Featured affiliated academy: Bohol Island Jiu Jitsu Philippines
Where is the gym located?
Bohol Island Jiu Jitsu is located in Tagbilaran City, Bohol, which is right smack at the center of the 7,107 islands in the Philippines. Our island is a very touristy place, with a lot of nature and great beaches, and the smallest monkey in the world – the Tarsier (our logo) – can be found only on our island. Currently we’re the only BJJ school here.
How many people train there?
In total Bohol Island Jiu Jitsu Philippines has around 20 members registered, but the consistent numbers we get are about 50% of that.
Is the gym growing – if so by how many new members each month or year?
Since most of our members are students, and we don’t have a lot of job opportunities here, people tend to move to other bigger islands in the Philippines so once they graduate. So to answer the question – we are growing, but people also leave every now and then.
What are the highest and lowest belt grades training?
White belts, blue belts, and purple belts.
When did the gym open?
Bohol Island Jiu Jitsu Philippines started in 2014 in an old Taekwondo gym. Since then we’ve moved to a newer location.
Some facts about you:
Name: Jay Uy
Age: 31
Belt: Purple
Profession: Manager
Years in BJJ: 11
Other martial arts: Boxing
Currently living in: Tagbilaran City, Bohol
Originally from: Tagbilaran City, Bohol
Please tell us the story of how your gym came into existence:
I started training BJJ in 2008 in Cebu City, where I attended university. Every now and then when I went back to my hometown, I would teach and train with my brother, who had also started training in Manila under a different team. I would seek out MMA gyms and other martial arts gym here in Bohol just to be able to train. On the weekends, I’d take a 2-hour boat ride to Cebu to train with my old team and try to keep learning from my coach there. In 2013, when I was still a blue belt, a big earthquake hit my island and a lot of the buildings got damaged. A year afterwards, in 2014, I learned that another blue belt from New York was in town and was actually based here. So I tried to reach out, knowing he was teaching at a local Taekwondo gym here. After a few months training with each other and a few beginners, he decided to name the team Bohol Island Jiu Jitsu.
Tell us about the people that train in the gym – who are they?
Most of the guys that train with us are from here – they really started from scratch with me, John, and my brother Ton. The majority are students that go to school in the morning and train with us at night, like Julliver, Vincent, Arman, Ali, and Milven. Some of our senior members like JM, Luther and Vic have jobs during the day, so most of our classes are at night only.
Why do they train?
They really do love Jiu Jitsu and enjoy learning from each other. I guess for the younger members it’s for fitness and self confidence. Our older members would say it’s such a big stress relief from work as well.
What are some of the challenges of running a BJJ gym in general and in your location specifically?
For me it’s a passion project. I really enjoy teaching and spreading BJJ, and learning from different people, so I’m not in it for the business side. However, paying the bills can get pretty stressful at times as well. When people leave to pursue a career elsewhere, we also lose members. Losing people can be pretty frustrating. On the other hand, I’m happy they started with us and when I see them do well in competitions in other countries. Also, in our area time can move pretty slow, and some of our members can get pretty lax at times when it comes to training. Especially if comp season is over.
How do you see the future for BJJ in your area?
Hopefully, other teams or gyms can start as well in order to have more BJJ spread out in the other towns. Economically our city is growing, and population also increases along with that. When jobs start pouring in, people that have trained on other islands might want to come work here as well, and either train with us or start their own schools. I see a ton of potential here. We don’t have a black belt yet on our island, and maybe one day if not me, one of my students would be the first home grown Boholano black belt.
What’s the best thing about your gym?
Bohol Island Jiu Jitsu Philippines is just a small gym, but between me, John, and my brother Ton, we have a total of 33 years of experience between us. John started in 2008 in New York – he has his own style of teaching. My brother Ton also started in 2008 with our current Professor, Ali Sulit in Manila, and he incorporates a lot of the ATOS-style techniques. Our gym also has a lot of tourists that drop by every now and then to train with us. You never know when a group of 3 people from Australia will show up at the exact same time a Swiss purple belt said he would drop by to train as well. Plus the beach is just a few minutes away from us too. :)
What would you recommend Globetrotters to see in your area apart from the inside of your gym?
Panglao Island is where all the best resorts are – we have world class beaches there. Also a great spot to try and learn diving, or hop on a boat to go visit other smaller islands. Bohol can offer tons of dive spots around the island. We have beautiful reefs and the diversity of marine life here will amaze you.
The Chocolate Hills are a couple of hours drive from Panglao or the city. It’s a UNESCO World Heritage site where 1,260 hills turn brown in the summer season and resemble Hershey kisses. To get there you can either join a tour or drive, but on your way there be sure to also visit the Loboc River cruise where you can have lunch, and the man-made forest in Loboc and Bilar towns.
The Tarsier Sanctuary is also a must-visit if you’re here. The monkeys are endangered, and although some can be found in the wild, the sanctuary is the best place to find and learn about these nocturnal creatures.
You can also rent a motorbike or go on a countryside tour, where you never know when you’ll stumble upon exotic caves, stunning rice fields, fireflies in mangroves, very old churches, or great views from mountaintops.
