When news broke last month that Anthony Bourdain, the celebrated chef, travel show host and storyteller, had died, few were affected as much as the members of the Renzo Gracie Academy in New York City.
Bourdain, a blue belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, picked up the sport only a few years ago at the urging of his wife, Ottavia — a brown belt herself. Bourdain immediately got hooked and began training every day whenever he wasn’t traveling. In 2016, Bourdain earned first place in the Blue Belt Masters 5 Middleweight Division at the IBJJF New York Spring International Open Championship.
Gracie, a sixth-degree Brazilian jiu-jisu black belt and mixed martial arts legend, helped coach Bourdain over that time. Speaking on Monday’s edition of “Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show,” he described what it was like hearing last month’s news.
“A great soul, unbelievable guy. I was surprised,” Gracie said. “We were with him the whole week. He came three or four times that week right before he traveled to Paris. He was training. He seemed just a little down — he was quiet. He was a quiet guy.”
Gracie said Bourdain’s passion for the sport is what made him excel at a faster rate than most students.
“During one vacation, one year, the whole summer in the Hamptons, he would fly by helicopter — there’s a helipad just down the street — land there, walk to the academy, train and then take the helicopter back home. He did that two or three times a week, during the whole summer.
“He was a great jiu-jitsu guy, loved jiu-jitsu. He studied and trained. It was a shocking surprise. I heard a lot of different versions. It’s sad. We’re going to miss him a lot.”