Jiujitsu Gets Hold Of Five-O Star
Egan Inoue and Alex O’Loughlin. Chrissy Lambert photo
When Hawaii Five-O star Alex O’Loughlin moved to Hawaii, he met MMA champion Egan Inoue and quickly discovered a passion for jiujitsu. “BJJ (Brazil jiujitsu) is something I’ve wanted to learn for many years, and I’m glad I started in the hands of Egan,” notes O’Loughlin, who was introduced to Inoue by Scott Caan. “Over the last few years, I’ve had the chance to travel and roll with a number of different black belts, and through those experiences I’ve been able to see how great Egan’s jiujitsu game is.
“But, above and beyond that, what separates him from other teachers and makes him a master is his spiritual connection to the martial arts. Egan has an innate capacity to impart his life philosophies onto his students, as well as the art itself.”
Inoue, who is a black belt third-degree in jiujitsu, five-time MMA world champion and two-time Brazilian jiujitsu world champion, also offers Egan’s Fit Body Bootcamps in Manoa, Kailua, downtown Honolulu and Waipio. He also owns Grappling Unlimited and has relocated his Manoa studio to a larger space at 2700 S. King St.
Inoue is extremely proud of the new gym, called Egan’s Training Center, and especially thankful to O’Loughlin, who was responsible for the fundamental design, layout and materials.
“I also organized the construction team,” adds O’Loughlin. “In addition to that, over the last six months or so I’ve worked closely with my friend Steve Finch in updating the artwork for Grappling Unlimited, including a commission samurai piece that now hangs on the back wall.”
The new training center also has a hexagon cage and additional mat space, which O’Loughlin lists as his favorite things, along with a unique concrete bench they poured near the reception desk.
“I train as much as I can. If I could train every day, I would, and sometimes I do but usually a few times a week,” notes O’Loughlin, who is now a blue belt in jiujitsu. “The thing I love most about jiujitsu is that it forces me to be in the moment. I can’t think about the past or the future, only right now. The minute I leave the moment I am being put to sleep.”
The public is invited to a grand reopening Nov. 16 with free 20-minute boot-camp mini sessions at 9 a.m., a keiki bootcamp (ages 4 to 12) at 10 a.m., a bootcamp challenge at 11 a.m. and a jiujitsu seminar taught by Inoue at noon.
Also Nov. 17, Inoue and O’Loughlin team up for a women’s self-defense seminar at 1 and 3 p.m. Cost is $300, and all proceeds will be donated to Kapiolani hospital. Only 40 spots are available per seminar. For more information, call 271-3779 or register online at eganstrainingcenter.com.
