Hélio Gracie (1913–2009) was a Brazilian martial artist who, with his older brother Carlos Gracie Sr., developed the ground-fighting system that became Gracie Jiu-Jitsu and later Brazilian jiu-jitsu. Born in Belém, he spent most of his life teaching in Rio de Janeiro, held a 10th-degree red belt and kept teaching into his nineties.
Who taught Hélio Gracie
Hélio began judo at 16, training with his brothers Carlos and George. The brothers' art came from the judo of Mitsuyo Maeda, which already leaned heavily on newaza (groundwork). He also learned catch wrestling from Orlando "Dudú" da Silva, who had taught his brothers. Wikipedia describes how Hélio struggled to make judo's standing techniques work and found that ground techniques let smaller people beat larger ones. That idea is still central to how the art is taught: leverage, posture, base and the closed guard.
Fights and record
Wikipedia's summary lists 19 bouts: 9 wins, 2 losses and 8 draws. Several early fights were held under disputed or unusual rules.
- Fred Ebert, 1932: a no-time-limit match that ran for almost two hours before police stopped it. Recorded as a draw.
- Wladek Zbyszko, 1934: a 20-minute draw under jiu-jitsu rules, which Wikipedia describes as a moral victory for Gracie.
- Yukio Kato, 1951: a draw on 6 September, then a controversial choke win in the rematch on 29 September.
- Masahiko Kimura, 22 October 1951: Kimura beat him in the second round with the gyaku-ude-garami armlock. Because of this match, the shoulder lock is known in jiu-jitsu as the Kimura.
- Valdemar Santana, May 1955: his last fight, a vale tudo bout that lasted roughly 3 hours 40 minutes. It ended when Santana's soccer kick knocked him out and his corner threw in the towel.
Family and legacy
Hélio had nine children. Several of his sons became leading black belts, among them Rorion, Rickson, Relson, Royler, Rolker, Royce and Robin. Rorion helped bring Gracie Jiu-Jitsu to the United States, and Royce won the first UFC tournament. His grandsons include Rener, Ralek and Kron Gracie.
Black Belt magazine named him Man of the Year in 1997, and he entered the Martial Arts History Museum Hall of Fame in 2001. He died in his sleep in Itaipava, Petrópolis, on 29 January 2009, aged 95. He had taught until ten days before his death.