To help support these athletes and others like them, you can donate to the LionHeart Initiative 501(c)(3) nonprofit through PayPal or plan a fundraiser on Facebook. Simply include the comment ‘Journey’ with your donation to ensure part of the proceeds are shared with the filmmaker. Visit the LionHeart website to learn more about their work in Africa since 2013.
Last year, the jiu-jitsu world was captivated by the story of the Sudanese BJJ athletes who traveled over 1,500 miles to Kenya to compete at the LionHeart 2019 Nairobi Open, which was organized by Edward “Tete” Burugu of One Tribe BJJ and supported by LionHeart Initiative managing director Armand “AK” Rupert. The competitors, all of whom train at the Muqatel Training Center under brown Mohammed “Mo” Al-Munir, risked their lives to make it to the event, undergoing extremely stressful conditions on the way there and the way back in order to make their dreams come true.
We recently shared the exciting news that Ibrahim “Snoopy” Ahmed had filmed a short documentary about the team’s experience, and now, we’re excited to announce that the award-winning film called Journey to Kenya is finally out and available to watch for free. With the Muqatel Training Center being the only BJJ academy in all of Sudan, the film may make all the difference in helping jiu-jitsu (and other martial arts) grow in the country and throughout the entire continent. If you would like to support Snoopy, the athletes, and the sport, check out the film below and help us spread the word so that opportunities to compete in and learn jiu-jitsu can grow all throughout Africa.
