The IBJJF Chicago Summer Open 2024 took place on August 10th and 11th, 2024 and there were quite a few talented grapplers who made an appearance. The gi divisions took place on the first day and it was Gregor Gracie Jiu-Jitsu black belt Arthan Bandeira who ended up taking home the biggest haul of silverware in the men’s divisions. Not only did Bandeira win the heavyweight division but he also stood on top of the podium in the absolute. He had to beat some tough opposition in order to win the absolute too, as both Alexandre Manara and Ademir Barreto stood in the bronze medal spots.
Manara was actually the ultra-heavyweight gold medalist and Barreto had won the lightweight division earlier in the day. Barreto returned on the second day to win the no gi version of his weight class, and he beat Emilio Hernandez in the final in order to do so. Barreto had a very busy weekend indeed, as he also made it all the way to the final of the no gi absolute division. He left with a silver medal there in the end, with David Garmo winning the bracket after he was given a default gold medal at heavyweight.
With two gold medals, one silver, and one bronze, Barreto had the most consistently successful weekend out of all the male black belts. The women’s divisions at the IBJJF Chicago Summer Open 2024 also had some top competitors, particularly in the gi where Maria Luiza won both the lightweight and absolute divisions. Joanna Trindade took default silver behind Luiza at lightweight but she returned on the second day to redeem herself by winning gold in the no gi version of that bracket. Trindade even had to beat top Art of Jiu-Jitsu competitor Dorothy Dao in order to win that division, and she took home a default gold in the no gi absolute shortly afterward.
