Agenor Moreira Sampaio: Difference between revisions

|image = Mestre_Sinhozinho.jpg

|birth_place = [[Santos, SaoSão Paulo|Santos]], Brazil

|death_date = {{death year and age|1962|1891}}

|years_active = 1930–601930–1962 (3032 years of teaching)

|occupation = Teacher of [[capoeira]], [[physical education]] teacher, educator

'''Agenor Moreira Sampaio''' ([[Santos, Brazil]]commonly 1891-1962),known most commonly namedas '''Mestre Sinhozinho''' (1891–1962), was a ''mestre'' or master practitioner of the [[Afro-Brazilians|Afro-Brazilian]] [[martial art]] of [[capoeira]]. He was the main exponent of the fighting-oriented style known as ''[[capoeira carioca]]''.<ref name=Lace>{{cite book|author=André Luiz Lacé Lopes|title=A capoeiragem no Rio de Janeiro, primeiro ensaio : Sinhozinho e Rudolf Hermanny|url=|date=2015|publisher=Editorial Europa|isbn=978-85-900795-2-1|page=|language=}}</ref>

Sampaio was born in 1891 in [[Santos, São Paulo|Santos]], Brazil. Some sources name his second surname as Ferreira, but the rest of his life is well documented.<ref name=Journal>[https://ejmas.com/jcs/jcsart_rodrigues_0800.htm Many Things at Once: An Introduction to Capoeira]</ref> He was one of the eight children of [[Brazilian military]] officer and politician José Moreira, who descended from [[Francisco Manoel da Silva]].<ref name=roh>[http://rohermanny.tripod.com/ Sinhozinho e Capoeira Carioca]</ref> An avid athlete, Agenor trained formally in [[boxing]], [[savate]], [[Greco-Roman wrestling]] and [[arm wrestling]] since his childhood,<ref>[https://www.efdeportes.com/efd158/o-chausson-savate-influenciou-a-capoeira.htm Crônica da capoeira (GEM). O ‘Chausson/Savate’ influenciou a capoeira?]</ref> and also learned capoeira in the docks of Santos.<ref name=Mat/> However, when his family moved to [[Rio de Janeiro]] in 1908, he switched the local style of ''capoeira carioca'', an aggressive, violent variation strongly associated to [[Brazilian police|policemen]] and [[gangsters]] alike. Moreira eventually became a master of the art, receiving the name of Mestre Sinhozinho (''Sinhozinho'' meaning "Little Mister").<ref name=Taylor>{{cite booksfnp|author=Gerard Taylor|title=Capoeira|url=|date=2007|publisher=Blue Snake Books|isbn=978-15-839418-3-6|page=|languagep=93}}</ref>

Like his contemporaneous [[Mestre Bimba]], Sinhozinho opened a school in 1930 to teach capoeira carioca to wealthy middle class citizens.<ref name{{sfnp|Taylor|2007|p=Lace/>93}}{{sfnp|Lacé Lopes|2015}} However, his carioca school was not based on a single terrainplace, as Sinhozinho taught in several sport clubs and terrains borrowed from his benefactors, usually around the rich neighborhood of [[Ipanema beach]].<ref{{sfnp|Taylor|2007|p=93}}{{sfnp|Lacé nameLopes|2015|p=Mat/>112}} Also, unlike most capoeira mestres, Sinhozinho favored combat effectivityeffectiveness over artistic expression, ditching entirely the art's music and rituals and mixedmixing it liberally with wrestling and other fighting styles.<ref{{sfnp|Capoeira|2012|p=206}}{{sfnp|Röhrig Assunção|2005|p=131}}{{sfnp|Lacé nameLopes|2015|p=Nestor/>124}} It has been proposed Mestre Bimba decided to emphasize the most traditional aspects of capoeira as an answer to pragmatic, combative variations like those taught by Sinhozinho and [[Anibal Burlamaqui|Anibal "Zuma" Burlamaqui]].<ref{{sfnp|Röhrig nameAssunção|2005|p=Mat/>131}} Nevertheless, he is credited with having maintaineddeveloping the practice of capoeira in Rio de Janeiro.<ref{{sfnp|Lacé name=Mat/><refLopes|2015}}{{sfnp|Röhrig nameAssunção|2005|p=Lace/>131}} He was also a hand-to-hand instructor of the Polícia Especial created by [[President of Brazil]] [[Getúlio Vargas]].<ref{{sfnp|Lacé nameLopes|2015|p=Lace/>114}}

