is hard at work honing their jiu-jitsu skills for the Alaska State No-Gi Submission Grappling Championships in Anchorage on November 2.

The Elite Martial Arts Academy was established in 2017. Robert Woodman, an instructor at the gym, will also be competing in Alaska.

As the name of the tournament suggests, the martial artists will not be wearing a gi, the martial arts uniform, when they compete. Woodman said he prefers it this way.

“I’d rather do no-gi,” said Woodman. “You have to be a little bit more technical. With a gi, you can use the grips and hold on. No-gi you can’t hold onto anything so you have to rely on your grips and your overbooks and it’s a lot faster.”

“You get all sweaty and you slip out of moves and slip out of positions. I love it. It’s so much fun.”

Woodman competed at the tournament last year in the intermediate division. Because the martial artists are not wearing the gi, the belt classification is not used to run the tournament. Instead, organizers match the athletes based on years of experience.

As a purple belt, Woodman will be moving up and competing in the advanced division.

Woodman said he is going to build on his experience last year to be more competitive this coming tournament.

“I lost my first match,” said Woodman. “The guy got an early takedown on me then stalled for the rest of the match. I had another match in the open division so smaller guys and bigger guys matched together.

“I went against this guy who was 220 pounds and he trained for Dana White’s UFC contenders series. He was a big, big boy and hard to move. I lost that but I didn’t get submitted it was all through points.”

To get better at his craft, Woodman said he needed to face martial artists that were bigger and stronger than himself to improve.

“I’m here training six days a week, it’s what I love the most,” said Woodman. “Dan (Hombert) is a great guy to train with because he is a black belt and he weighs more than me and is a lot stronger.

“It’s what I expect going into the advanced division coming up from the intermediate. It’s going to be fun, I’m very excited.”

As a martial arts instructor, Woodman said it has also helped him improve.

“The teaching helps you break down the moves,” said Woodman. “Rather than just doing it you really have to break it all down so you can teach it really well.”

Along with competing, Woodman said he is going to enjoy watching the people he trains show their skills.

“I just love seeing everybody progress,” said Woodman. “Especially in tournaments when they are doing stuff that we are teaching and they are pulling off those types of moves; even if they are rolling with me and they get me with something I just taught them it’s one of the best things.”

Woodman said the Elite Martial Arts Academy athletes competing in the tournament are going to bring the team atmosphere with them to Alaska.

“Absolutely, we will be sitting there yelling and cheering, it’s going to be fun,” said Woodman.

“We are all very loud and we are all very vocal and you aren’t going to walk away feeling hurt.

“You aren’t going to feel bad. Everyone is going to prop you up. Even if you lost the match everyone is going to pick you up.”

Aliyah Fortier, 16, has been practicing jiu-jitsu for just under two years. It will be her first time at the Alaska State No-Gi Submission Grappling Championships. She did have success at other tournaments last year winning gold and silver.

She said she is nervous but ready for the beginning of November and has been listening to her teammates about what to expect.

“I heard that they are a lot more aggressive, while some aren’t as aggressive,” said Fortier.

While competing, Fortier said she focuses on going for chokes.

“I do like to take the back and do chokes,” said Fortier. “I think what I’m strongest at is probably when I get on top and am pressuring down.”

A jiu-jitsu match starts standing and both martial artists have to first look for the takedown.

“I’m not very good with takedowns so I have to work on them but my strategy is to get the takedown and immediately get on top or take the back,” said Fortier.

Fortier described what it was like before the match begins when she is standing face-to-face with her opponent.

“At the very beginning of the match you are like ‘what am I supposed to do now?’” said Fortier.

“After everything starts moving you are kind of like in your zone. You think of it almost like you are here (at practice) but at a higher level you want to try harder.”

Fortier acknowledged that a jiu-jitsu match is a fight but she isn’t going out to destroy the other person. She said she likes to get to know her opponent beforehand.

“I like to talk to the person and get to know them before we compete,” said Fortier. “When you roll with them they become a friend in my opinion. It’s kind of neat.”

Jiu-jitsu could be described as a game of human chess.

“You have to predict their next move to block their next move,” said Fortier.

She said she is looking forward to having her teammates with her cheering her on.

“It’s so much fun and you get to hang out with them and get to know them better all the time,” said Fortier. “To hear them telling you what they see from the sides it’s really encouraging to know that they are there.”