Sean Alvarez Biography
Sean Eric Alvarez was born July 14, 1971 in the Bronx, New York. At the age of 10, Sean began studying Martial Arts and throughout his youth remained active participating in various sports, such as, basketball and weight training. It was this influence which helped build and strengthen his body for the arduous road ahead.
At the age of 18, Sean relocated to San Diego, California to further his education in the Health & Fitness industry where he obtained a management position in a large health club franchise. This led to Sean becoming a certified trainer and subsequently branching off to start his own personal training business.
Sean resumed his martial arts training at the age of 21, inspired by the dynamic Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu skills displayed by Royce Gracie in the first ever Ultimate Fighting Championships broadcast on Pay-Per-View.
At the age of 22 Sean moved abroad to the middle eastern city Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates. There Sean worked as the personal trainer to his highness Sheikh Tahnoon Bin Zayed al Nahyan, a prince from the royal ruling family of the U.A.E who he befriended while living in San Diego.
After only one year of training in the art of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Sean set a precedence by winning gold at the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu World Championships, as well as, the coveted Pan American Championships. Following his back-to-back wins in Brazil and Los Angeles, Sean was prospected by a Japanese production company to participate in his first ever professional mixed martial arts event. The event was broadcast live on Japanese television in front of an audience of 20,000. Sean overcame all odds by winning his first professional bout, a grueling one round 32 minute battle.
Recognizing the amazing feat of winning three major titles in the short span of a year, Sheikh Tahnoon decided to sponsor Sean to train full time as a professional mixed martial artist. Sean became the first member of the Abu Dhabi Combat Team and would play a pinnacle role in the creation and inception of the Abu Dhabi Combat Championships a.k.a The Submission Wrestling World Championships.
This premier tournament is a grappling event that invites the best grappling martial artists from around the world to compete for the gold medal and title of The Best Grappler in the World. The event attracted prominent grapplers from various styles such as Wrestling, Judo, Sambo, Sumo and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Sean won the Silver Medal three consecutive years in a row. He also continued his Mixed Marital Arts career by winning several more MMA titles such as the famous Japanese Rings Championships, as well as, becoming the UCC Heavyweight World Champion in Montreal, Canada. Then as if to pay homage to the origins of Gracie Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Sean entered the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championships) arena built by the Gracie family to showcase the dominance of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu as a martial art.
With a total of 13 amazing years of experience as a student, instructor, coach and World Champion Sean now finds himself in a unique position to help others in achieving balance in the pursuit of their physical, mental and spiritual goals through the art of Gracie Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Sean believes that the art of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu has instilled in him all the tools needed to make his amazing journey from the East Coast to the West Coast to the Middle East and back an exciting success.
Special Thanks to his highness Sheikh Tahnoon Bin Zayed.
None of this would have been a reality were it not for you.
Infinite gratitude and respect from your friend and brother always,
~Sean Alvarez~
Copyright Gracie Barra of Westchester 2006
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