Moreira approached capoeira in a scientific way, tailoring his training methods individually for every apprentice.<ref name=Journal/> He would even build his own training gear and tools to drill the art's movements,<ref name=Mat>{{cite booksfnp|author=Matthias Röhrig Assunção|title=Capoeira: A History of an Afro-Brazilian Martial Art2005|urlp=131}}{{sfnp|date=2005|publisher=PsychologyLacé PressLopes|isbn=978-07-146503-1-92015|page=|languagep=110}}</ref> and subjected his students to heavy [[weight training]].<ref name=roh/> He modified the traditional ''ginga'', making it more similar to boxing [[Footwork (martial arts)|footwork]],<ref name=Nestor>{{cite booksfnp|author=Nestor Capoeira|title=Capoeira: Roots of the Dance-Fight-Game|url=|date=2012|publisher=North Atlantic Books|isbn=978-15-839463-7-4|page=|languagep=206}}</ref> and also introduced techniques from wrestling and judo, possiblyespecially through his partnership with judo teacher Augusto Cordeiro.<ref{{sfnp|Lacé name=Lace/>Lopes|2015}} Sinhozinho also cultivated the [[Psychology|psychological]] aspect of [[self-defense]], instructing his students to laugh at their aggressorsattackers before fighting in order to infuriateconfuse them and dissipate their own fear.<ref{{sfnp|Lacé nameLopes|2015|p=Lace/>114}} Finally, capoeira carioca also taught the use of weapons like the ''sardinha'' or ''santo christo'' (razors[[razor]]s) and the ''petropolis'' (canes[[Cane or(walking sticksstick)|cane]]s, sometimes [[Cane sword|tricked]]),{{sfnp|Lacé Lopes|2015}} and among itsthe few traditions it preserved there might be an ancient combat game similar to [[Batuque (game)|batuque]] named ''roda de pernada'', where capoeristascapoeiristas would exchange leg blows.<ref name={{sfnp|Taylor/>|2007|p=93}}

Sinhozinho was known himself as an excellent athlete and fighter. Aside from his mentioned challenge with João Baldi, he was reportedly unbeaten in arm wrestling, and he often showed his trainees how to lift heavy weights by doing it himself even at his avancedadvanced age. There's also an anecdote about how, upon witnessing a [[donkey]] being run over and left agonizing on Arpoador street, Moreira put the animal out of his misery with a single move.<ref{{sfnp|Lacé nameLopes|2015|p=Lace/>114}} However, as he never created a standardized way of teaching, his fighting style died with his own passing in 1960.{{sfnp|Taylor|2007|p=93}} Sinhozinho ended up being more influential as a [[physical education]] teacher whose training methods benefitted many Brazilian athletes benefitted of.<ref, name=Mat/> Among the students of his method there werelike future [[judo]] champion Rudolf de Otero Hermanny, wrestlers Reinaldo Lima and Paulo Paiva, athletes [[Paulo Amaral]] and Paulo Azeredo, musician [[Antonio Carlos Jobim]] and future Olympic CommitteCommittee president Silvio[[Sylvio de Magalhães Padilha]].<ref name=Journal/>{{sfnp|Lacé Lopes|2015|p=112}}{{sfnp|Lacé Lopes|2015|p=127}}

In February 1949, Sinhozinho launched a challenge to the rival ''[[capoeira regional]]'' school led by [[Mestre Bimba]], who was touring [[SaoSão Paulo]].<ref name=Lace/> Bimba and his students had been forced to work only exhibition matches and were eager for real fighting (''pra valer''), so they quickly accepted to travel to [[Rio de Janeiro]] to answer the challenge. A two-day fighting event was hosted by the Federação Metropolitana de Pugilismo in the Estádio Carioca, including also a team aof [[catch wrestling|catch wrestlers]] who had similarly challenged the regionalRegional academy.<ref{{sfnp|Lacé nameLopes|2015|p=Lace/>172}}

