BJJ Gyms in Cabarete, Dominican Republic

Academia de la Costa is a martial arts academy and grassroots community center based in Cabarete, Dominican Republic. Locally known as The Academy, the organization was founded in 2006 by Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Black Belts Tomas "Papo" Soñé and Joe Neurauter. Their mission is to foster local talents in sports, art, and culture while teaching, inspiring, and empowering economically disadvantaged children and young adults through martial arts. The Academy offers daily Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Boxing, Kickboxing, and Muay Thai classes, as well as private lessons, group workshops, and personal defense training. Through their scholarship programs and "pay what you can" sliding scale fee model, they make martial arts accessible to community members who may have otherwise lacked direction or opportunity. Head instructor Tomas "Papo" Soñé is a third-degree BJJ black belt under the lineage of Mamoro Matsunaga and Abraham Tabar, the father of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in the Dominican Republic. The Academy has trained and mentored numerous local athletes who have gone on to compete internationally, including Alex Garcia (the first Dominican MMA competitor in the UFC), Delvin Reyes, Henry Jiménez, Patrick Mendoza, and Iskania Perez. Beyond martial arts, the Academy organized the first street art festival in Cabarete, co-founded the Cabarete Carnaval in 2015, and helped establish Cabarete Sostenible in 2020, a non-profit addressing food insecurity through community-led agriculture. The octopus logo symbolizes expansion, versatility, and fluidity—values applicable to both Jiu Jitsu and their cultural projects.