My martial arts journey began with Judo as a primary school kid because I was bullied. I had a great time on the mat but somehow "successfully" avoided tournaments, being not a very competitive guy, at least not on this level. In my late teenage years I stopped training as a judo blue belt. It was only when I was 40 that I returned on the tatami. My daughter needed a way to channel her sometimes excessive energy and I remembered how much fun I had with Judo. Seeing her on the mat, I caught the martial arts bug again and started training. This eventually lead me to being a 2nd dan judoka and I even competed a couple of times. Over the corona years, a series of personal events lead me to BJJ and I think it is safe to say that I found a new home here. The transition from the judo cosmos was challenging for me at times, but with my promotion to being a blue belt, I feel like I arrived completely. Needless to say that the bullying as a kid stopped immediately after I started training judo. Not because I was such a fighter – the reputation was enough already 😁