Peachtree City

Police Officer Ron Miller knows the thrill of receiving gold medals.

Miller, 24,

was one of 14 Americans chosen to represent the United States in the Ju-jitsu

World Championship in Leeds, England earlier this month. He helped bring

home gold medals in both team competitions at the championship.

It marked the

third consecutive world championship for the U.S. in both the team grappling

and team Kumite events.

To get on Team

USA, naturally it takes having good connections. The 148-pound Miller,

who competed as a lightweight, knew one of the members of the squad from

two years ago, and that led to a tryout with the Team USA coach who eventually

made the final selections.

"I trained

with their coach and he liked what he saw," Miller said.

Originally,

Miller was tabbed for the grappling event, which involves takedowns, throws

and submissions. He also planned to compete in individual grappling events,

but he sacrificed that plan when he was picked at the last minute to compete

in the Kumite event, which involves striking the opponent in a variety

of moves.

Miller didn't

want to wear himself out, so he opted out of the individual competition

to help the team. The plan paid off, although Miller only faced a total

of three opponents in both events of the tournament.

That was partly

due to the U.S. team's dominance and other teams who forfeited rather

than face the U.S. squad.

Miller won

two of the battles though some felt he should have been awarded the third

victory after his opponent appeared to submit.

In grappling,

the first round is three minutes long, and each battle only goes to the

second round if the score is too close. In Kumite, the pace is equally

quick, with two rounds of two minutes each.

"You really

need to have a game plan," Miller said. "You can expend all

your energy in that amount of time, as opposed to a 12-round match in

boxing."

The team events

were handled tournament-style. In both events, the U.S. had to face off

against the tough Brazil squad. Team USA was victorious in both matches,

beating Brazil in the first round once and in the final of the other event.

The gold medals

are a high point for Miller, who has been involved in martial arts since

he was seven. Miller has been active in Ju-jitsu for almost four years,

and now he trains at the Master Brazilian Ju-jistu Academy in north Atlanta

under instructor Jacare.

Being the son

of an Army man, Miller has plenty of experience moving around the country.

In Georgia alone he has lived in four different places.

But he's happy

living now in Peachtree City and working for the police department.

"I've

had plenty of places to live," he said. "I just really like

living here."