2026-08-15
Alexander at the EK NOGI : Lisbon 2026
A travel diary. Alexander competes at the IBJJF European No-Gi Championship in Lisbon. We are not going to win. We just want to show up.
A travel diary. Alexander competes at the IBJJF European No-Gi Championship in Lisbon. We are not going to win. We just want to show up.
Timeline
- Pre: Years of Training in Leuven
- 2 May 2026 , Top BJJ Kids Visit Brasa Limburg
- 28 June 2026 , Training at New Art Jiu-Jitsu, Wavre
- Summer 2026 , Training at Impact Fight 84, Avignon
- 15 August 2026 , Training in Almere
- 17-21 August 2026 , Judo Summer Camp, Herentals
- 10-11 October 2026, Lisbon , IBJJF European No-Gi Championship
Pre: Years of Training in Leuven
This article documents Alexander's journey to the IBJJF European No-Gi Championship in Lisbon. We are building it as we go, adding chapters along the way: from years of training at home, to preparation camps, to the competition itself. Think of it as a travel diary in real time.
Alexander (11 years old, 36 kg, yellow-black belt in BJJ) trains at Brasa Belgium in Leuven, under the guidance of coach Wim Deputter. Alexander's weekly schedule:
- BJJ: Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday , 1 hour per session
- Judo: Monday and Saturday (sometimes also Thursday)
Top achievements
- 🥇 Belgian Champion 2024 , Gi, Boys / Yellow / 8-9 yrs / -36 kg
- 🥇 Belgian Champion 2024 , No Gi, Boys / Yellow / 8-9 yrs / -36 kg
- 🥇 Lion Cub 4 (April 2025) , Gi, Boys / Yellow / -34 kg
- 🥈 No Gi Kids 2026 , Boys / Yellow / Juniors / -38.6 kg
- 🥈 Gi Kids Challenger 2026 , Boys / Feather III / -38.6 kg
On a regular basis, Alexander is also coached by Olympic bronze medalist Ilse Heylen (Wikipedia) and her husband and coach Olivier Berghmans. Ilse won bronze at the 2004 Athens Olympics. Having access to that level of coaching is a privilege.
And this is what a medal AND a loss look like at a real tournament, the Nijmegen Open 2024:
Watch: Alexander at the Nijmegen Open 2024 (YouTube)
Alexander even got to interview Ilse himself. Here it is:
Watch: Alexander interviews Ilse Heylen (YouTube)
Full competition history on Smoothcomp
Along the way, Alexander has trained with some remarkable people. One of the highlights: a Belgian Para Commando (FLY) came to give a special training session at the club. Not your average Saturday class.
2 May 2026: Top BJJ Kids Visit Brasa Limburg
The Top BJJ kids made a trip to Brasa Limburg for a training day. The BJJ community is small, and connecting with clubs across Belgium is part of what makes the sport special.
28 June 2026: Training at New Art Jiu-Jitsu, Wavre
We also trained at the gym of Shai (New Art Jiu-Jitsu) in Wavre , a friend of our regular coach Wim Deputter. The Top BJJ kids came together for a No-Gi session, with strong kids from all over Belgium. Exactly the kind of preparation Alexander needed.
Summer 2026: Training at Impact Fight 84, Avignon
During our summer holiday in France, we drove to Avignon multiple times to train at Impact Fight 84. A great club with a warm welcome. Alexander trained with local kids and was coached by their instructor. A big thank you for the time, the coaching, and the mat space.
15 August 2026: Training in Almere
Leuven to Almere is 2.5 hours by car. We made the drive to train with the top BJJ kids from Top BJJ at DjoesFit. A strong session with strong kids, exactly the kind of preparation Alexander needed before Lisbon.
While Alexander trained, his mom and brother Andreas went cycling around the island, visiting a WWII bunker. Different kind of workout.
17-21 August 2026: Judo Summer Camp, Herentals
Alexander joins a week-long judo training camp in Herentals (Monday to Friday), organised by Judo Vlaanderen. He went with his buddy, making it both a training week and a proper adventure. A full week of randori, breakfalls and mat time , not a bad way to sharpen the body and mind before a big competition.
Photos coming soon.
10-11 October 2026: IBJJF European No-Gi Championship, Lisbon
This is it. The IBJJF European Kids No-Gi Championship, held over two days at:
Complexo Municipal Esportivo do Casal Vistoso
R. João da Silva 20
Lisbon, 1900-271
Portugal
To be continued...
Brussels Open + Road to Europeans (Tilburg)
The weekend before the Europeans had two parts.
Saturday was the Brussels Open (FBJJB). Alexander competed in two categories and came home with two gold medals.
One category had no opponents, so a walkover gold. The other he won properly. But more useful than the medals: the competition showed us exactly where to focus. His closed guard escapes needed work. We had one day to fix it.
Sunday was the last "Road to Europeans" training session in Tilburg. A good session to work on exactly that.
Alexander with Victor Diniz (@victor.dinizjj, right), who led the Sunday session in Tilburg.
European Kids No-Gi Championship 2026
Bronze medal. Third place at the IBJJF European Kids No-Gi Championship, in a bracket with competitors from Brazil, Sweden, and Poland.
Alexander had one match, against Arvid Karl Lundin (CheckMat, Sweden). He was doing well: leading on points, had a pass, had scored an advantage. Then, in the final moments, Arvid caught him with an inside kimura and submitted him. One of those moments where you were winning until you weren't.
Third place by bracket position. Still bronze at a European championship.
Clubgenoten
Alexander was niet alleen. Brasa Belgium reisde met een volledige ploeg naar Lissabon.
Jules: zilver 🥈
Eymen: zilver 🥈
Yeva: zilver 🥈
Adam: brons 🥉
Ariyan: brons 🥉
Vladislava: goud Gi, goud No-Gi, brons Absolute 🥇🥇🥉
Coach Wim Deputter: zilver No-Gi, brons Gi, zilver Absolute Gi 🥈🥉🥈
Written with assistance from Dobbie, Frederik's AI assistant.
