Mark Zuckerberg wins gold and silver medals in his first jiu-jitsu competitors

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg bagged gold and silver medals this weekend at his first jiu-jitsu match.

A collection of six images, posted to Facebook and Instagram, reveals the Meta founder grappling with two completely different opponents on the Brazilian jiu-jitsu competitors, which was held Saturday at Woodside Excessive College in Woodside, California, simply north of Silicon Valley. Different photos present a referee declaring Zuckerberg victorious after the 2 matches. 

“Competed in my first jiu jitsu match and received some medals for the Guerrilla Jiu Jitsu workforce,” Zuckerberg wrote beneath the images, which racked up greater than 400,000 likes on Instagram and 300,000 likes on Fb. “Because of Dave Camarillo, Khai Wu, and James Terry for coaching me!” reads one caption.

The put up encompasses a photograph of the CEO posing alongside members of the Gorilla Jiu Jitsu workforce, at a Bay Space-gym the place he competed. The final picture reveals a pensive Zuckerberg approaching a health club mat. 

Zuckerberg started finding out blended martial arts throughout the coronavirus pandemic and rapidly turned enamored with the sport, he instructed in an August interview with podcast host Joe Rogan, himself a famous practitioner and fan of the game. The game’s “primal” nature has helped Zuckerberg increase his vitality stage as he tackles challenges at work, he instructed Rogan.

“MMA is the proper factor,” Zuckerberg stated on the podcast. “After an hour or two of understanding, or rolling or wrestling with pals, or coaching with completely different people, it is like now I am able to go remedy no matter drawback at work for the day.”

Zuckerberg trains with Dave Camarillo of Gorilla Jiu Jitsu, who has taught a number of UFC champions. Since starting his jiu-jitsu journey, Zuckerberg has satisfied a number of of his pals to start out hitting the health club as nicely, he instructed Rogan. 

From the C-suite to the mat 

Zuckerberg is not the one tech tycoon who has been hitting the health club. 

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, 51, additionally trains in jiu-jitsu at a California health club he said on Rogan’s present in 2021. PayPal CEO Dan Schulman has a well-documented affinity for krav maga, an Israeli self-defense apply that the 65-year-old has credited with instructing him methods to choose his battles and preserve advancing towards his targets. Palantir CEO Alex Karp, 55, has practiced each jiu-jitsu and aikido — a Japanese artwork of self-defense, Fortune reported. 

Martial arts and different sports activities may supply much-needed stress aid for tech CEOs, particularly given the trade’s current hunch. Tech firms have been battered by waves of layoffs as they report weaker earnings. 

Meta’s web earnings fell 24% to $5.71 billion throughout the first quarter of 2023. Final week, the social media firm additionally revealed it could shed an extra 1,500 jobs within the Bay Space as a part of its plan to scale back its employee headcount by 21,000, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.