“I don’t love the fact that everyone’s doing ster*ids and stuff like that. I’ve been clean my whole life,” Dale stated during the interview. “And I would wish that everyone was the same.”
Dale, who earned his black belt in just four years, has competed at the highest levels of jiu-jitsu including World Championships. His critique comes at a time when the issue of PEDs in combat sports continues to be a contentious topic, with many athletes feeling pressure to use enhancement to remain competitive.
The 39-year-old grappler reflected on the challenges of competing as a natural athlete against enhanced competitors, particularly as he prepares for the CJI trials.
“I’m going to be the oldest, most likely in there and one of the smallest in there,” Dale explained. “Most of them are juiced up.”
Dale‘s perspective on PEDs is part of his broader philosophy on jiu-jitsu competition. He expressed skepticism about competition as a true indicator of jiu-jitsu skill, suggesting that the current competitive format often rewards athleticism and conditioning over technical proficiency.
“I don’t think competition is a great indicator of who has the best jiu-jitsu,” Dale said. “I think it’s a very different form of jiu-jitsu where most of what you’re doing in jiu-jitsu is you’re trying to be as efficient as you can to slowly cook your opponent and then submit them.”
He further elaborated that the short timeframes of modern competitions don’t allow for the true expression of efficiency in jiu-jitsu:
“Anyone in the world that’s really athletic and probably on ster*ids could last six, seven, eight minutes with me if I’m a better level than them. But those last two minutes is such a huge difference.”
Despite his criticism of PED use in the sport, Dale continues to compete and is currently focused on the CJI trials, though he acknowledges the challenge of competing against younger, enhanced athletes.
Ultimately Kit Dale didn’t make the Australia Quintet team but he did come close ultimately placing third.
Beyond competition, Dale has been expanding his career into filmmaking, recently completing a jiu-jitsu-themed movie that he hopes will find distribution on platforms like Netflix.
