AMHERST – Jeremy Misken (left) and Justus Copeland earned gold medals at the 2018 Abhaya Open Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Championships in Windsor on Saturday.
“Jeremy and I have been competing for so long and it seems like this year we’ve really put everything together,” said Copeland.
He says they both ‘showed up’ on Saturday.
“We didn’t have a single point scored on us the whole tournament. It was definitely our best performance physically and mentally.”
Copeland competed in the Men’s 151-to-175-pound, Blue Belt Division; and Misken competed in the Men’s 176-to-200-pound Blue Belt Division.
Misken and Copeland won all four of their matches, both winning three matches by submission and one match by the point-spread.
They have been training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu for six years and are co-owner/operators of Breakthrough Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in Amherst.
Copeland attributes their success in Windsor to working more on their mental game.
“We’re really trying to break things down and look at it from different angles,” said Copeland. “We’re training, not harder, but better and more efficiently. That’s been a big change in how we approach the sport.”
Breakthrough Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is affiliated with the Halifax Jiu Jitsu Society. They competed together in Windsor.
“Every win and every medal counted towards points, and we got the most points and got the top team trophy,” said Copeland.
Breakthrough Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is located in the basement of the VON building on the corner of Prince Arthur and Acadia Street in downtown Amherst, near the curling club and library.
They are open for business Sunday nights, Tuesday nights, Thursday nights, and Friday nights. Kids classes are Tuesday’s and Thursday.
“We offer a free week trial. You have nothing to lose if you give it a shot,” said Copeland.
For more information call Copeland at 902-669-0403, or visit their facebook page, or go to breakthroughbjj.com.
