The story of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in Macedonia

Did you know that our head instructor for Jiu Jitsu, Robert Naumoski, is actually the first Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt of Macedonian heritage in history?

After he received his black belt in 2010, he was contacted by martial arts students in Macedonia, and was called to Macedonia to conduct seminars and training camps for students there. With the exception of the two year hiatus due to Covid, he has made the trip to Macedonia every year to teach Jiu Jitsu. Over the years he has also trained the elite Macedonian law enforcement unit, the Alpha Police, and the Macedonian military Special Forces, the Macedonian Wolves (check out pics in the gallery below).

Today there are 5 Ultimate Jiu Jitsu clubs in Macedonia:

Skopje, head instructor Ivica Aleksovski
Ohrid, head instructor Dejan Choleski and Blagoja Trajcevski
Kavadarci, husband and wife head instructors Martin and Marija Dimitriovski
Kumanovo, head instructor Martin Stefanovski
Prilep, head instructors Pece Maksam and Katerina Atanasoska

They are fierce competitors and a strong team, organising martial arts events and competitions across Macedonia, and most recently coming third at the latest Abu-Dhabi Jiu Jitsu Pro on the world stage.

Macedonia was hit hard over the last two years due to its developing economy and restrictions. But if it’s one thing that the people here are well versed in, it’s the struggle and that fighting spirit. For them it’s just life and you fight every day to live it. Their resilience is both educational and inspirational, and perhaps a part of what makes them such strong martial artists.

The first 10 years of Jiu Jitsu in Macedonia from 2010 to 2020 were all about establishing a strong foundation, and promoting and educating our students in Macedonia. As it occurred all around the world, the pandemic played havoc with our momentum and dismantled a significant amount of our efforts from this first decade. Now, we’re determined to rebuild and take this art that we love to the next level in the next 10 years, and beyond.