How a small town gas station manager became a jiu-jiutsu world champ
CBC
Ahmad Kabalan manages a gas station in the hamlet of Lac La Biche, Alta., population 2,316, according to the 2016 Census.
He is also a jiu-jitsu world champion.
Kabalan, 41, won gold in black belt at the 2021 World Master Jiu-Jitsu Championship on Nov. 12 in Las Vegas, a feat he found emotionally overwhelming.
"It was a special moment," he told CBC's Edmonton AM on Wednesday. "I only cried twice in my life. It was at that time and when my kid was born."
His win comes after years of training, being displaced by a wildfire and powering through long commutes to pursue a passionate endeavour.
Twenty years ago, Kabalan lived in Fort McMurray where he practised karate, occasionally competing at international tournaments.
But the older he got, the harder it became to keep up with the younger competitors. "They don't match you up with the same age groups," he said.
So a decade ago, he decided to try something new. He had heard the buzz around jiu-jitsu and decided to try it out.
"I just loved it," Kabalan recalled. "It was just addictive."
He learned competitions in jiu-jitsu were held by age groups which solidified his intention to pursue the martial art.
In 2016, a wildfire swept into Fort McMurray, forcing the entire municipality to evacuate.
Kabalan ended up splitting his time between Lac La Biche and Edmonton. He started to test out different gyms to continue jiu-jitsu, when he met Pedro Lott, a Brazilian jiu-jitsu coach at Frontline Academy Canada in Sherwood Park, Alta.
Kabalan liked the atmosphere at the academy. "They just made me feel like at home," he said.
"You like him in the first smile," Lott said. "He is just a nice guy."
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