Rorion Gracie

Rorion Gracie was born on January 10, 1952 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to Helio Gracie and his wife. He has six brothers: Relson, Rickson, Royce, Royler, Rolker and Robin who are also trained in jiu-jitsu. He went to the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro and earned a degree in law.

The Brazilian American Jiu-Jitsu Grand Master, who currently lives with his wife Silvia in Southern California, has a total of ten kids including Rener and Ralek. Gracie has trained his children in the sport and wants them to continue the family tradition in the generations to come.

Rorion Gracie started learning Jiu-Jitsu at a very young age, under the guidance of his father, Hélio Gracie. In 1978, he began working as an extra in television and movies. Attempting to spread the Jiu-Jitsu culture, Gracie invited people to try the sport. He started teaching his father’s Jiu-Jitsu techniques in his garage. In the early 1980s, the martial artist was hired to choreograph the fight scenes in the movie ‘Lethal Weapon.’ Then in the late 1980s, Gracie produced the documentary ‘Gracie Jiu-Jitsu In Action’.

In 1993, four years after setting up the Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Academy in USA, he teamed up with business executive and promoter Art Davie and created Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Gracie employed seven of the world’s most reputable martial artists to join a single-elimination tournament. Soon after this, a group of high-ranking US military personnel contacted him and asked him to create a hand-to-hand combat course contingent on the most effective methods of Gracie jiu-jitsu. Gracie pondered upon this and created Gracie Survival Tactics (GST). This course is now taught in all the military organizations and major law enforcement agencies in the US.