Chris Martin almost lost his life to Brazilian jiu-jitsu.
It all started on a routine day or training. Chris — a BJJ purple belt — was rolling at the gym he dedicated his life to creating, Nova Gyms Martial Arts & Fitness in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. His opponent put him in what Chris described as a “solid” north-south choke. During the choke, the carotid artery got dissected and within minutes, Chris was on the floor and couldn’t move.
The choke caused him to have a stroke.
Someone called 911. Paramedics arrived quickly and took Chris to one of the best hospitals in the area. Had they taken him to a worse hospital, he could have died.
Ironically, Brazilian jiu-jitsu was also what saved Chris Martin because, if it weren’t for all the health benefits it gave him, he could have been in a much worse condition than he is today.
Martin doesn’t want to give up jiu-jitsu, nor does he want to scare anyone away from it. Quite the opposite: he wants to educate people about making the art safer.
You can hear all the details of Chris’ terrifying experience in our exclusive Jiu-Jitsu Times interview below. You can also learn about Chris Martin’s project, BJJ 4 Change, here.
Also, if you are a BJJ instructor or someone who just wants to learn more about making the art safer, you can get in touch with Chris Martin at his Facebook page here.
Editor’s Note: We apologize for the poor quality of the video. There were some internet problems during the recording.
