Grapplers win Oceania gold

YOUNG athletes from Mildura Brazilian Jiu Jitsu have been crowned Oceania champions following some standout performances at the weekend.

The squad of seven from Sunraysia all returned with medals from the Oceania Kids Jiu Jitsu Championship in Melbourne, competing against some of the biggest teams in the country.

Now in its third year, the event remains as the only “kids only” major in the Oceania region and is a considered considered a jewel in the Australian Federation of Brasilian Jiu Jitsu crown.

Mildura’s oldest competitor Tyler Carter, 16, had to move well up in her weight class to compete, but that didn’t stop her winning gold in both Gi and No-Gi events.

Twins, Eli and Scarlett Southwell, both 10, and Lissy Rudkin, 9, all won a gold and silver each, while Sieannah Spencer, 10, also claimed gold in Gi.

Reid Tamala, 7, and Oswald Rudkin, 8, both earned double silver medals after making their respective finals.

Despite being a smaller unit, Mildura Brazilian Jiu Jitsu also finished in the top 10 of the teams competition.

Head coach Luke Burnham said the club is extremely proud of the young competitors.

“It’s the biggest teens and kids competition put on by the Australian federation,” he said.

“We weren’t really sure how we were going to go because Melbourne is the mecca of jiu-jitsu and there are so many huge and fantastic teams competing.

“We took seven kids down and we were stoked that they all came back with medals. It was a phenomenal performance.

“These days the jiu-jitsu levels are getting phenomenal so to see what they all did on Sunday was just brilliant. They can definitely all do great things if they stick with it.

“As a coach, it can be a bit stressful watching them all, but you’re immensely proud not only of what they have achieved, but more so the confidence and self-belief they get out of it themselves.

“The fact we only had seven competitors and we still came 10th in the teams total was a great effort.”