2009 SOUTHWEST GRAPPLING CHAMPIONSHIP The North American Grappling Association (NAGA) is America's largest mixed grappling tournament circuit with over 100,000 competitors worldwide!  On Saturday, December 19, 2009 NAGA returns to Texas for our annual Southwest Grappling Championship No-Gi & Gi tournament. Come as an individual or as a team to compete.  You do not have to live in Texas or be on a team to participate in this event!  This event is nationally RANKED. DOWNLOAD EVENT FLYER/REGISTRATION FORM Pre-registration for the Southwest Grappling Championship is now closed. You can still register/weigh-in on Friday (12/18) from 5-8PM, or on Saturday beginning at 8AM. $80 - 1 Division, $100 - 2 Divisions, $15 - Spectator Pass. Just to clarify what will be awarded for the 12/19/09 NAGA Southwest Championship: - Championship Belts to ALL Expert division winners - Gold Medals to all Adult, Kids & Teens Non-Expert division winners - Silver medals to ALL 2nd place finishers, bronze medals to ALL 3rd place finishers. - Samurai swords are NOT being awarded.

WHY COMPETE IN DECEMBER?   
Like you, the NAGA staff loves to compete!  We know that during the Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday season many competitors take time off from training.  The NAGA Southwest Championship is a great reason to continue training through the holidays.  Enjoy the great food and festivities the holidays bring, but keep training to prepare for and compete in the Southwest Championship.  This will be a huge event as it is the last NAGA event of the year and an opportunity to acquire those final Ranked points.  Get to class, train hard, and do not miss this tournament!

100 NEW AND IMPROVED CHAMPIONSHIP BELTS
100 Expert division winners take home championship belts. New for this event, Men’s Purple Belt division winners also take home championship belts!

FREE NAGA BEACH TOWELS AND FLIP FLOPS   
Anyone who pre-registers online or by mail (by the pre-registration close date) will receive a FREE $25 NAGA Beach Towel.  NAGA will also be handing out NAGA Flip Flops to all children, women, and men competitors FREE. If we run out of your size flip flop, we’ll have an equally nice gift for you.

INDIVIDUAL AND TEAM AWARDS
Over 1,000 gold, silver and bronze medals will be awarded to all 1^st through 3^rd place winners.  All 6 of our top teams (Adult Gi, No-Gi, and Children 17 yrs. & under) will receive an awesome custom made championship cup for their academy.  Don’t miss this opportunity to showcase your academies talent.  All children that do not place (1st through 3rd) will receive a medal just for having the courage to compete!

WEIGH-INS AND REGISTRATION OPTIONS
Competitors will have the option to weigh-in/register on Friday evening from 5PM to 8PM, or weigh-in/register on Saturday any time before you compete.  You are not required to weigh-in on Friday, but the option is available to you.

NATIONALLY RANKED EVENT 
All NAGA events are part of the nationwide ranking system entitled RANKED. Our goal is to determine who the best grapplers in the country are for various age, gender, and skill levels.  The Southwest Grappling Championship will be nationally ranked so do not miss your opportunity to gain points towards a true national title. More details can be found at www.nationallyranked.com.

SANDBAGGERS BEWARE
NAGA works diligently to prevent "sandbagging", or the practice of fighting down skill levels to ensure one takes home an award.  NAGA has been working with RANKED to track all fighters and ranked grappling events to produce true "national standings."  A by-product of these standings is our knowledge of who has competed and at which level.  Front door personnel will use RANKED data to determine whether or not individuals who have fought in past events belong in a higher skill level (i.e. placed 1st at a prior NAGA event).