PERHAPS A GIFT VOUCHER FOR MUM?: MOTHER'S DAY
Rener Gracie was born into the family that founded Brazilian jiu-jitsu and the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship). His jiu-jitsu journey began before he took his first steps, and he earned his black belt at nineteen. In 2009, with the help of his brother, Ryron Gracie, he broke the mould of traditional martial arts instructor by creating the first interactive online learning centre for Brazilian jiu-jitsu, which today boasts over 350,000 students in 196 countries. Headquartered in Southern California, his jiu-jitsu company, Gracie University, has over 200 certified training centres worldwide. Perhaps his most remarkable achievement to date was the distillation of the complex art of Brazilian jiu-jitsu down to its core 32 principles, which may also be applied to achieve personal and professional success in one's life. He is founder and CEO of several multimillion dollar companies and has invented several products including Quikflip Apparel, the sweatshirt that converts into a backpack, and the Sleeper Hold, the world's best travel pillow. He has already appeared on ABC's Shark Tank once and plans on appearing a second time in the near future. Paul Volponi is the award-winning author of sixteen books including Phyllis George- Shattering the Ceiling (a nonfiction biography), and the novels The Final Four (on the NYC Chancellor's reading list NYC Reads 365), Top Prospect (part of Scholastic's nationwide book club) and Black and White (winner of the international Reading Association's Children's Book Award). Paul is the recipient of a dozen American Library Association honours.
