Originally posted on @rollclubmedia — October 26, 2026.
Canadian grappling deserves more than an occasional mention when an athlete reaches the international spotlight.
On October 24, competitors from across the region gathered at Richmond Olympic Oval for the ADCC Canada Vancouver Open 2026, bringing together athletes from a wide range of academies for a full day of submission grappling.
The tournament's registration listing recorded 665 entries, making it a substantial gathering for the regional grappling scene.
A snapshot of Canada's grappling community
The event's team listing provides a glimpse into the breadth of the local scene. ON GUARD Brazilian Jiu Jitsu led the listed team entries with 28, followed by West Coast JJ with 20, Lions MMA with 18, and 10th Planet Vancouver with 17.
Brave MMA rounded out the top five with 15 listed entries.
These figures reflect registrations associated with each team, not medal counts or a final team championship ranking. Even so, they illustrate the number of academies contributing to the regional competition landscape.
More than the podium
Tournaments like the Vancouver Open play an important role in developing grappling beyond the professional circuit.
They give competitors opportunities to test their skills under pressure, expose technical weaknesses, gain match experience, and measure their progress against athletes from other academies.
For newer competitors, that experience can be a major step forward. For advanced athletes, it is an opportunity to sharpen competition strategy, manage difficult exchanges, and build a record of performance.
The value of a tournament is not limited to its champions. The people coaching from the corners, teammates supporting one another, referees managing matches, and organizers bringing the event together all contribute to the growth of the sport.
The next step: Put the athletes in the spotlight
The most important follow-up is identifying the competitors and performances that deserve a closer look.
The available match listings include completed adult advanced bouts, including women's -60 kg action involving Brandi Pearce of Hood Rich Jiu Jitsu and Rebecca Verlaan of Rossland Martial Arts. Those individual match records are useful leads for further coverage, but the final division podiums should be confirmed before naming champions.
Roll Club Media will continue to follow the athletes, academies, and stories that make up Canada's grappling community.
Because the sport does not grow through headline superfights alone. It grows every weekend in gyms, on competition mats, and in the communities that keep showing up.
Source note: Event date and venue are listed by ADCC. Registration and team-entry figures come from TrackBJJ. ADCC's official event page currently lists results as awaiting confirmation, so this article does not claim final champions or team rankings.
Academies: @onguardbjj @westcoast.jiujitsu @lionsmmavancity @10pvancouver @bravemma.fitness · Event: @adcccanada @adcc_official
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