Find here some of the top competitors of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, past and present, from the very first female black belt in the sport (Yvone Duarte) to the most accomplished woman of all time, Gabi Garcia. On this section of BJJ Heroes you will be able to read about their deeds and see these amazing representatives of the sport in action.
One of the best grapplers of her generation, Luiza Monteiro is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Rodrigo Cavaca, who’s career in the sport is commonly associated with the Projecto Social Lutando Pelo Bem team of Cicero Costha. One of the top athletes in jiu jitsu’s women’s division, Monteiro conquered numerous medals in a variety of weight classes, from featherweight to medium heavy.
Dominyka Obelenyte is a lithuanian-american grappler, being the first female Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under the legendary Marcelo Garcia. Regarded as a true grappling phenomenon since her early teens Dominyka Obelenyte proved her star quality by consistently winning at the highest level of the sport, being one of the youngest ever world champions in an adult division (14 years of age), a deed only surpassed by Luzia Fernandes.
Rosângela Conceição, is a historic Brazilian jiu jitsu figure, being the very first female world champion in the sport. Conceição is also a legendary figure in judo and freestyle wrestling having been part of the Brazilian national Olympic squad for both sports, being regarded as the most accomplished female wrestler ever produced by the south american country.
Janni Larsson is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt under the illustrious instructor Shimon Mochizuki of the Arte Suave Academy (Checkmat affiliate) in Copenhagen, Denmark. A native of Sweden, Larsson is one of the most accomplished European black belts, and the first Swedish black belt world champion (2014).
Tammi Musumeci is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt who became one of the top featherweights in the women’s divisions at the young age of 19. Tammi Musumeci turned a few heads her way after she won the Pan American Championship in 2014 in her first year as a black belt, beating two former world champions on her way to the top.
The first female to achieve the rank of black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu was Yvone Duarte, a belt rank received in 1990. This incredible pioneer of the sport was one of the main forces behind the implementation of a female division in Jiu Jitsu competitions, being also the first female to start her own BJJ team.
Mackenzie Dern is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt and one of the top female grapplers in the 2010 era. Being also the daughter of a respected BJJ personality, Wellington Dias, a lot was expected of Mackenzie Dern, and she did not disappoint, having become one of the top female athletes in BJJ. Mackenzie Dern is also famed for her relationship with professional BJJ competitor Augusto Mendes.
One of the top female jiu jitsu fighters at the turn of the century, Ana Laura Cordeiro became a star fighting for the Gracie Barra camp where she won 4 consecutive world BJJ titles. She was regarded as the top grappler of her generation before Ana Laura Cordeiro suffered a terrible back injury that prevented her from competing at the highest level ever since.
Monica Vanessa Silva is one of the top jiu jitsu practitioners in women’s jiu jitsu, and the first Portuguese woman to achieve the rank of black belt in BJJ. A former World Champion, European Champion and World Pro Jiu Jitsu Cup Trials Champion, Monica Vanessa Silva has led the classes at the “2 Brothers” academy in Portugal since her Master, Sandro “Bala” left the country in 2009.
Vanessa Oliveira is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Master Julio Cesar from Grappling Fight Team, and one of the top female competitors in the women’s middleweight division having medalled in important tournaments such as the World Jiu Jitsu Championships, the Pan American, Brazilian Nationals and Rio Open.
The French Laurence Cousin Fouillat is regarded as the first European female black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. An incredibly accomplished grappler Laurence was also the 2nd non Brazilian to win a gold medal at the world Jiu Jitsu championship in the black belt division.
Marina Ribeiro is a top Brazilian Jiu Jitsu competitor from the Checkmat Team out ofRio de Janeiro,Brazil. A proof of just how talentedMarinais was her meteoric rise to black belt, which took her only 4 years, training under the legendary and former BJJ World Champion, Ricardo Vieira.
The first Swedish female black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Ida Hansson is also one of the top competitors of her generation, having fought throughout the world, medalling in some of the world’s most important grappling tournaments. Hansson fights out of the Checkmat team in Denmark (Arte Suave) one of the top high level BJJ academies in Europe.
“Treta” as she is usually called, is a jiu jitsu world champion and a black belt for the Ryan Gracie team. Formerly with Cicero Costha (from Barbosa BJJ), Talita Nogueira switched camps to become one of the most successful fighters in women’s Jiu Jitsu in 2011, with a win at the Mundial and a win at the ADCC trials in Brazil.
Often (wrongly) regarded as the first woman black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Patricia Lage is a highly decorated BJJ practitioner with over 30 years experience in the sport and titles in the Brazilian Nationals and the World Cup. Patricia is also the daughter of 8th degree black belt Roberto Lage, an illustrious figure in Sao Paulo’s Jiu Jitsu landscape.
Bianca Andrade Barreto is a former professional athlete in Body Boarding who converted into Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, having become one of the best female competitors of …
Leka Vieira is one of the most important figures in the history of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, being the first female black belt World Champion of the sport (1999), Leka took women’s BJJ to the next level raising awareness to that side of the sport, paving the way to the new generation. She was also the first known woman to graduate another woman with the black belt in Jiu Jitsu (Cindy Omatsu).
Beatriz Mesquita, also known as Bia Mesquita, is an exciting Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt under the legendary Leticia Ribeiro. Being pointed as the next big thing in women’s Jiu Jitsu when she was still a teenager, Beatriz Mesquita has cemented her status as one of the greatest grapplers of her generation by achieved numerous BJJ titles such as the World Nogi Championship and the Pan American title before even reaching her black belt status.
South Africa’s very first jiu jitsu black belt World champion, Penny Thomas was one of the most accomplished competitors of her generation, in Jiu …
Caroline de Lazzer is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt and a wrestler, having participated in numerous international events as a team member of …