A Brazilian jiu jitsu competitor who medaled at the ADCC World Championships sparked intense debate online after sharing photos of a private training session with Kyle Rittenhouse.
Dan Manasoiu posted images on Instagram showing himself instructing Rittenhouse in what appeared to be a one on one grappling session. The photos, captioned by Manasoiu as “Good training @rittenhouse2a,” quickly circulated across social media platforms and generated polarized reactions within the martial arts community.
The response on Instagram leaned supportive, with comments from UFC veteran Tim Kennedy and others.
The images drew sharper criticism on Threads, where the account Submitting Disinformation reposted them with the caption, “Are there no good men left among us?” The post, shared with roughly 1,400 followers, sparked a heated discussion about who belongs in jiu jitsu spaces.
“I’m normally against gatekeeping, but I’ll stand ten toes down when I say Kyle Rittenhouse doesn’t deserve to practice Jiu-Jitsu. Get him the h ll outta here,”
wrote a user.
Others focused on broader cultural issues within martial arts.
“As someone who used to do BJJ, I honestly can’t say I’m surprised. So many incels flock to martial arts, and as a femme, the toxicity is revolting,”
commented another
After Manasoiu responded to the criticism by sharing a photo of himself visiting a child with cancer, Submitting Disinformation dismissed the gesture, writing,
“This guy plays the victim. [ ] him.”
Supporters of Manasoiu pushed back.
“Dan is a friend of mine, and he’s an incredibly warm, loyal and principled human being. He’s a good man. It’s a completely ridiculous, narcissistic fantasy to believe that anyone who likes or thinks something you don’t like or agree with immediately and unilaterally becomes a bad person. Grow up,”
wrote a friend of Manasoiu .
The controversy exposed ongoing tensions within Brazilian jiu jitsu over inclusivity, politics and personal association. Some practitioners argued that the sport should remain open to anyone willing to train, while others insisted that certain figures should not be welcomed on the mats.
“Love seeing the comments all dragging KR,”
wrote another user.
“We don’t need this trash in Jiu-Jitsu.”
The timing coincided with Rittenhouse’s recent return to social media following his marriage announcement three weeks earlier.
“I’m back on social media, I’m back in the fi ght, and I’m here to stay,”
the 22 year old wrote on X, sharing wedding photos that included one image of his bride holding an item resembling an AR 15.
