News

Three more competitors added to Polaris 23 grand prix

Polaris 27

Another three competitors have been added to the women’s under 66kg grand prix at Polaris 23, and two of them are veterans of ADCC 2022.

Julia Maele won the European trials to earn her place in the under 60kg division at ADCC 2022 and she had a tough draw in the opening round and lost to the returning champion from 2019, Bianca Basilio. Maele is the reigning IBJJF European champion at middleweight and one of the best grapplers to ever come from Norway. Joining her is top Canadian competitor Brianna Ste-Marie, the silver medallist from that same division at ADCC 2022. Ste-Marie has made waves over the last few years, winning both North American ADCC trials to get the world championships in the first place, before she reached the podium in 2022.

The seventh woman to be added to the grand prix at Polaris 23 is one of Tom DeBlass’ top students, Jaidyn Mueller. She’s ranked in the top ten in her weightclass and is an IBJJF no gi world champion, having already beaten some of the best female grapplers on the planet. The final spot in the grand prix will go to the winner of Polaris Contenders on February 4th, 2023. That tournament will feature thirty-two of Europe’s top young competitors and the eventual winner will have to defeat five of them in one day in order to earn her place at Polaris 23.