Considered by many as the birthplace of jiu-jitsu and MMA, the city of Rio de Janeiro will officially pay homage to three of the sport’s most important pioneers: Carlos, Helio and Carlson Gracie.
According to Mauricio Carneiro, who is spearheading the effort, the city’s secretary of conservation will take the project to Mayor Eduardo Paes for official approval next week.
“Our goal is to make the opening ceremony on Aug. 18, Carlson’s birthday, but everything will depend on the sculptor finishing Carlson´s statue, once Carlos’ and Helio´s are already done,” Carneiro said.
Carlson´s wife, Marli Gracie, was very moved by the news.
“I have to congratulate Rio´s mayor for his sensibility. We have been fighting for that for almost six years,” she said. “Thanks to those three icons, thousands of people in Brazil, the U.S. and many other countries can practice jiu-jitsu and MMA. The Gracie family deserves that honor from the city where they chose to live and spread their art to the world.”
Carlos Gracie learned jiu-jitsu from Mitsuyo Maeda Koma back in 1914, when he lived in Belem. With the help of his younger brother, Helio Gracie, Carlos transformed the Soft Art into a philosophy and passed it thru many generations, transforming the Gracie family into the biggest fighting dynasty in the world.
Helio was the most loyal soldier, winning dozens of fights and earning respect for the Gracie name throughout Brazil in the 1950s and 1960s. When Helio retired, Carlson Gracie became the new No. 1, as he defended the Gracie name for 19 years. Once Carlson retired, he worked to popularize jiu-jitsu at all social levels.
Carlos died in 1994, Carlson in 2006 and Helio in 2009.
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