Back Fuji logo
Fuji logo in white and grey

Fuji Sports’ ‘Victory’ women’s pink BJJ gi is a comfortable, well-cut and stylish gi, great for everyday training. The Victory kimono is a pre-shrunk single weave gi, with reinforced seams and slightly heavier weight trousers which are reinforced at the knees. While the colour is pretty conspicuous – a ‘bubblegum pink’ – it is rather understated in other respects with limited embroidery in white and grey. For my proportions, this is one of the two best-fitting women’s gi I’ve ever owned; the other being the Break Point women’s light weight gi which you chose and which will be reviewed later this month.[1] The gi ranges in price from $75USD – $98USD and offers excellent value for money in terms of construction and styling. Big thanks to BJJ-gear deal site, BJJHQ, for supplying the gi for review; BJJHQ offer the Victory for $75.

Fuji Victory Features

Trouser leg embroidery
Trouser leg embroidery

Embroidered patches of the Fuji logo, gi name and Fuji company name adorn one shoulder and the upper middle of the back of the jacket. Considering that this is a lower-priced piece of kit, this embroidery is very considered and well executed with an attractive use of white and grey thread which harmonises well with the pink of the gi. The Fuji logo embroidery is repeated on the upper outside of the reinforced knee area of the left trouser leg. Sales of the Victory gi support breast cancer research and the links with breast cancer awareness are apparent in the styling as there are small white ribbons embroidered near the vent on the jacket overlap and on the hip of the right trouser leg.

The single weave of the jacket is described by Fuji as a ‘durable long lasting fiber weave’. I’ve ‘googled’ for ‘fiber weave’ and consulted Meerkatsu’s fine post on BJJ gi weaves and all I can surmise is that this is some sort of branded term for a single weave. The weave is very soft for a single weave and has a pronounced waffle texture to the exposed side of the jacket as well as a slight sheen. So far I’ve rolled once in this gi and found it very soft and comfortable and the fabric has maintained its sheen and softness after a warm wash and line dry.

Fuji Victory Fit

Fuji Victory front
Fuji Victory front

The Fuji Victory kimono fits me perfectly. Great sleeve length, no extra bulk in the shoulders, some tapering in the body of the jacket and, unusually for my shape and women’s cut gi, trousers that are not too baggy, but do offer extra room in the hips, thighs and bum. The Victory is pre-shrunk and the post-60°C wash measurements show that shrinkage is well within acceptable parameters with no change to the trouser measurements, 0.5cm from all jacket measurements except the arm measurement which lost 2cm (or 1cm from each arm). The gi weighs in at 1.8 kilos on my scale.

I love the Fuji Victory trousers above all other gi trousers I have ever worn for two reasons: 1) perfect length; 2) perfect bagginess quotient. I like to wear my gi trousers (and my belt) at the smallest point of my torso, which is my waist, rather than my hips; it looks a bit dorkilicious, I admit, but it is the most comfortable and sensible configuration in light of my physiognomy. The Victory trousers are the first gi pants – women’s cut or otherwise – that are an optimal length when worn at the waist. Often trousers seem designed to be worn on the hips – the smallest part of a man’s body – and are too short when worn higher, around the waist.

Fuji Victory jacket measurements
Fuji Victory Jacket Measurements



Fuji Victory trouser measurements
Fuji Victory Trouser Measurements



Fuji uses ‘W’ sizing, rather than the standard women’s F-sizes. While the cut of the jacket and trousers is different than my non women’s gi, for example my ancient and trusty Koral A1 Classic, the official size chart is a carbon copy of the men’s cut size chart:

Height (ft) Weight (lbs) Size
5’2″-5’5″ 110-140 W1
5’5″-5’9″ 140-170 W2
5’9″-6’1″ 160-200 W3
6’0″-6’4″ 200-250 W4
6’0″-6’4″ 225-275 W5
6’2″-6’6″ 250-300 W6
Fuji Sports Women’s Gi Size Chart
Fuji back
Fuji back

While there certainly are women over 6 foot, this size chart seems quite flawed for a gi that is purportedly ‘…designed for and by women’. I’m not suggesting there haven’t been modifications to the dimensions of Fuji’s W-chart, and for instance, when compared with my Koral men’s cut A1s, the Fuji trousers have 4cm more width in the thighs and 5cm greater width across the bum. So, while the Fuji Victory W1 may have different dimensions than a men’s cut A1, it remains that the W-size chart may not be optimal for a wide spectrum of women. The advantage of the F-size system, or a modified A-size system as used by Fenom, is that the entire scale is shifted downwards, which accommodates the size spectrum of women more appropriately. So, while, for me the W1 is perfect, I wonder if this gi could work for smaller women, as I’m in the middle of the F-size spectrum (F3) which appears to be equivalent to the bottom of the W-size spectrum.

A Gi with a Conscience

Laughing in gi
Pink gi make you happy!

Sales of the the Victory gi help to support breast cancer research, and the company’s Facebook Page claims that:

For EVERY pink gi sold a portion of the gi sale is being given to breast cancer research.

Fuji Sports claims that 10% of the sale of their gi are donated to breast cancer research bodies, including Susan G. Komen For the Cure.

Conclusions

Meg Stance 1
Super heroine front required

Before the Victory came into my life, I’d never considered myself a pink gi type, but I really enjoy wearing this gi and I am now a convert; I love having this as an option in the gi-wardrobe! This particular pink gi offers excellent value for money, with a very soft weave and a comfortable fit, though this fit may be better for women slimmer in the hips and thighs; it is roomier than a men’s cut gi, but for grander bottom proportions the OTM SupaStar, Black Eagle Raptor or Predadoramight be more appropriate. The finishing is very nice, save a few loose threads on the embroidery, with taped seams and very nice minimal branding. The ‘Victory’ represents a solid everyday training kimono which offers more in terms of quality than its retail price would suggest. However, while understated in bling, she is a strong pink so you will stand out! You may feel extra powers in your cute pink gi, but you better be able to back them up, or – ahem – you might end up being helicopter armbared by your coach in your first pink-gi roll.

Addendum

Carlson Gracie Texas in Fuji Victory
Carlson Gracie Texas in Fuji Victory
Lana Hunter (far left) and her team mates at Carlson Gracie Texas were keen to rock the Victory after the review was published, as they loved the colour and the gi’s links to support for breast cancer research. My concerns over the size spectrum adopted by Fuji seem justified and Lana, who is 157.5cm/5’2″ and 53.5kgs/118lbs, finds that the W1 is a bit on the large size for her frame, with baggy sleeves and too much room in the jacket; Lana wears an A0 on Fenom’s feminised ‘A’ size spectrum. This seems to be the main draw back of the gi; if Fuji adopted an F sizing system their women’s cut gi would be much more suited to the female size spectrum. Thanks, Lana, for sharing your feedback!

Disclaimer

All reviews are based on my independent observations. I have no formal qualifications, I am not sponsored by any company and I do not endorse any one brand. If you chose a gi based on my review, please let the manufacturer know that MegJitsu persuaded you. This will not benefit me financially, but can help me to get more gi to review. As always, thanks for reading.

Credits

Thank you to BJJHQ for supplying the gi. Kind of them to spoil us again after donating the Manto Women’s Rash Guard for review in August.

Thanks also to Lisa James – friend, fellow purple belt and veteran film producer – for her photography skills and editing expertise in creating the media for this review.

[1]For reference, I am 163cm/5’4.5″, 60kgs/130lbs and have bust, waist and hip measurements of 86.4cm/34″, 68.6cm/27″ and 91.4cm/36″; this review is of the W1.

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