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 first Brazilian men to learn Jiu Jitsu in Brazil, Luiz França became one of Mitsuyo Maeda’s top students, and much like the Gracies, he continued the work of his Japanese instructor in the state of Rio de Janeiro where he started his own, non Gracie, BJJ lineage. This lineage can be seen in some of the biggest teams in the world today.

Deoclecio Paulo, also known as “Mestre Deo” (Master Deo) is a red belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu who started practicing the sport in the 1940’s, being a direct descendant of the Oswaldo Fadda lineage. A highly regarded instructor, Deoclecio Paulo has taught in different areas of Brazil, having also brought Jiu Jitsu to Chile in the 1970’s. Master Deo’s also founded the Associação Deo Jiu-Jitsu one of the top academies in Brasilia.

Thibaut Olivier is one of three French brothers (Maxime, Rodolphe and Thibaut) who are amongst the top Brazilian jiu jitsu competitors in Europe. Thibaut Olivier has represented France all around the world, medaling in many important tournaments. The Olivier brothers have also founded The Gokudo academy, a leading BJJ academy in France.

Eduardo Santoro, also known as Eduardo “Português” (Portuguese), is one of the top medium heavyweight jiu jitsu competitors of his generation. A black belt under Max Trombini from Cia Paulista, Eduardo Santoro won some of the most important Brazilian jiu jitsu tournaments in the world, such as the Brazilian National, the Pan American and the World Championships (on two separate organizations).

Felipe “Preguiça” Pena is a BJJ black belt from the famous Gracie Barra academy affiliate in Belo Horizonte, a camp that has brought us fighters such as Romulo Barral, Marcelo Azevedo, Pablo Silva and many others. Felipe Pena was regarded as one of the biggest prospects in the jiu jitsu world while he was still a brown belt, after his amazing performances in tournaments such as the World Championships and the Copa Podio.

Check here the results of the BJJ European Open, 2013. The black belt tournament happened on the 26th and 27th of January in the Portuguese capital, Lisbon and it put together some of the top competitors in the grappling world. Find out here the results of the Brazilian Jiu Jitsu European Open.

Christian Graugart is a famous BJJ blogger who has become a successful published author through his BJJ Globetrotter book, which tells the story of how in 2011 Christian traveled the world with the purpose of training in as many Jiu Jitsu academies as possible meeting different cultures and personalities, all of which shared one thing in common, Jiu Jitsu.

Joao Gabriel Rocha is a BJJ black belt under Master “Tatu” Escobar and Rafael “Formiga” from the Soul Fighters Academy. Having trained since he was 2 years old, Joao Gabriel became one of the top prospects of sporting Jiu Jitsu through his consecutive wins as a brown belt.

Luiz Ribeiro, also known as “Manxinha” or “Manxa” is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt under Ricardo Vieira from the Checkmat academy. Luiz Ribeiro is also the founder and owner of London Fight Factory, one of the main Jiu Jitsu academies in London, England, where he has helped the development of the sport in the country.

Gabrielzinho Moraes is a historical figure in BJJ having won the world jiu jitsu championship in the blue belt division in 2003 and in the black belt division in 2004, being the only competitor ever to have won the world championship in blue and black belt consecutively.

This year’s heavyweight edition of the Copa Podio (Podium Cup 2013) was seen with great anticipation. The famous tournament brought to Brazil one of the world’s most loved brown belts, Keenan Cornelius to compete against the top black belts in the world. Check here the full results of the Copa Podio 2013

A black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu under the legendary Andre Pederneiras, Marcos Galvao, also known by his nickname “Loro”, has become one of the top MMA fighters in the world after winning the Bellator Bantamweight tournament in 2012. Marcos Galvao also trains with another legend of the sport, Vitor Ribeiro.