Two bouts were fought between the two capoeira schools. In the first match on April 2, Sinhozinho's apprentice Luiz "Cirandinha" Pereira Aguiar fought Bimba's student Jurandir (also a practitioner of [[judo]]), knocking him out in the first round with a body kick. Jurandir claimed it to be a [[low blow (combat sports)|low blow]], but as witnesses and the ring doctor stated otherwise, the result was kept.<ref{{sfnp|Lacé nameLopes|2015|p=Lace/>198}} In the second on April 7, 17 years -year-old cariocaCarioca fighter Rudolf Hermanny defeated regionalRegional student Fernando Rodrigues Perez out in two minutes, dominating the bout and eventually injuring Perez's arm with a kick.<ref{{sfnp|Lacé Lopes|2015|p=184-185}}{{sfnp|Lacé nameLopes|2015|p=Lace/>201}} It's said Bimba was so impressed that he learned some movements he saw in the fight to absorbassimilate them into his own style.<ref name=Journal/>

In 1953, under Sinhozinho's management, Hermanny defeated fellow capoerista and popular [[vale tudo]] exponent Artur Emídio.<ref name=Journal/> Sinhozinho next challenged the [[Gracie family]], inviting them to send two of their [[Brazilian jiu-jitsu]] representatives to a [[vale tudo]] charity event in the Vasco deda Gama stadium on March 17. His own carioca fighters would be again Hermanny and Cirandinha, coached by his usual judo consultant Augusto Cordeiro, while the Gracies sent Guanair GialVial Gomes and [[Carlson Gracie]].<ref name=Journal/>

The first match pitted Hermanny against the [[Keikogi|gi]]-clad Gomes, who was significantly heavier and had a wrestling background. The Gracie fighter dominated the first minutes, taking dominant position on the ground and executing [[ground and pound]], but Hermanny escaped to his feet. However,After when Gomes removedremoving his gi jacket, andGomes took him down again, but the cariocaCarioca now started defending actively from his [[Guard (grappling)|guard]] with punches, heel kicks[[knifehand tostrike]]s theand baclheel and ''[[Tegatana|cuteladas]]''kicks to the neckback, capitalizing on his superior conditoningconditioning to wear Gomes down.<ref{{sfnp|Lacé name=Lace/>Lopes|2015}} After one hour and 10 minutes, with Gomes heavily battered and fatigueda fresher Hermanny looking to finish him off on the feet, histhe former's cornerman [[Carlos Gracie]] called for the match to be stopped and ruled a draw. Although Hermanny and the crowd wanted to continue to a finish, the judges eventually concededacquiesced to Gracie's demands. The audience loudly chanted for Hermanny through and after the affair.<ref{{sfnp|Lacé nameLopes|2015|p=Lace/>220-221}}

The second bout had Cirandinha fight Carlson Gracie, featuring almost the opposite narrative. Dominating the early moments, the stronger Cirandinha punished Carlson standing with a variety of strikes and kicks, followed by a hard [[Throw (grappling)|hip throw]] and a heavy [[Hook (boxing)|hook]] that almost finished Gracie. However, Carlson managed to survive the beating, and gradually took over the fight with [[Hit-and-run tactics|hit-and-run]] strikes over aCirandinha, tiredwho Cirandinhahad become fatigued noticeably quickly. The jiu-jitsu fighter pulled guard and achieved dominant position, from which he landed punches and [[elbow strike]]s and looked for an [[armlock]]. Although Cirandinha did not concede the hold, his corner threw the towel due to his damage and sapped resistance, declaring Carlson the winner to the crowd's cheers.<ref{{sfnp|Lacé nameLopes|2015|p=Lace/>221-222}}

Praising the fights, the press considered the event to be a highlight for both schools. Newspaper ''O Popular'' called both winners "impressive" ("Rudolf Hermanny e Carlson Gracie -- Impressionantes!"), while magazine ''[[O Cruzeiro]]'' proclaimed, "brave men's blood soaked a concrete square in the Vasco estadium" ("O Sangue dos Valentes Ensopou a Quadra de Cimento do Estádio do VasoVasco").<ref{{sfnp|Lacé nameLopes|2015|p=Lace/>219-223}}