Kade Ruotolo has made a compelling case for the inclusion of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in the Olympic Games. In a recent interview, the young grappling phenom expressed his belief that Jiu-Jitsu deserves a place among the world’s most prestigious sporting events.
Ruotolo, fresh off his MMA debut victory, shared his thoughts on the Olympics. While acknowledging the presence of other combat sports like Judo, Wrestling, and Boxing, he noted the conspicuous absence of Jiu-Jitsu from the Olympic program.
“Absolutely,” Ruotolo responded when asked if he hoped to see Jiu-Jitsu in the Olympics before the end of his competitive prime. “I think there’s a day for sure that it does make it in.”
The main challenge, according to Ruotolo, lies in establishing a universally accepted ruleset. “I think it’s understanding the ruleset that’s very digestible for like a worldwide audience,” he explained. “I think that’s the main thing – find a ruleset that everybody can agree upon that like they have this is exciting, this is dope, this is fair.”
Ruotolo pointed out the current diversity of rulesets in Jiu-Jitsu competitions as a potential obstacle, suggesting that this variety might be confusing for a broader audience. However, he remains optimistic about the sport’s Olympic future, especially given the inclusion of other niche sports.
“I just saw was it trampoline? I didn’t know trampoline was… This is the Olympics, we gotta get in there next time around,” Ruotolo argued, highlighting the presence of less traditional sports in the Olympic program.
As a rising star in the grappling world and with a growing presence in MMA, Ruotolo’s voice adds significant weight to the ongoing discussion about Jiu-Jitsu’s potential Olympic inclusion.
BJJ legend Renzo Gracie recently argued that amateur MMA belongs in the Olympics.
“The sport definitely does have the potential to be in the Olympics from what I saw in Serbia [at the IMMAF European Championship] and now having been here today with over 800 competitors from across 47 countries,” Gracie said.
Considering BJJ has many federations and rulesets it’s hard to imagine that the sport will be included in the near future. Perhaps the biggest chance for the sport of BJJ was in 2016, when the Olympics were held in Rio De Janeiro. The next Olympic games will be in Los Angeles, and whiel breakdancing might be out it’s unclear what other sports will be included.
