Emmanuela Oliveira 
Bebeto Oliveira and Tayane Porfírio attended seminars on the mats of Sertão BJJ, a academy led by black-belt Roney Edler in the United States. The initiative, a meeting of Brazilians from the northeast of Brazil, is an exchange of knowledge that greatly benefits students at the academy, enthusiasts of the sport with a long road ahead.
For Roney, sharing the mat with world champions is a priceless privilege and a way to strengthen ties with Brazil, his home country and the birthplace of world champions, such as Bebeto and Tayane. In addition to the opportunity to teach Jiu-Jitsu, the two prestigious athletes had the opportunity to talk more about the ups and downs of their careers leading up to glory at the Pyramid.
“As always, it was a great experience that only adds to my Jiu-Jitsu and that of my students. I have always enjoyed learning and thus strengthening the Northeast of Brazil, valuing our athletes, regardless of the team.”.
Roney was planning to compete in the IBJJF World Master at the end of the month, a good opportunity to put all his Jiu-Jitsu skills into practice in one of the most competitive tournaments among experienced athletes. However, a knee injury, which will require surgery, ended up taking the black-belt out of the competition.
“Unfortunately, I suffered an injury before June and had been treating it as best I could to compete at the World Master. I was already preparing and had a procedure in Brazil to heal it, as recommended by my physical trainer, Itallo Vilardo. However, this past week, I felt it again and with more pain. I have surgery scheduled for early September. In the meantime, I still managed to become champion at the IBJJF Oklahoma Open. I moved up a division and managed to take first place,” he commented.
