Nia Blackman

Nia Blackman is a British grappler and a jiu-jitsu black belt under Marco Canha, who first gained notoriety in the sport while competing in the junior & juvenile divisions of the International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation (IBJJF), where she conquered many important titles. Her good form translated to the adult category, where she became one of the top athletes in the pro-circuit with medals at the Abu Dhabi Combat Club (ADCC), Abu Dhabi Jiu-Jitsu Pro (AJP), and the IBJJF as mentioned above.

Nia Blackman Jiu-Jitsu

Full Name: Nia Vivienne Blackman

Nickname: n/a

Lineage: Carlos Gracie > Helio Gracie > Rolls Gracie > Romero Cavalcanti > Ricardo Vieira > Marco Canha > Nia Blackman

Main Achievement:

• 1st Place ADCC Europe & Asia Trials (2024)
• 1st Place AJP Grand Slam, ROM (2025)
• 2nd Place IBJJF European Championship NOGI (2024)
• 2nd Place AJP Abu Dhabi World Pro (2023)
• 3rd Place IBJJF World Championship (2024)
• 3rd Place IBJJF Pan Championship (2025)

Main Achievement (Colored Belts):

• 1st Place IBJJF European Championship (2022** purple)
• 1st Place IBJJF European Championship NOGI (2022** purple, 2023** brown)
• 1st Place IBJJF Pan Championship (2022 purple)
• 1st Place IBJJF Pan Championship NOGI (2022 purple)
• 1st Place IBJJF South American Championship NOGI (2023** brown)
• 1st Place AJP Abu Dhabi Grand Slam, LDN (2022 purple)
• 2nd Place IBJJF World Championship (2022** purple)
• 2nd Place IBJJF Pan Championship (2022* purple, 2023/2024 brown)
• 2nd Place IBJJF European Championship (2024 brown)
• 3rd Place IBJJF World Championship (2023** brown)
• 3rd Place IBJJF Pan Championship (2023* brown)

Main Achievement (Juvenile):

• 1st Place IBJJF World Championship (2021**)
• 1st Place IBJJF European Championship (2020** / 2021**)
• 1st Place IBJJF Pan Kids Championship (2017 / 2019)
• 1st Place CBJJ Brazilian Nationals (2019)
• 1st Place IBJJF Las Vegas Kids International (2018 / 2019)
• 1st Place AJP Abu Dhabi Youth World Championship (2018)

* Weight
** Weight and Absolute

Favorite Position/Technique: Open Guard & Outside Passing

Weight Division: Meio-Pesado (74,00 kg / 163.00 lbs)

Team/Association: Royal Jiu-Jitsu

Nia Blackman Biography

Nia Blackman was born in June 2004 in London, England, and grew up in the Southwest region of the UK capital.

Connected to sports from an early age, Nia eventually found her way to jiu-jitsu at the age of 5, starting with Felipe Souza at the BJJ School in Battersea, a tuition that would later be taken over by Anthony Chahal.

Heavily supported by her family, namely parents George & Sherise Blackman, Nia took off on the competition scene, competing first at a national level and soon after, internationally, with her younger brother and sister soon accompanying her on the tournament circuit.

As an orange belt, Nia decided to embrace a career in BJJ and sought to train in a more competitive environment. She found what she was looking for in 2018 at Fightzone in East London with coach Marco Canha, who ran one of the best competitive programs in the country.

As she moved across the ranks, Nia Blackman became widely regarded as one of the rising stars of Europe’s grappling, a reputation earned with many big wins in the IBJJF league. Her medals earned Nia her black belt on June 17, 2024, from the hands of Marco Canha.

Later in 2024, Nia became a representative of the Birmingham-based Royal Jiu-Jitsu Academy, a workgroup led by Bradley Hill and a former colleague at FZN, Samantha Cook.

NOTE REGARDING NIA BLACKMAN’S RECORD

Traditionally, BJJ Heroes only accounted for black belt records as they signify an athlete’s entry into our sport’s elite ranks. Blackman, however, is a special case as she has been competing in the pro-grappling circuit since he was a brown belt. This has left BJJ Heroes with a delicate predicament of defining when to start accounting for the young prodigy’s match records.

Considering how Nia won gold at the ADCC Trials as a brown belt, and her incredible performances in the professional mixed category of brown and black belts of the AJP Tour with this belt rank, we have decided to add his matches before her official promotion to black belt. Our readers should keep this in mind when addressing Nia’s career career.