We don't want this guy at our gym! 😳
So, I took a pretty wild call the other day.
I actually called up a kid who was looking for a Jiu-Jitsu gym near Westland, and the very first question he asked me was, “Do you teach the offense and the defense in the same class?”
Now, that’s a really unusual question to ask a Jiu-Jitsu coach right off the rip, so I was a little caught off guard.
I kind of jokingly said, “Sounds like you’ve trained before, brother. Where have you trained at?”
And he rattled off at least two or three other martial arts schools he’d been to before, which as a coach, is kind of a big red flag. 🚩
I listened to him and asked, “Why’d you stop training at those gyms?”
He then told me that one of the coaches had called him a pedophile and started mistreating him.
Now, I actually know this coach personally, and that didn’t sound like him at all.
The kid just kept playing the victim, saying the Head Jiu-Jitsu coach was discriminating against him and was out to get him, (yada yada.)
While I’m still on the phone with this kid, I shoot a quick message to the coach he mentioned and ask, “Hey, what’s the story with this guy?”
Immediately, he responds and says, “Let’s hop on a call.”
Long story short, it turns out this kid had predatory behavior, and was making minor girls in his Jiu-Jitsu class uncomfortable, despite several warnings!
Now, at Metro Jiu-Jitsu we interview and carefully intake every person before they join our gym to make sure they fit our culture.
I have a simple rule: I don’t allow a**holes on the mat.
If that’s what someone’s looking for, I can recommend a couple other places or honestly just suggest they go find a different hobby.
Jiu-Jitsu gyms are a place of safety, and should act like a sanctuary from all the malarkey of the outside world. 🌎
If you let a little of that poison in, it can contaminate the entire culture.
See You On The Mats,
Written By Coach David Fox
Metro Jiu-Jitsu
