Singapore, Singapore, December 14th, 2023
Partnership Draws Support From Kyra Gracie, ninth-degree red belt Luiz Carlos Guedes and Zé Mário Sperry to Deliver a New Standard of Decentralization and Transparency to Jiu-Jitsu
Moonbeam Network, a smart contract platform for building cross-chain connected applications, today announced its partnerships with the World Jiu-Jitsu Certifier (WJJC) and blockchain infrastructure provider W3block to launch a global registration platform for all Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioners and instructors. WJJC will bring a new standard of decentralization and transparency to Jiu-Jitsu and the larger martial arts ecosystem, supported by several marquee names in the sport, including four-time World Jiu-Jitsu champion Kyra Gracie, ninth-degree red belt Grandmaster Luiz Carlos Guedes, and three-time World Jiu-Jitsu champion and former star MMA fighter Zé Mário Sperry.
Fueled by its role in exciting combat sports like UFC and other mixed martial arts competitions, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is one of the most popular and fastest-growing martial arts in the world, with an estimated 3 million practitioners globally. Despite the rising popularity of martial arts, the ability to verify an individual’s skill level in a standardized way represents a key challenge. Historically, martial arts practitioners have relied on hand-signed letters, paper certificates and incomplete databases to demonstrate their particular rank in their style.
Web3 technology enables users to prove their credentials – whether it’s academic, personal identity, or martial arts training – in a manner that is transparent, accessible and unalterable. The partnership between Moonbeam, WJJC and W3bLock aims to strengthen and unify the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu community around the world with a global registration and certification platform that will democratize and enhance the standards of transparency and legitimacy of this popular martial art.
“I am both honored and excited to take on the role of ambassador for the World Jiu-Jitsu Certifier. This groundbreaking initiative by WJJC is set to bring immense value and representation to the entire Jiu-Jitsu community,” said Kyra Gracie. “The WJJC’s approach to unifying practitioners and instructors will significantly enhance the integrity and global reach of our beloved martial art. I look forward to being part of this transformative journey and contributing to the growth and recognition of Jiu-Jitsu worldwide.”
The WJJC registration platform will be the definitive database containing the certifications earned by all Jiu-Jitsu practitioners in the world, from the millions of entry-level white belts to the handful of elite red belts. Additionally, WJJC will register tournaments, leagues and championships, so practitioners not only have their graduations on-chain, but also their accomplishments. The platform will make it easy to know with certainty what level at which any individual Jiu-Jitsu student is qualified to train, athlete is to compete or instructor is to teach.
“WJJC mission is to strengthen and unify the Jiu-Jitsu community throughout the world. Blockchain technology is the only way to enable our community to have an unified, transparent and decentralized voice. We believe Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu will set the standard for other martial arts,” said Maxon Prestes from WJJC. “WJJC was carefully designed to scale globally, while maintaining constant focus on the core values of the project.”
WJJC is structured into 3 main pillars:
- Ambassadors Network: WJJC ambassadors are all world champions in Jiu-Jitsu, widely respected both regionally and globally. They play several critical roles, like maintaining the core values of Jiu-Jitsu and naming instructors that are able to certify students.
- Grandmasters Council: The Grandmasters council is composed of red and coral belts – the most respected practitioners in the world. They will legitimize the nomination by approving and graduating the instructors in WJJC. Grandmaster Luiz Carlos Guedes, ninth-degree red belt, will serve as the WJJC’s inaugural Grandmaster’s Council member.
- Certified Instructors: The instructors will go through a rigorous verification process to guarantee they have the required skills, knowledge and ethics. Then, these instructors will be able to certify and graduate their students in WJJC.
“It is an honor to work alongside Moonbeam to provide the Jiu-Jitsu community with this blockchain-based solution. We have been extremely fortunate to build and deploy one of the best use cases for blockchain: providing irrefutable proof of a student’s progress while using the decentralization aspect to unify the community”, said Alexandre Icaza, Founder and Co-CEO of W3bLock. “Our team worked relentlessly to provide all students all the features of Web3 while abstracting away the Web3 complexity. We use the latest technology of wallet abstraction while allowing users to use their own wallet, if preferred.”
W3bLock is abstracting away most of the complexity for the students and instructors. The user will log in using Web2 credentials, which will create a wallet behind the scenes. Then the instructor, after being verified and approved in WJJC’s network, will certify the user with the graduation, which is represented by an NFT airdropped in the user’s wallet.
“We’re proud to partner with W3block and WJJC on this exciting and innovative real-world application of blockchain technology,” said Sicco Naets, Head of Ecosystem Development at Moonbeam Foundation. “Brazil is known across the world for its vibrant culture, and Jiu-Jitsu is a prime example of the country’s contributions to the global community.”
WJJC plans to register the first graduation on its platform in January 2024.
For more information about the WJJC registration and certification platform, users can visit: wjjc.io
Users cab learn more about Moonbeam and follow its upcoming developments, here: moonbeam.network.
About Moonbeam Network
Moonbeam is a smart contract platform for building cross-chain connected applications that can access users, assets, and services on any chain. By uniting functionality from Ethereum, Cosmos, Polkadot and more into a single platform, Moonbeam solves today’s fragmented user experience — unlocking true interoperability and paving the way for the next generation of applications. The Moonbeam platform uses integrated cross-chain messaging to allow developers to create smart contracts that access services across many remote blockchains. This approach, plus Moonbeam’s developer-friendly EVM platform, vast tool support, and modern Substrate architecture, creates the ideal development environment for building connected applications.
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About The World Jiu-Jitsu Certifier (WJJC)
The World Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Certifier (WJJC) is a global, decentralized enterprise focused on decentralizing, giving ownership and transparency to the registration and certification process for all Jiu-Jitsu instructors and practitioners in the world.
About W3block
W3block creates infrastructure and ecosystem to help bridge the universe around us with Web3. How do we do that? Through an easy-to-use suite of solutions that make it easier to build products around NFTs, unleashing all the blockchain potential. From registering online or offline assets through blockchain to facilitating the Web3 experience for the massive amount of people entering the space.
