The reputation for athletics is formidable at SUNY Cortland, and one of the latest additions to the community is the jiu jitsu club. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The club focuses on the traditional Japanese martial art of jiu jitsu, aiming to provide students with an opportunity to not only socialize but learn self-defense techniques, improve physical fitness, and gain a deeper understanding of martial arts culture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The club was established in 2016 by a group of passionate students who recognized the growing interest in martial arts on campus, while also pursuing their own journeys of progression. It was a slow start, but then came along now senior and club president, Michael Picardo. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI wanted an outlet to train while away from home to reinforce my skills, and ended up building a community along the way, \u201d said Picardo. \u201cWe come here for good vibes, to push each other and have discipline. We\u2019re not here to hurt each other, we welcome all levels and want to keep building a community.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Training sessions are held on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 5:30 – 7:00 across and down the hall from the university\u2019s basketball gymnasium in Park Center, where experienced instructors such as Lukas Kirwin guide members through various techniques, including throws, joint locks, and grappling. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cJiu jitsu is more than a way of defending yourself to me,\u201d said Kirwin. \u201cI wanted to pick something up after high school, and it\u2019s been a great way to make friends, socialize and be a part of a community.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kirwin\u2019s biggest piece of advice for anyone wanting to get better or thinking about joining was \u201cjust showing up is the biggest thing.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
In addition to regular training, the jiu jitsu club is actively communicating on GroupMe<\/em> and often hosts spontaneous workshops for those who can attend on campus. The club aims to compete in organized competitions throughout the semester for those who want to experience the competitive aspect of the sport. These events will provide members with opportunities to test their skills, learn from experts, and connect with other martial arts enthusiasts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The club has already garnered significant interest even though it is a newer club on campus, with over 50 students on the active roster. For students looking to relieve stress and build confidence, this may just be the club for you. <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The reputation for athletics is formidable at SUNY Cortland, and one of the latest additions to the community is the jiu jitsu club. The club focuses on the traditional Japanese martial art of jiu jitsu, aiming to provide students with an opportunity to not only socialize but learn self-defense techniques, improve physical fitness, and gain […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":412,"featured_media":7455,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-7460","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports","8":"entry"},"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/sites.cortland.edu\/dragon-chronicle\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2025\/02\/bjj-club-scaled.jpg","featured_image_src_square":"https:\/\/sites.cortland.edu\/dragon-chronicle\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2025\/02\/bjj-club-scaled.jpg","author_info":{"display_name":"Christopher Caruso","author_link":"https:\/\/sites.cortland.edu\/dragon-chronicle\/author\/christopher-caruso\/"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.cortland.edu\/dragon-chronicle\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7460","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.cortland.edu\/dragon-chronicle\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.cortland.edu\/dragon-chronicle\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.cortland.edu\/dragon-chronicle\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/412"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.cortland.edu\/dragon-chronicle\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7460"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sites.cortland.edu\/dragon-chronicle\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7460\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.cortland.edu\/dragon-chronicle\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7455"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.cortland.edu\/dragon-chronicle\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7460"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.cortland.edu\/dragon-chronicle\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7460"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.cortland.edu\/dragon-chronicle\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7460"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}