It is not uncommon for teams to lose members or have a split; however when one of the top coaches and leaders depart from the largest association it is big news. Such is the case for Jose “Ze Radiola” Olimpio, who recently announced the split with Gracie Barra. “Radiola” has been in charge of Gracie Barra competition team for the last few years and has been at least in part responsible for their recent resurgence, he announced in his facebook page via video that he is leaving the Gracie Barra team that, as he puts it “has defended for over 20 years” to form his own team “Ze Radiola Team”. The reasons for the split are not yet disclosed by Radiola promised a full announcement in the near future.
While that alone is newsworthy it is also important to point out that he takes with him over 120 affiliated academies from the Gracie Barra Association. “Radiola” is also the coaches for top competitors and World Champions like Braulio and Vitor Estima and Otavio Souza, who have yet to manifest if they are following their instructor or remain with Barra
