Shortly before 6 p.m., the hall of the Fenriz Gym is packed. A mixture of the smell of sweat and Thai oil fills the room, boxing gloves clash against each other. Like every Monday evening, a group of women meets in the back of the two halls of the fitness studio.
Shortly after 6 p.m. the women warmed up on the mat and then we started. In groups of two, they use different techniques and grips on each other. Arm locks, legs that clasp the opponent’s neck – these are some of the techniques that women use in ground fighting.
The Tagesspiegel app brings current news, background information and analyzes directly to your smartphone. Plus the digital newspaper. Download for free here.
The suits with the associated belts initially give the impression that this is judo. Which makes sense, because the martial art that is carried out on the mat is a modification of the Japanese martial arts judo and jiu-jitsu – Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, or BJJ for short. A martial art that is still unknown to many in Germany.
In contrast to Judo, BJJ focuses primarily on ground fighting. The fight starts in a standing position, but after the so-called “takedown”, a technique with which the opponent is brought to the ground, the fight then continues on the ground.
about the project
In our weekly series, together with the Berlin State Sports Association and the Berliner Sparkasse, we dedicate ourselves to clubs, volunteers or activists from the world of Berlin sports.
In our series we, together with the State Sports Association and the Berliner Sparkasse, dedicate ourselves to clubs, volunteers and activists from the world of Berlin sports.
© Tagesspiegel
“There are two ways to win a BJJ fight,” explains Darina Goldin, coach of the women’s group. “Either through a submission hold, also called a submission” – these are BJJ techniques and holds that make the opponent give up. The other way to success is to win points as long as neither of them gives up during the fight. Points are earned by improving your position during combat.
The risk of injury in BJJ is low compared to other martial arts and sports, says Goldin. “Fighting takes place without fists, punches or kicks. Anything that is unsportsmanlike is also forbidden, such as poking in the eye or lifting individual fingers.”
Read more about good sport from a local perspective! In our weekly newsletters from the twelve Berlin districts you will find everything about local sport, local politics and culture. Order here for free.
Every Monday at 6 p.m. Darina Goldin trains the competitive women’s group, which she christened as the “Fight Club”. “This is something special,” says the 39-year-old. There are women’s training courses in many martial arts gyms, but these are almost exclusively at beginner level. “We don’t allow beginners to take part for safety reasons,” says Goldin, who founded the training group about two years ago to help women prepare for competitions.
For safety reasons, beginners are not even allowed to take part.
Darina GoldinFight Club trainer
Goldin is aware that there are still a few obstacles in the way of many women in martial arts. “It starts with the little things. “For example, many gyms don’t have women’s locker rooms,” she says. Men walking around topless, stupid sayings, situations in which a woman feels uncomfortable – Goldin has experienced all of this frequently.
All of these are things that the Fenriz Gym fights hard against, says Robert Schulz, managing director of the Berlin martial arts school. “We want the place to be a safe space for everyone,” he says. Since the gym was founded, the lack of discrimination has been a major concern. “We are international, bilingual and people from different countries train here.”
The Fenriz Gym was originally founded in 2010 with a focus on mixed martial arts (MMA). Over time, the range of sports on offer expanded, explains Schulz. From boxing, Muay Thai to wrestling or yoga – the selection of courses on offer is large. This makes the Fenriz Gym one of the largest of its kind in Germany.
We want the place to be a safe space for everyone.
Robert Schulz, managing director of Fenriz Gym
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is also a popular martial art at the Fenriz Gym. Berlin women in particular achieved great success last year. Three women in the gym are part of the national grappling team – grappling is the generic term for martial arts that rely on levers, throws and submission holds. At the World Combat Games in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia), a major international martial arts event held since 2010, the women’s group took home three medals in 2023. A year earlier, Darina Goldin became the first German BJJ world champion ever.
In international comparison, Germany lags behind
And yet: “Unfortunately, Germany is lagging behind in BJJ,” says Goldin. In the USA almost everyone knows martial arts, and as a professional you can make a living from the sport. “It looks different here. In addition to sometimes twenty hours of training a week, we have to go to work as normal.” Goldin works as a data scientist in Berlin. “I train as often as I can, before, after and sometimes even between work.”
On Monday at Fight Club, Goldin is not training herself, but is on the mat as a trainer. In a seven-minute fight, one of the women has to take turns fighting against all the others, who are substituted in one after the other. “It’s particularly hard,” explains Goldin, “at the end of the training you’re physically at the end of your strength. So you fight under the toughest conditions.”
Read more about our series:
A lot of city, a lot of sport With a snorkel and a lead puck playing underwater hockey
While one of the women lies sideways on her opponent’s back and tries to wrap her legs around her opponent, everyone in the room watches, spellbound. Anna-Fee Schuller watches from the side of the mat. She has been doing Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu for five years.
“For me it’s an absolute skill sport,” she says as she watches the fight with fascination. Good self-control, tactics and technique are essential in the sport. “This skill only grows over the years. “You can’t skip any steps and you can always learn something new” – that’s exactly what she likes about martial arts.
2024-02-24 11:00:26
#Berlin #women #win #Brazilian #JiuJitsu
