Lions Den Youth BJJ Program

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The Youth BJJ program at the Lions Den is truly Unique and special. In our program children will get once in a lifetime training opportunities you will see at no other martial arts school worldwide. Our Youth program itself is lead by Caleb Svingala whom is a Black Belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and whom has won over 20 BJJ tournaments at the Expert level. Caleb is also one of the best and most accomplished wrestlers to come from NYS with over 200 wins at the High School Varsity level . Caleb was a highly recruited High School Athlete before going on to wrestle under Scholarship for the University of Buffalo and become a starter as a true freshman. Caleb was also the first ever student athlete for the University fo Buffalo to also be chosen for their leadership house program. Caleb is not only a super accomplished competitor but an instructor with high morals and Character to lead our program. Caleb is also 2-0 in MMA completion and holds 1 championship and is also undefeated in Judo competition. You will not find a better coach for your child.

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Some extra super rare opportunities that our program offers are training and learning directly from UFC fighters. We bring in some of the biggest stars every few months for the kids to work directly with. We also bring in Olympians and World Champions. We take a field trip once per year to the World Famous Renzo Gracie Main Academy in NYC where we visit our friends and have a special private session with the Gracies.

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What else sets us apart / what parents need to know / parent and student responsibilities 

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The most important thing that sets us apart is our program structure . We have a set curriculum for our youth students. We provide worksheets with all the curriculum on exactly what the children should know at each step of their martial arts journey. Our curriculum assures that when they graduate from our children's program and rankings they will have a very strong foundation in our adult rank and will have the ability to move through the adult ranks swiftly ( or at least swiftly from a BJJ standpoint). The important thing is with this foundation they will become a high level practitioner. 

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  Student responsibilities 

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Students are responsible for following all guidelines listed on our " etiquette " page

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Students in our program are expected to  compete once per year with our school as a team

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Students in our program are expected to attend  our 3 belt promotion ceremonies per year 

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Parent responsibilities 

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We expect our parents to be involved in their child's participation in our program. We find that children who have parents/guardians who are involved tend to be more successful overall. If a parent is not involved they will not know when belt testing is , when belt promotions are , they won't know how tournaments work or when they are etc. We have belt promotions 3 times per year , for these events , parents are responsible to bring a pot luck dish for all to share. The beauty of this is everyone shares a meal following the event and there is plenty to go around for siblings, parents or whomever is coming to see the special event. sign ups for this are posted on our facebook members only page or you can let the coach know what you intend to bring.

 

Tournaments - We compete once per year as a team. Parents are responsible to sign their child up for the competition and get them to it. Its held annually at the Albany Armory.

 

Seminars - we do offer special seminars with UFC fighters and world champions a few times per year. These are not mandatory but highly encouraged as they will expose your child to more high level training. 

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Cost - We keep our monthly rates far below the market price so our students can have the opportunity to take advantage of all of the special events we offer here at the Den. Students can attend all seminars , tournaments and even field trips with  the total cost still being less than a normal monthly membership elsewhere. Our goal however is not only to make them just a good martial artist but to ALSO provide them with amazing memories that will last a lifetime. Our belt promotions are a great family filled event, our seminars and field trips are something they will share with their friends for years to come and the tournaments are also an amazing time spent together as a TEAM.  You are joining much more than a martial arts school with us , your are joining a team and becoming a part of our martial arts family.