Photos by Romadesignz Experimental Expressions
This week in the Hotseat, we got something different for you – a Double Hotseat with newcomer to the island, Bruno Rocha, and well-known Jiu Jitsu teacher and DJ, Melissa Bardfield. Learn all about these two as they embark on the opening of SXM BJJ's new location.
Q: Where are you from?
Bruno: I was born in Rio de Janeiro in 1983. I moved to the south of the country when I was 12, to a state called Santa Catarina where I started to practice Jiu Jitsu.
Melissa: I was born in Boston but I grew up here in St Maarten.
Q: What do you do career-wise?
Bruno: I am a Jiu Jitsu professor and I have a physiotherapy degree. I don't work directly with it anymore, but I apply all my knowledge daily on the mats with my students.
Melissa: A little of everything!
Q: What are some of the highlights of your career?
Bruno: What I consider more important in my career aren't my medals or the goals I accomplished, but the people I have met along the way in those 11 years of practice and teaching. I have made really good friends on this path.
Melissa: I think the accomplishment I am most proud of was many years ago: I pulled up a friend who had a shallow water blackout while we were free-diving. I was in the right place at the right time to make a difference.
Q: What are some of your hobbies?
Bruno: Sports, reading and staying with family.
Melissa: Stand-up paddle-boarding, free-diving, shooting guns (I have my LTC in Boston and I'm a lifetime member of the NRA), ginastica natural (a style of yoga and ground movements specifically for grapplers). I used to love snowboarding, wakeboarding, hiking and competing in triathlons, but had to stop because of a bad ankle injury. I'm having surgery this month so hopefully next year I can hike up St. Maarten's beautiful mountain trails again.
Q: Describe yourself in three words!
Bruno: Focus; focus; focus.
Melissa: Determined; independent; nature-loving.
Q: Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
Bruno: I see myself doing the same things I do now, just with more wisdom.
Melissa: Married with children.
Q: If you were to invite three famous people (living or dead) for dinner, who would they be and why?
Bruno: If I had to pick three people to dinner with me, I would make this occasion a special event inviting some interesting names such as Aristotle, Thomas Edison and Steve Jobs. While I was thinking about it, these were the first names that came to my mind. It seems a strange combination of different characters in different epochs, but I have a reason for this utopian dinner. Our society is going through a difficult time with a total inversion of values and principles; and I think that, given the difficulties, we have to go back to basics and study to find success (that's how I run my life inside and outside the mats). So, I'll invite Aristotle, the great Greek philosopher, who knows how a society based on character and principles should work; Thomas Edison, the greatest inventor of all time, who, on hearing the words of Aristotle, will come up with an idea to invent something that would redefine what we know as a society – a kind of machine of the principles; and Steve Jobs, a creative businessman, would invent the iPrinciple and sell it.
Melissa: Comedienne Chelsea Handler, because she'd be the life of the party; Captain Paul Watson, Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, because I admire his determination and results; my paternal grandfather, because he passed away in England when I was three months old and I never got to meet him!
Q: What would you like to tell people in SXM about BJJ?
Bruno: I always use Jiu Jitsu as a tool to improve people's life and will keep that in mind when training on the island. I will be showing the Jiu-Jitsu that I know, knowing people, making new friends, exploring the beautiful island of St Maarten and working on my tan as well. Jiu-Jitsu for me is about all this. It's not only about getting tough and winning tournaments; Jiu-Jitsu for me is a lifestyle.
Melissa: For people who practise, Jiu Jitsu becomes a lifestyle. It keeps you sharp mentally, and is a constant challenge and great work-out. It develops a functional fitness and awareness of your own strengths and weaknesses.
Jiu Jitsu classes take place at Caribbean Cinemas Megaplex 69 Welfare Road, Cole Bay. (Enter via the staircase outside of Paradise Plaza Casino). Adult classes are on Mondays from 6:00 to 7:30pm; Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6:30 to 8:00pm; and Saturdays from 10:00 to 11:00am. Children's classes are Tuesdays and Thursdays 4:00-4:40pm for ages four-six; 4:45-5:30pm for ages seven-nine; 5:30-6:30pm for ages 10-13. Wednesdays from 5:00 to 6:00pm is women's self-defence and Ginastica Natural. For more information, please call (599) 580-3894 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it