Roberto Carneiro, head coach at Bermuda Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, is celebrating after his team arrived back on island with eight medals from a recent competition in the US.

The squad, made up of Carneiro, his daughter Helena, Jackson Chin, Ruben Rocha Bulhoes, Amani Wears, Mark Ogilvie and Aaron Lugo Jr, returned home with five gold medals, two silvers and one bronze from their first international competition.

For Carneiro, the trip provided an opportunity for his pupils to realise that their ability and training can translate well against martial artists in other jurisdictions.

“I had to drop off my daughter in Charlotte, so I figured that since I had to make a trip all the guys at the gym could go out there together for our first competition as a team,” Carneiro said.

“It was mostly a regional competition for people from North and South Carolina. There were a few people from other places but the point of it was to show the guys what they were doing, how they were doing and that they match up against anyone anywhere.

“It was good to give them that confidence and I could see them thinking ‘hey, this isn’t as bad as we were anticipating’.”

As Carneiro speaks there is a sense of pride in his achievements as a coach but also in his team, who he says took on the challenge with trepidation but bravery.

“I was very happy and even the guys who didn’t perform to the best of their ability in my opinion still went out and fought hard,” he said.

“I’ll get happy about winning but watching them do it and have such beautiful victories and winning some medals was great. Watching them be so nervous before their fight and how they react after and the spirit of the team was really nice to be around.

“I was using this competition as a trial run to get a feel for it and I’m planning in the next six months to do another one and this time I’m planning on taking some more kids out there. This time I only took my daughter but there are a few children in the kids programme that I think will do pretty well.”

These are exciting times to be a member at Bermuda Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and in Carneiro the gym has an experienced competitor and a head coach passionate about passing on his knowledge.

“I’ve been training jiu-jitsu since I was 20 years old and I’m now 35,” he said.

“I have a fair amount of competition experience and in Brazil I’ve won nationals a bunch of times. I’ve also won state championships but I hadn’t competed in about six years before this.

“It’s been a while since I got to compete so it was great to wipe off some ring rust and get myself past comfort zones, but this is my profession and this is what I do. It started off as a passion project but I’ve never strayed from it.

“I love to teach classes, I love the kids programmes, the adult programmes, and I love teaching the basics but also watching them improve and I love it when they get better than me at something.

“It’s a true passion for practising the sport and ultimately the results in the competition don’t really matter, it’s about putting yourself in a position where you have to face your fears and be courageous. Wherever it lands it lands, but all you can do is prepare to the best of your ability and let the chips fall where they may.”

Bermuda Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is located on the second floor at Fight City in Pitts Bay Road and programmes are beginning to expand as word grows about its coach and the team’s successes.

“The kids programme started with just one general class of all ages on a Saturday but last year I had split it into three different classes for different age groups,” Carneiro said.

“We have classes for children aged 5 to 8, 8 to 12 and from 12 up. These classes take place on a Saturday but we’re going to start doing them on Wednesdays as well.

“Adult classes take place Monday through Friday at 1pm and also in the evening and I run every class.”

Anybody interested in taking a class is encouraged to visit bdabjj.com or visit the gym’s Facebook or Instagram page.