Today we’d like to introduce you to Randy & Ryan McElwee
Hi Randy & Ryan, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
GRACIE JIU-JITSU ATHENS
Our mission is to unleash greatness in everyone through authentic Gracie Jiu Jitsu!
Our goal is to inspire your evolution into being everything that you can be. Unleashing Your Greatness is about your journey to accessing your potential as a human being.
Gracie Jiu Jitsu Athens at American Black Belt Academy was forged from combat necessity and founded on family unity. Our long and rich history has its roots firmly connected to the Gracie family and the tradition of effective self-defense that is synonymous with it.
In 2005, American Black Belt Academy was established in Athens, Georgia.
Our founder and director, Randy McElwee, has been training with members of the world-famous martial arts first family, the Gracies, since 1998. While in the Army Special Forces, he began his journey in Gracie Jiu Jitsu with Grand Master Helio’s sons, UFC Champion Royce Gracie, and UFC Creator Grand Master Rorion Gracie as his first instructors. He earned his blue belt from Royce Gracie in 2001 and had begun teaching the art of Gracie Jiu Jitsu for his team and others in the 5TH Special Forces Group.
After the unit’s highly successful service in Afghanistan in immediate response to the attacks of 9/11, McElwee received his choice of assignments and came to serve as the senior Instructor at the University of Georgia Military Science Department. He began teaching military combatives at UGA, martial arts in this area and has been sharing Gracie Jiu Jitsu in Athens since 2002.
As a multi-system Black Belt, he continued his training to advance in Authentic Gracie Jiu Jitsu by driving 2 hours each way one to two times per week for 9 years to train in Roswell, Georgia. He earned his Gracie Jiu Jitsu black belt in 2018 from Master Pedro Sauer. His passion for teaching good people great Jiu Jitsu has been demonstrated across the nation and abroad in his seminars and lessons on self-defense, as well as training various law enforcement and military personnel through the years.
Randy opened American Black Belt Academy to be home with his young son, Ryan, and to remain in the Athens area. Through the years, Ryan has grown up at the academy, training in karate and jiu-jitsu since age 4. During this time, he has had the privilege of learning from many members of the Gracie family, including GM Rorion Gracie, Royce Gracie, Ryron & Rener Gracie, Ralek Gracie, as well as many renowned individuals connected to the family throughout Jiu Jitsu.
To further enhance his journey in the martial arts as an instructor, Ryan has attended the highest level instructor certification courses available in the industry, presented by the most notable instructors throughout the martial arts. This unparalleled developmental education has made Ryan uniquely qualified to assume the responsibilities as the general manager and chief instructor at Gracie Jiu Jitsu Athens.
together they are forging a family legacy of sharing self development through self defense training.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I feel like no road to success is smoothly paved especially for an entrepreneurial journey and ours was no exception. After over 20 years serving in Army Special Forces as a government employee learning to run a business was a big change. Initially I began trying to be a businessman and I was struggling to adjust, pretending to be something that I wasn’t. Not long after I realized that I was a soldier on a mission to run a business and help change peoples lives. Once I realigned my perspective things began to fall into place and that led to the development of an additional business teaching the application of the military principles I had learned as a “Green Beret” to other business owners and entrepreneurs. I founded my “Going Command Success Coaching” program and that has allowed me to help many others achieve their personal and business goals. Some of our best accomplishments come from the transformation we achieve by overcoming our challenges.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m an Entrepreneur and consistently enjoy learning about business and how I can help people reach their goals.
As a Business Entrepreneur I’ve been involved in various capacities since 2005, including owning and operating a Company in the Athens, GA area while starting, running and performing major consulting roles for additional nationally and internationally recognized businesses. My activities as an Entrepreneur include serving as a member of the Board of Directors for the Pedro Sauer Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Association, heading up the Sauer Tactical Advisory Group (STAG), serving as an Assistant Director for KEYSI-USA, Director and founding member for the Special Operations Combative Arts Association, Operations & Training Director for Reality Urban Combatives, and Consultant / Motivational Presenter of the GOING COMMANDO Professional and Personal Success Program. I enjoy applying my leadership experience, business acumen, and 30+ years of training management / program development to help other business owners to take their business to the next level.
Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
Growing up I was an extremely shy and introverted kid throughout my childhood and through High School. It wasn’t until my service in the Army forced me to acquire the ability and comfort to interact with people more effectively especially to stand in front of crowds and present training. These requirements continued to increase with more responsibility to interface with individuals at greater and greater levels culminating with the requirement to interact with various high level officials like commanding generals, US Ambassadors, and even the Secretary of State. My time in the US Army Special Forces dramatically evolved me from a shy country kid from small town West Virginia into an international entrepreneur that thrives on helping others come out of their shell to achieve their goals.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://athensjiujitsu.com & https://www.martialartssuccessinstitute.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/graciejiujitsuathens
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/athensjiujitsu
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/americanblackbelt
- Other: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5EEVqrytUCI
Image Credits
All photos provided by Martial Arts Success Institute
