Ana Laura with all her belts which took her five years to achieve. Photo: Instagram @analauragb

In 2009, Gracie Barra brown belt Ana Laura Cordeiro won the then combined female brown/black belt division at the Pan American Championship. By then she could count over 40 matches and no losses recorded in her competitive career.

Her most notable opponents were Gabi Garcia, Michelle Nicolini, Penny Thomas and more of the top legends at the time who still actively compete today. Unfortunately after the championship she suffered a back injury that would defeat her unlike any other opponent.

More than four years later and still off the competition mats, she is a black belt teaching at her academy while working to strengthen her back.

Will we ever see her compete with today’s top females? What about the differences between the the women then and now? She told GRACIEMAG the answer:

GRACIEMAG: When was the last time you competed and what made you stop? Do you miss competing?

ANA LAURA CORDEIRO: My last tournament was in 2009 at the Pan Ams. At the time I achieved first place weight & open class division. After the tournament I was diagnosed with a degenerative disc L5 -S1, so it forced me to stop training and competing. Yes, I do miss competing a lot. Competition used to be my world; it was the way I found a way to challenge myself. When you compete, it’s just you, nobody can do it for you. At the tournaments I have to reinvent myself, and not just find inside of me an Ana Laura with no fears and egos, but find the best version that I can be. I’m passionate for challenges!

How is your health and will we ever see you compete again?

I believe I’m in my best shape ever! Since I hurt my back, I had to slow down a lot of my physical exercises. I started to gain a lot of weight, so I realized I couldn’t eat the way I used to eat before, and since then I’ve been trying different ways of dieting. I’ve been vegetarian for two years, vegan for one, and now I’m on a gluten free diet, feeling good so far.

I recently did my back surgery, and my recovery it’s going very well. My main goal now is get back to my normal routine which is teach, run, workout and of course train BJJ. So, if after all I’m still doing good, and my back is feeling okay, I’ll think about tournaments again. But my goal is to enjoy life without pain!

What was your strategy to defeating Gabi Garcia in 2009 and do you think the same strategy would work against her today?

Funny question because I never step up on the mats with a strategy, and when I was going to face her my professor Marcio Feitosa said, “do whatever you wanna do but do not shoot for double leg.” I shook my head and said: “I got you professor.” First 10 seconds of the fight, and I did the complete opposite of what he said. I shoot for the double and I failed of course! So then, I started to use my spider guard against her and it worked very well. I swept her and placed my knee on her belly, then I came back to my spider guard for the rest of the fight. Gabi has changed her game since 2009, she improved her Jiu-Jitsu skills, got stronger and learned how to take advantage of her physical type against other girls, which is very smart. I’m not sure if my wrestling skills would work against her. If I ever face her again, I will follow what my professor suggested for me to do (laughs).

What changes and evolution have you noticed between when you were competing and the female competition scene today?

Jiu-Jitsu has changed a lot through the years, the competitors are more professionals and there is no space for amateurs. The girls are so much stronger, “physically & technically” they earned more space in the BJJ scenario, even though there is always space to grow. Nowadays the girls’ mats are as exciting to watch as the mens’ ones. I stopped competing but my eyes never get tired to observe BJJ tournaments. I will do my best to be part of this again!

Ricardinho Vieira vai lutar o ADCC 2013. Foto: Arquivo Pessoal

O ADCC 2013 começa a tomar forma para explodir em Pequim, China, com muito Jiu-Jitsu. O evento sem kimono, marcado para 19 e 20 de outubro deste ano, confirmou em seu site oficial mais quatro atletas para a disputa. São eles Ricardinho Vieira (Checkmat), Vagner “Ceará” Rocha, Penny Thomas eo chinês Wenbo Liu.

Ricardinho, irmão mais novo de Léo Vieira, vai tentar embolar a categoria até 66kg, que já conta com Rafael Mendes, Rubens Cobrinha, Augusto Tanquinho, João Miyao, Marcio André e outros talentos. Será o veterano campeão capaz de parar alguns dos favoritos?

Já Vagner Rocha, que luta no Bellator (tem dez vitórias e três derrotas) vai lutar na divisão até 77kg.

Faixa-preta da Gracie Humaitá, a sul-africana Penny volta para mais um ADCC, novamente na categoria acima de 60kg. Ela ficou com o terceiro lugar no último ADCC, após perder para Gabi Garcia na semifinal.

Wenbo Liu, lutador de MMA dono de um cartel de oito vitórias e cinco derrotas, vai disputar a categoria até 99kg, contra feras como Rodolfo Vieira, Rodrigo Cavaca, João Gabriel Rocha entre outros.

Desses quatro novos reforços, de qual o leitor gostou mais? Comente.

Otávio Sousa vibra com mais um título. Foto: Ivan Trindade/GRACIEMAG

Está chegando a hora de mais um Campeonato Mundial de Jiu-Jitsu, o evento anual da IBJJF que mais transforma meros mortais em ídolos do esporte.

O Mundial de 2013 começa no dia 29 de maio e vai até 2 de junho, em Long Beach, na Califórnia, mas para quem ainda não se registrou como competidor a hora é agora. As inscrições encerram na terça-feira, portanto confirme sua presença pelo site da CBJJ, aqui e agora.

Para injetar ainda mais motivação nos seus treinos, GRACIEMAG preparou hoje cinco dicas e macetes técnicos de cinco monstros do Jiu-Jitsu da atualidade. Todos os astros abaixo estão confirmados na competição mais charmosa do mundo. E você?

