Vietnam establishes ju-jitsu federation

This has opened a new chapter in Vietnam for ju-jitsu, also known as jiu-jitsu, a family of Japanese martial arts and a system of close combat. This sport will be featured in SEA Games 31, hosted in Vietnam next year as well as Asian Games 2022 in China.

In the ceremony, 29 members were chosen to join the executive committee, nine in the standing committee. Nguyen Cong Cuong was voted as the chairman of Vietnam Ju-Jitsu Federation (VJJF). Nguyen Manh Hung, Vice Chairman of Asian Ju-Jitsu Federation, was voted as vice-chairman and general secretary, in addition to other five vice-chairmen.

The main principle of ju-jitsu is yielding to an opponent’s force rather than trying to oppose force with force, whether they are armed or unarmed. Some styles of ju-jitsu were used for later development of other combat sports such as judo, sambo and mixed martial arts. Techniques in ju-jitsu mainly involve throwing, takedowns, trapping, pins, leg sweeps, joint locks, chokeholds, striking and kicking.

In Vietnam, ju-jitsu arrived before 1945 but hasn’t been developed until recent years. At the moment, there are 20 localities practicing this sport and the community is expanding fast.

Despite being new to the scene, Vietnam has many excellent athletes, coaches and referees. Two Vietnamese referees have received certification from the Ju-Jitsu International Federation.

Vietnam has achieved certain international success with this sport. In 2009, the national ju-jitsu team won their first gold medal at Asian Indoor Games. In 2014, they clinched two silver and four bronze medals at Asian Beach Games. One year later, the team got one bronze medal at the world championship. In Asian Games 2018, Duong Thi Thanh Minh won one bronze medal for Vietnamese ju-jitsu .

The main goal of the ju-jitsu national team now is to win one or two gold medals at SEA Games 31, to be held from November 21 to December 2 next year.