Black belt Mackenzie Dern of GMA Megaton Jiu-Jitsu will be teaching a workshop in Tempe, AZ on Dec. 7.

The 2014 no-gi world champion will be teaching a Toys for Tots Workshop where you can train and learn with her. Men and women of any affiliation are welcome.

The cost of the seminar is $50 but you will receive $10 off if you bring an unwrapped new toy to donate.

The seminar will run from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at 1761 E Warner Rd. Tempe, AZ 85284.

Training at the camp in Mexico City. Photo: Personal Archive

Jiu-Jitsu is growing so rapidly and more and more opportunities are coming up for athletes to compete, to attend seminars and workshops.

Recently, Sophia McDermott Drysdale of GMA Drysdale Jiu-Jitsu in Las Vegas, NV and Mackenzie Dern of GMA Megaton Jiu-Jitsu in Phoenix, AZ visited Mexico to train and share their knowledge amongst some lucky ladies. In attendance were students of Jiu-Jitsu who traveled far and wide from all across the United States and Latin America to attend the eight-day camp.

Purple belt Itzel Bazua, who is a pioneer in the sport for women in Mexico, organized the event to help build awareness of Jiu-Jitsu in Mexico and give others the opportunity to learn from two experienced black belts, World and Pan Am Champions.

In between the morning and night training there was time to do some sight seeing such as visiting the temples and Teotihuacan!

The previous month Sophia McDermott Drysdale, with brown belt Ronda Andrews, also taught a camp at the MA Supershow at the Venetian in Las Vegas. The event was organized by brown belt Shama Ko, who is the founder of the very successful support group, Girls In Gis which brought over 80  ladies from all across the United States who were all there to share and learn and make friendships regardless of affiliation or belt rank.

It is great to see more events being held for women and all Jiu-Jitsu practitioners as a whole. Stay tuned for more info for big camps and events that Mackenzie and Sophia are involved in.

Check out more of Sophia’s adventures at www.drysdalejiujitsu.com

As a black belt she continues to push the limits of her abilities often competing in the open weight divisions as a featherweight and holding her own.

Today is her birthday and she is now twenty-one years old. Let’s take a look back at her blue belt days to see how her aggressive, well-rounded style fared her well in the adult divisions at sixteen.

The six-time world champion is currently recovering from her knee surgery but plans to return to competition in the following months for the Abu Dhabi WPJJC and World Championship. But after, she’s headed south to support the Mexican Jiu-Jitsu Federation and to promote women training.

The cost for the camp is $120 USD. More information will be posted soon regarding specific dates.

You can learn more about the camp by emailing itzelbazuabjj@gmail.com

Mackenzie personally invites you in this video message: