VIDEO: UAE astronaut Sultan Al Neyadi becomes first person to practice jiu-jitsu on ISS

DUBAI: Emirati astronaut Sultan Al Neyadi wrote a new chapter in history when he became the first person to practice jiu-jitsu in space on Thursday.

The intrepid explorer, who is on the longest Arabian space mission aboard the International Space Station (ISS), shared a six-minute video showing how martial arts helped him thrive in a microgravity lab and complete his historic space mission walk.

“The discipline, focus and adaptability I gained from #JiuJitsu has been invaluable to me aboard the ISS,” he said in the video’s description.

“Even in microgravity, the movements and postures I learned on Earth work well here,” Al Neyadi points out.

“Oss! What jujitsu moves are you interested in doing in space?” he asked his followers using the hashtags #UAEJJF and #FromMatsToStars

A jiu-jitsu fighter for many years, Al Neyadi appears in a jiu-jitsu kimono in a video from an orbiting laboratory 420 kilometers above Earth. The kimono was one of the personal items he carried with him during his six-month space odyssey.

Proclaiming his love for martial arts, he said: “I have practiced Jiu-Jitsu for many years. I think Jiu-Jitsu has helped me a lot in preparing for this mission and adapting to the ISS environment.”

For example, he recalls how he trained on a human centrifuge, a giant rotating arm that replicates the gravity (gravity) of ascension into space by spinning at 96 kilometers per minute, which is the equivalent of Earth’s gravity. triple hours.

“I remember a few times I was in a centrifuge, a machine that simulates multiples of the gravity we experience during launch and re-entry. Gravity is the weight we feel on the ground when we’re on Earth, Now we live in microgravity. So our weight is literally unusable. So we float as you can see,” he explained.

In the centrifuge, Al Neyadi recalls encountering eight times his weight.

“The first feeling is to feel the opponent [in jiu-jitsu] on my chest. “

“One of the things I learned in jiu-jitsu was to regulate my breathing. So that’s exactly what I did in the centrifuge experience, and I think jiu-jitsu really helped me overcome that experiment.”

“Again, when we got here, I was surprised that we mainly use our feet to stabilize ourselves. So, as you know, one of the basic principles is that we use our toes to hit the foundation. So the pressure on the ground, the point of contact should be in your on your toes, not your heels. So on the ground, if you put your weight on your heels, any little movement can push you in any direction. That’s why when I put my toes under the armrest in space , the reason why I want to do Jiu-Jitsu poses. So, I feel very stable.”

“If I’m stable like this, I can’t move easily, basically I move everywhere with my toes. I can do all kinds of tricks here. I can jump from one place to another. Yeah, really It’s my toes to stabilize myself,” he said while doing somersaults.

Al Neyadi went on to explain how his jiu-jitsu training was instrumental in his historic spacewalk, or EVA, on April 28.

“In jiu-jitsu we try to train our forearms and that’s what I feel…very helpful. I recently had an operation called EVA which is an EVA where we work hours activity. I worked seven hours outside the International Space Station. It’s called a spacewalk, but actually, we don’t walk, we use our arms [to move along the handrails on the exterior of the ISS]So, after all these years of training in Jiu-Jitsu, I think the very strong ribs I got from that training really helped me to get things done without a problem. “

During a spacewalk, astronauts keep moving on the surface of the space station by pushing handles on the outside of the space station.

Al Neyadi further explained that he can relate many things from his jiu jitsu experience to life on the International Space Station.

Discussing the connection between physics and jiu-jitsu, Al Neyadi, who is floating, demonstrates a bicycle warm-up exercise in jiu-jitsu to explain the science behind how large gyroscopes help stabilize and maintain the attitude of the International Space Station. “When I arrived, I tested the concept with bicycle kicks,” grinned the astronaut, spinning in the same direction as the front and rear kicks.

“You kick the bike like this. Look how I move backwards. When I go backwards, I start forwards. That’s exactly what we use to maintain that attitude on the International Space Station,” he said as he demonstrated the moves Said.

Al Neyadi went on to say that living and working on the ISS is very interesting.

“I’ve also done a lot of forward rolls and backflips. Still learning, but I can show some of those tricks,” he said, demonstrating the moves successfully.

“I’m really excited to pass on what I’ve learned in my jiu-jitsu movement training on the ISS.”

Al Neyadi concluded by asking his followers to comment on their favorite maneuvers that can be performed in the microgravity environment of the International Space Station.

Jiu-jitsu is an important pillar of the physical education syllabus in many schools in the UAE. Jiu-jitsu practitioners have always been very proud of Al Neyadi for taking martial arts to the next level. The social media pages of the Jiu-Jitsu organization and tournament had earlier posted the news about Al Neyadi becoming the first Jiu-Jitsu practitioner aboard the International Space Station.

Abdul Monem Al Hashemi, Chairman of the UAE Jiu-Jitsu Federation, Chairman of the Asian Jiu-Jitsu Federation and Senior Vice-President of the International Jiu-Jitsu Federation, said, “We will always be here for Sultan Proud. His bravery, intelligence and humility is an honor and inspiration to the UAE and all our citizens and residents. He is a role model for the Arab and Muslim world and the nation of jiu-jitsu players worldwide. He put the sport of jiu-jitsu on a whole new map, took us from the mats to the stars.”

“We wish him a safe and successful return and the UAE is very proud of his extraordinary achievement,” he added.

The federation also released photos of Al Neyadi giving a speech at the Jiu-Jitsu World Championships in Abu Dhabi 2021, his winning a Jiu-Jitsu competition years ago and his friendly match with astronauts in spacesuits during training.