Found this article. Sorry, I couldn’t link to it so I copy pasted.
Martial Arts: Set to make impact Mar 19 2004
By Luke Edwards, The Journal
Europe’s newest martial art, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, is holding its first ever championships in the North-East tomorrow.
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, similar in style to Judo, has been growing in popularity across America and Europe since the mid-nineties and has also taken a firm grip across the North, with its emphasis on style and tactics rather than strength.
With the sport gaining followers across the world, the aim is to have it recognised as an Olympic Sport in time for Beijing in 2008.
Peter Irving, 22, from Wallsend, who has been practising Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu for just over two years after converting from traditional Jiu-Jitsu, is aiming to use this weekend’s championships as a way to enhance its reputation in the region.
He said: "It is the vogue martial art at the moment and its popularity is growing all the time, but the problem we have in the North-East is that it is very much London-based at the moment in terms of competitions, so that is why I’ve organised the event up here.
"Obviously it is big in Brazil, where it has been around for more than 60 years, but more and more people are taking it up in Europe and in the UK.
"It really caught the imagination of a lot of people in the mid-nineties when Rolls Gracie used it to win the Ultimate Fighting Championships in America.
“When that happened a lot of people started to become interested in it. But it was only when a man called Dave Elliott set up the Gracie Barra at Wallsend that we had somewhere to train.” And it is the Brazilian strain’s ability to teach smaller competitors how to defend and outwit larger opponents which Peter feels sets it apart from other martial arts.
He said: "It is a cousin of Judo and shares similarities with traditional Jiu-Jitsu, but has developed its own style.
"Fitness is paramount, but it is not a power martial art. It is ideal for smaller people as its emphasis is on style rather than strength.
"There is a lot of time spent on defence and then how to outwit your opponent. Most of the lads who have taken up the sport have done so full-time in preparation for the Ultimate Fighting Championships.
“It can take even the most dedicated practitioner 15 years to achieve a black belt and at the moment there are only a handful across Europe. I’d urge anyone who was interested in getting involved in the sport to come along on Saturday and see what it is all about.”
The First North-East Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Championships are at the Lightfoot Centre, Wharrier Street, Walker, Newcastle upon Tyne, at 11am tomorrow.