Tue, 24 Nov 2009 10:25p.m.
By Jeff McTainsh
The Brazilian-style Jiu-Jitsu World Cup will be held in Abu Dhabi next year.
For the first time, Kiwi hopefuls have had a qualifying tournament without having had to go overseas to qualify.
It even attracted some ex-pats from across the ditch - around 100 athletes from New Zealand and Australia rocked up for the tournament..
Auckland's Brandon Ropati cleaned up in the white and blue belt division to claim the first golden ticket - not bad considering he's only been involved in the sport for a year.
"I've always been into martial arts, the whole cage fighting thing. There was a jiu-jitsu gym up the road from where I stayed, so I thought I'd go up and check it out."
Thirty-year-old Sydney-based Kiwi Graham Waerea snapped up the other free ticket, winning the purple, brown, black belt open division..
The trip across the ditch was well worth it for the born-and-bred Rotorua local.
Eighteen other fighters also qualified for the World Cup, but will have to pay their own way.
With around 500 spectators checking in throughout the day, the tournament was a success for organiser Douglas Santos.
"I'm completely satisfied with the result," he says.
Santos will lead the New Zealand team to the world cup in Abu Dhabi next April.
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