04/26/2026
I just want to take the time to say how freaking absolutely incredibly proud I am of this girl right here Nicole. She is one of my OG students from when I first opened my doors and over the years I've had the pleasure of watching her confidence grow. I know how much work she put into every competition she entered only to fall short because of massive anxiety and not having the confidence in herself. She would blank out during the matches not even hearing us coaching her, not even knowing what happened......but today, at the Denver open 2026....this was a different person stepping on the mat....she won her first match just constantly attacking and shutting down her opponent..and got the nod for the win...seeing her hand raised honestly made me realize how dusty it was in the auditorium cause my eyes were a little watery for some reason😉. Then in her 2nd match, it came down to a very close decision for the Gold.....but it didn't go her way...but reality, her opponent was shocked that she herself won the decision. All of us felt like Nicole should have won that Gold due to constant attacks and denying her opponent of any attempt of a guard pass.....but that's ok. This is about personal growth, and this was a different Nicole, she was looking at us in her corner for instruction and had a smile on her face during both matches having fun out there. She was in the moment and in control the whole way.....this was 8yrs of HARD work, becoming more and more technically proficient, but most importantly starting to believe in herself as much as we all have at Renzo Gracie Colorado. She's a great personality at the gym and we all have nothing but love you. I am super proud of you and with the help of some new really good training partners for her at the Academy, we'll be getting you on that First place spot on the podium soon enough💪
