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Martial Arts Legend Comes to Norwalk:Jiu-Jitsu Academy Brings Expert To Staff
Byline: Max Hadler
Apr. 4--NORWALK -- Known simply by his title and first name, Master Marcio cuts an intimidating figure with his sculpted 6-foot-5-inch frame, large hands and gravelly voice. A sixth-degree black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu does little to soften his image.
However, Marcio, whose full name is Marcio Stambowsky, has a milder side that comes across readily in his new job as resident expert at Norwalk's Gracie Sports Jiu-Jitsu Academy.
"He's a gentle giant," said academy co-owner Eddie Davingo. "He loves everyone, he's great to be around, and he teaches a great class."
Davingo and his partners, Fabio Araujo and Roger Denton, are responsible for bringing Stambowsky, who has been ranked as high as third worldwide in his belt class, to Norwalk.
Now that they have him splitting time between their new training center here and the Connecticut School of Mixed Martial Arts they run in New Haven, demand has gone through the roof.
"We're going to outgrow this place in a year," Davingo said of their converted dance studio. "We sign up four or five guys a night."
For those with knowledge of martial arts lore, the temptation is understandable. In addition to Stambowsky's own prominence, which includes his possible crowning as a Grand Master in the coming year, he is married to a member of the Gracie family, the originators and royal family of Brazilian jiu-jitsu.
Carlos Gracie studied the traditional Japanese form of jiu-jitsu while growing up in Brazil and created the spin-off version, whose emphasis on ground techniques is better suited to street and ultimate fighting. The Gracies are now into their third generation of world-class Brazilian jiu-jitsu fighters and have schools in Brazil, the U.S., western Europe, Japan and Australia.
The no-holds-barred format attracts many students trained in competitive martial arts, such as the popular Ultimate Fighting Championship. While Gracie Sports attracts much of its top-flight clientele from these ranks, Stambowsky stresses that the principal goal of his courses is self-defense, a skill useful to anyone.
"I want to give self-defense to all ages, from five years to seventy," said the Rio de Janeiro native.
Stambowsky structures his class so that beginners and professionals can train side by side, teaching one self-defense and one ground technique per session before spending the last segment observing the more advanced students while Denton and Davingo, who are both brown belts, work with beginners.
The only factor keeping Norwalk students from authentic Brazilian jiu-jitsu training, Stambowsky said, is the climate.
"It's too cold," he lamented, reminiscing fondly about 100-degree days in Rio de Janeiro gyms with no ventilation, sweat soaking through his gi,' the 4.5-pound robe used in jiu-jitsu.
Stambowsky can't change the weather, but he is available five days a week to impart his knowledge on anyone willing to step onto the mat.
Classes are offered Monday to Friday, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., with an open mat on Saturday, at Gracie Sports Jiu-Jitsu Academy, 181 Main St. First class is free. The monthly fee is $125 for unlimited access or $20 per class. Private lessons can also be arranged by appointment. For more information or to sign up for a class in advance, call the New Haven office of Connecticut School of Mixed Martial Arts at (203) 789-9990.
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Copyright (c) 2007, New Haven Register, Conn.