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Alexander Backus

Alexander Backus teaches advanced fundamentals at BJJ Globetrotters camps, from pressure passing and escapes to half-guard sweeps.

Biography

Alexander Backus is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt and BJJ Globetrotters camp instructor who describes his teaching as advanced work on accessible fundamentals. In his August 2024 interview with the camp organizer, he gave Örebro, Sweden, as his base and said he had begun training in 2011. The profile also listed his profession as forensic psychiatric nursing. His first Globetrotters camp was the Spring Camp in Tallinn in 2022. Looking back in the interview, Backus chose it as his favorite: it introduced him to the community and gave him a setting in which to learn and enjoy training. By 2024, his camp travels had also taken him to Heidelberg and Austria. The open mats were a particular attraction. These practice sessions let him roll with people whose approaches differed from his own, learning from those differences while sharing his knowledge. His account of camps emphasized that exchange alongside the formal classes. When asked about his main jiu-jitsu achievements, he chose to talk about continuing to enjoy training rather than supplying a list of competition titles. As an instructor, Backus said he liked techniques that everyone could access, while taking the underlying fundamentals to an advanced level. His recorded class subjects cover both improving position and escaping control. The organizer's instructional archive lists an over-under pressure-passing class from Summer Camp 2023, on working past an opponent's legs. Classes from Winter and Spring Camp 2024 address escapes from mount and back control, two positions in which an opponent has established dominant control. His memories of the camps also extended beyond jiu-jitsu. Among his favorites was an improvised snowball fight at a winter camp, when an American friend brought snow so that his side could respond. The teaching archive follows his contribution beyond the 2024 interview. A class from Winter Camp 2026, published that May, focuses on half-guard sweeps: ways to move from underneath, with one of the opponent's legs controlled, into the top position.

Sources for this profile

  • BJJ Globetrotters, interview with Alexander Backus, August 21, 2024(opens in a new tab)

    • Alexander Backus is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt featured as a BJJ Globetrotters camp instructor.

      Where in the source: Article title and profile details, belt entry.

      Accessed:

    • In his 2024 instructor profile, Backus gave Örebro, Sweden, as his base and said he began jiu-jitsu in 2011.

      Where in the source: Profile details, city/country and training-start entries.

      Accessed:

    • His profession was listed as forensic psychiatric nursing.

      Where in the source: Profile details, profession entry.

      Accessed:

    • He had attended Globetrotters camps in Tallinn, Heidelberg and Austria by the time of the 2024 interview.

      Where in the source: Answer listing the camps he had attended.

      Accessed:

    • He singled out Tallinn’s 2022 Spring Camp as his favourite because it was his first camp and helped him connect with the community while learning and enjoying training.

      Where in the source: Favourite-camp answer.

      Accessed:

    • Backus described open mats as a particular highlight: rolling with people whose styles differed from his own let him learn and exchange knowledge.

      Where in the source: Favourite-moments answer, final paragraph.

      Accessed:

    • He said he liked teaching techniques accessible to everyone while developing those fundamentals to an advanced level.

      Where in the source: Answer about classes he most enjoys teaching.

      Accessed:

    • Asked about his main jiu-jitsu achievements, he emphasised continuing to enjoy training rather than listing competition titles.

      Where in the source: Main-achievements answer.

      Accessed:

    • One of his favourite camp memories was an improvised snowball fight at a winter camp, where an American friend brought snow so his side could respond.

      Where in the source: Favourite-moments answer, winter-camp story.

      Accessed:

  • BJJ Globetrotters, Alexander Backus instructional archive(opens in a new tab)

    • The organiser’s archive lists Backus teaching an over-under pressure-passing class at Summer Camp 2023 and escape classes from mount and back control at Winter and Spring Camp 2024.

      Where in the source: Archive entries for Summer Camp 2023, Winter Camp 2024 and Spring Camp 2024.

      Accessed:

    • The same archive includes a half-guard sweeping class by Backus from Winter Camp 2026, published in May 2026.

      Where in the source: First archive entry, Winter Camp 2026, May 3 publication.

      Accessed:

Lineage

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Open lineage