Abu Dhabi will host the final round of the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam Jiu-Jitsu Championship this weekend, with 2,338 athletes from 75 countries set to compete at Mubadala Arena.
Official weigh-ins begin on Thursday at Zayed Sports City, before three days of competition start on Friday.
The event includes 200 black belt athletes and closes the latest Abu Dhabi Grand Slam global tour. The series has taken jiu-jitsu to major cities across the world this season, with Abu Dhabi again staging the final stop.
Winners in Abu Dhabi will earn 3,000 points towards the Abu Dhabi Jiu-Jitsu Pro Association’s annual rankings, adding extra weight to results across the weekend.
Registration closed early on Tuesday because of demand from athletes worldwide, according to the Abu Dhabi Jiu-Jitsu Pro Association.
The opening day will feature men’s Masters 1, 2, 3 and 4 contests in the purple, brown and black belt divisions. Women’s masters and amateur categories for men and women will also take place across several age and belt groups.
Weigh-ins for Friday’s competitors will be held on Thursday from 5pm to 7pm, then continue on Friday from 8am to 9am.
Saturday will focus on the next generation, with children, youth, juvenile and junior divisions for boys and girls aged from four to under 18.
The final day will bring the professional purple belt categories, plus men’s and women’s brown and black belt contests. Several leading international athletes are expected to compete.
Tariq Al Bahri, general manager of the Abu Dhabi Jiu-Jitsu Pro Association, said the championship has become one of the main events on the global jiu-jitsu calendar because of the quality and scale of participation.
He said the association now organises more than 250 tournaments each year worldwide, with Abu Dhabi continuing to play a central role in the sport’s growth.
Al Bahri added that preparations at Mubadala Arena are close to complete, with work covering the technical, logistical and organisational sides of the event.
