UMBC Jujitsu

A little about us:

The UMBC Jujitsu club was founded in 1998. The club is an official UMBC Sports Club, which means that it is run by students, has a faculty adviser and is sponsored by the University. The club is open to students and RAC guests. Persons with disabilies are welcome to participate in the club. Participation in the club is free, but if you are not a student you will need a RAC membership. The RAC offers daily and seasonal memberships. Daily membership is $5.

In addition to regular classes, the club participates in Judo and Jujitsu tournaments and sponsors a regional Martial Arts Summer Camp with the National Martial Arts Association. We frequently have guest teachers, and we participate in demonstrations and campus activities.

The chief Sensei or instructor is Stephen Sfekas, who hold the rank of yondon (4th degree black belt) in Budoshin Jujistu as well as a black belt in Kung Fu. Sensei Sfekas is a member of the adjunct faculty in the Department of Policy Sciences,is on the UMBC President's Advisory Council, and is a practicing attorney in Baltimore City.

Chief Instructor: Sensei Stephen Sfekas
President: Brandon Choi
Vice President: Jessica Voss
Treasurer: Josh Moore
Secretary: Mirsaid Parmanov
Website Creator/Editor: Mark Adjoodani

Jujitsu is an ancient martial art which was first developed in Japan as a focus of self-defense for samurai who had lost their swords on the battlefield. A second form of jujitsu, referred to as "aiki jujitsu" developed as a policeman's art to maintain order in the palace without the use of lethal force. Modern jujitsu combines the techniques of the battlefield and the policeman into an art with a broad variety of options for self-defense. Because of its range of techniques and effectiveness, jujitsu today forms the basis for hand-to-hand combat for most of the world's military forces and many of its police departments. There are also many martial arts which have developed or have been influenced by jujitsu such as:Aikido, Bartitsu, Hapkido, Judo, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Sambo, Kajukenbo, Kudo, Kapap, and Kenpo, as well as some styles of Japanese Karate.

During the Japanese medieval period and during the Shogunate, many styles of jujitsu developed. Most of the differences among the styles reflect differences in emphasis among the groups of techniques and differences in training methods. The style taught at UMBC is "Budoshin," the main style of the America Jujitsu Association. The style emphasizes throwing techniques. However, the UMBC program has also been strongly influenced by Nisei Kito Ryu, Hakko Ryu, Seigneury, and Brazilian Jujitsu.

There are six families of techniques in jujitsu:

Atemi Waza - Striking Techniques
Nage Waza - Throwing Techniques
Kansetsu Waza - Jointing Locking Techniques
Shime Waza - Strangling Techniques
Ne Waza - Ground Grappling Techniques
Ukemi Waza - Falling Techniques