[If you're looking for the No Gi Worlds 2009 results, click here. For future reference, this is where the IBJJF stores competition results. If you're looking for the 2010 No Gi Worlds, that went a pay-per-view route instead]
Update: If you missed the 2009 live stream, the whole thing has now been released on a six hour long two DVD set. It is all region, so there shouldn't be any problems watching it no matter where you live.
I had an article all ready to go for later this week, but after watching the No Gi Worlds live stream last night and this morning, I felt the need to put something out about that instead. It is potentially a historic moment in BJJ, but not because of the fights. While the action was exciting, with upsets, beautiful grappling technique and even high amplitude throws, it is the medium which may prove truly momentous.

You can't complain about free, but as one of the organisers of the No-Gi Worlds live stream warned might be the case, in an earlier Fightworks Podcast interview, there were a number of technical problems from the beginning (which here in the UK was 19:00).
The live coverage stuttered along for the first hour and a half, stopping and starting repeatedly. As you can see from my Twitter feed, I almost gave up at several points. However, I'm glad I decided to give it another try later, as the commentary had kicked in by 20:30. At 21:14, the Nogi live video went down again, but stabilised around 21:22, after which I didn't have any major problems (well, except for my laptop crashing, but I can't blame the No Gi Worlds for that). By the time of the finals at 22:06, the streaming issues appear to have been solved.
There was also a sidebar which didn't seem to serve any purpose. The whole night, it simply read "Upcoming Competitor 1 vs Upcoming Competitor 2". I presume the idea was that this would update as the event progressed, but clearly that needs more work for next time. It would be a handy feature if they could get it up and running.
By 21:39, I was watching my third female bout, a trend which continued into the finals. Another four had been streamed by midnight, including the excellent match featuring Sophia McDermott (they appear to have had trouble spelling her name), a methodical Rickson Gracie brown belt. Canadian blogger and black belt Sheila Bird was also competing, in what eventually became an exciting match with Hillary Williams.
I don't often bother watching competitions unless there is a good deal of commentary: for me, it doesn't just add to the viewing experience, it makes it worthwhile. Even two people stalling in guard becomes an intriguing battle of wills, if the commentators can provide relevant and interesting technical input (such as noting grips, pressures, angles etc). Getting background details on competitors is great too, fleshing out the athletic endeavours taking place on the screen.
A few hiccups occurred with that commentary, such as the awkward handover shortly after 10pm, which involved several minutes of dead air and paper shuffling. It then completely disappeared at around 00:30, after the finals, but presumably that was so Sean and Shawn could take a break, given that this was a live event.
Once the finals and ensuing discussion had finished, there was an extended period of bouts with no sound at all, from 02:17 until 02:55, after which the screen went black. I went to bed a bit after 3am, so not sure if and when the absolutes took place: something to look forward to when I wake up, I guess. ;p
I'm hopeful there will be other free streams, which I guess will depend on how much attention the advertisers receive as a result. All in all, this turned out well, so if the connection issues can be ironed out, perhaps this could be the future of BJJ broadcasting.
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I had to attend to my crying kids at midnight and when I came back to the PC the stream was blank so I don;t know the result of Josh Barnet and the other chap. Also, I assumed it was finished so I went to bed and missed the interviews and absolutes.
ReplyDeleteDarn time-differences.
Can we have it in London next time please?
Still, a fantastic thing, next time, assuming the techcology is glitch free, I would pay to see this.
Shame, you would have enjoyed those interviews. However, I imagine there will be a DVD out at some point, which will presumably have them as extras: normally about 10-15 minutes each.
ReplyDeleteI don't think they are going to make people pay in the future (at least judging by what the Budovideos guy said on the Fightworks Podcast), but doing it free first to work out the kinks makes a lot of sense.
That way, no angry customers demanding refunds (which was a big problem for the UFC in the early days, especially when UFC 4 cut out during the Severn-Royce final).
Wow, I didn't even know about it! Hopefully I'll hear about in time next go round. Sounds really cool, though.
ReplyDeleteWorth sticking the Fightworks Podcast RSS feed into your Google Reader, as Caleb tends to stay up to date with BJJ news and events.
ReplyDelete