The 4th Annual Big Apple BJJ Open will be on May 17 at Martin Luther King Jr. High School in New York City. The tournament run by Vitor Shaolin of GMA VSBJJ, Jen Sung and Mario Guerrero offers the New York Jiu-Jitsu scene an opportunity to compete in a structured environment and friendly atmosphere.

Registration is still open and for a discounted price of $100 per person until April 27. After that date, the price will go up to $110 per person until registration completely closes on May 10.

Divisons are available for adults, both men and women. Please note that brown/black belt divisions are only available for males and the weight classes are 154.5 lbs, 181.5 lbs and over 181.5 lbs. Women can sign up for white, blue and purple divisions.

The location for the venue is 122 Amsterdam Avenue New York, NY 10023.

Register at this link: https://events.membersolutions.com/event_detail.asp?content_id=45915

For more information visit www.bigapplebjjopen.com

There have been cases reported from all over the country of many victims, young and old. To play the game you must sneak up on an unsuspecting person and punch them as hard as you can. The reward for those who succeed in knocking their victim unconscious is inflated social status among peers and a disturbing sense of pride.

Don’t be a victim by staying aware of your surroundings at all times. Training Jiu-Jitsu doesn’t only allow you the techniques to defend yourself but the confidence and awareness to keep yourself safe. The techniques you know probably won’t come of use if you never see the attack coming so it’s important to take preventive measures as well.

Professor Vitor Shaolin Ribeiro of GMA VSBJJ in New York City offers tips below for how to keep yourself safe while out in public: