Seven adult competitors from Straight Blast Gym traveled to the Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Pan American Championships in California recently.
The four-day event, held on the University of California campus at Irvine, welcomed over 2,500 competitors from around the world. Among those competing were local grapplers from Straight Blast Gym – Travis Hearn, Hunter Gomel, Micah Hearn, Zane Salyer, Devo Lewis, Simon Doyle, and Ryan Asay.
Travis Hearn, 15, competed in the Juvenile 1 Blue Belt division as a Light-Feather weight and came away with a silver medal.
Hunter Gomel, 17, competed at the Blue Belt level as a Feather weight. After winning his first match 18-0 against last year’s No-Gi Blue Belt World Champion, Gomel lost his second match on points.
Micah Hearn, 19, lost a competitive first match on points, competing in the Blue Belt Heavyweight division.
Zane Salyer, 18, lost his first match in the Male White Belt Heavyweight after a battle with the eventual gold medalist.
Devo Lewis won his first match and lost his second to a submission.
Simon Doyle, competing in the White Belt Heavy weight division, took the gold medal after four matches.
From the Straight Blast Gym headquarters in Portland, Oregon, coaches Rick Davison and Amanda Loewen took the stage in the Black Belt and Purple Belt Women’s divisions. Davison, who is brother to Montana Head Coach Travis Davison, ended a hard-fought match losing on two points. Loewen, who often trains in Kalispell at SBG’s Montana location, swept the division and took home a silver medal.
“It was a good week for our team. To bring 10 competitors to an IBJJF event and bring home one gold medal and three silvers is a testament to our training. Once again, we have put SBG on the world map of grappling,” said Travis Davison, owner and head coach of Straight Blast Gym of Montana.
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