1. Otávio Sousa ensina como defender a guilhotina

2. A kimura de Guilherme Mendes

3. Luanna Alzuguir ensina a não perder o ataque nas costas

4. Claudio Calasans mostra como finalizar na mão-de-vaca

5. Lucas Lepri e a passagem de guarda

Gostou das técnicas separadas pela equipe GRACIEMAG? Não deixe de assinar a revista e aprender ainda mais. Este mês você assina por dois anos e ganha um kimono grátis.

Luiza Monteiro against Penny Thomas in the No-Gi Worlds final / Photo by Ivan Trindade/GRACIEMAG.com

As Grandmaster Helio Gracie used to always say, “Jiu-Jitsu was made especially for the weak, for women and children.” Therefore couples who train together aren’t just following the master’s advice; they’re taking the path to a healthy, safe and happy life.

That’s what Luiza Monteiro and her boyfriend, Leandro Lo, demonstrated last weekend at the latest No-Gi World Championship. The couple went home with four medals between them—one gold, one silver and two bronze.

While Lo’s path of victory halted at Xande Ribeiro in the absolute final and at Tanquinho in the lightweight semifinal, his black belt better half didn’t let the gold get away from her in the middleweight final, against Penny Thomas.

Luiza nearly pulled off an armbar, but Penny paid her back with a takedown. The Cícero Costha representative first drew even before sinking the battle-ending kneebar.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n79gK_2eOXI

Luiza Monteiro na final com Penny Thomas no Mundial Sem Kimono. Foto: Ivan Trindade/GRACIEMAG.com

Como grande mestre Helio Gracie sempre dizia, “o Jiu-Jitsu foi criado especialmente para os mais fracos, para as mulheres e crianças”. Casais que treinam juntos, portanto, não estão apenas seguindo os conselhos do professor, mas caminhando para uma vida saudável, segura e feliz.

Foi o que demonstraram, neste último Mundial Sem Kimono, no fim de semana, Luiza Monteiro e seu namorado Leandro Lo. Juntos, o casal cascudo voltou para casa com quatro medalhas – uma de ouro, uma de prata e duas de bronze.

Se Lo parou diante de Xande, na final do absoluto, e de Tanquinho, na semifinal do leve, a faixa-preta paulistana não deixou o ouro escapar no peso médio, contra Penny Thomas.

Luiza quase finalizou no braço, Penny deu o troco com uma queda. A atleta da academia Cícero Costha primeiro empatou e depois encaixou o leglock que encerrou a batalha.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n79gK_2eOXI

Royler Gracie and João Faria / Photos by Deb Byth

At the Gracie Humaita Del Mar, California location run by black belt João Faria, a very focused Royler Gracie walks into the academy to lead his team in their Worlds training camp. The school is packed with so many big name athletes, like Regis Lebre, Zak Maxwell, João Faria, Gustavo Dias, Leticia Ribeiro, Beatriz Mesquita, Penny Thomas, and Mackenzie Dern, that Royler has to quickly strategize the best way to get everyone the training they need on the limited mat space they have. While he is extremely friendly with his students and supportive of their development, during the actual training sessions, he is very firm and pushes them to their limits. It’s obvious he runs his training the old school way. At one point, he looks around, and with his arms held out widely says, “Don’t sit there and look at me like a picture! LET’S GO!”

Royler Gracie

The legend who leads the Gracie Humaita team likes to run a fair and productive training camp. He rotates the training from school to school so no one feels left out. “I like students to compete and to have a good time,” Royler smiles. “I like to bring the schools together. I don’t care if they win or lose. Most of our students have a normal life. They work and train, so it’s hard to have hard-core competitors. So, we compete, but we have fun doing it.”

Royler is very busy these days running the Gracie Humaita Association. “I also travel all over the world doing seminars,” he says, “Israel, Las Vegas, Madrid… that’s my life.” Royler’s overall goal is to keep the Gracie Humaita schools consistent, so he has an educational system in place to teach every school owner how to run a school, along with all the details involved in its operation. Part of that educational system also includes teaching them the fundamentals of Jiu-Jitsu.

“I try to give the fundamentals of teaching,” he says. “We do a lot of self-defense. To be a competitor is good. It’s also good if you can defend yourself in the street. Jiu-Jitsu can help you with that. Jiu-Jitsu helps you in life. Competition is another part of that, but first you need to understand the philosophy of Jiu-Jitsu and then try to put it all together.” Royler loves teaching and says he wants to follow in his father and uncle’s footsteps and prove to the world that Jiu-Jitsu is good and brings people together.

Faria and Gracie Humaitá's World Championship-winning ladies

Leticia Ribeiro

The Gracie Humaita girls team is particularly strong, and six-time Gi World Champion Leticia Ribeiro heads it up in San Diego. At the 2012 Worlds Leticia will fight in the super feather division. Back in 2009, she dropped from feather to super feather, so she’s been fighting for the last three years at that weight and is happy there. She will fight her division only, not the open class. “The girls who are going to represent our team will be Penny Thomas and Beatriz Mesquita,” Leticia says.

Leticia says Worlds expectations are always good after a lot of hard training. “We know that we are going to have some really tough fights, but we are ready for the war,” she says, “I don’t ever think about one particular person I have to fight against. I need to think about the first fight, and it doesn’t matter who my opponent is.”

Remarkably, this will be Leticia’s 15th Worlds appearance! She competed at the first Worlds open to women, which was back in 1998. Since then she has won the Gi Worlds six times and the No-Gi Worlds twice, all in the black belt division. As for the 2012 Worlds, Leticia says the training has been great. “We had around 20 girls training hard at our camp here in San Diego,” she says. “There are so many talented girls on the team. I’m so lucky to have these girls to train with. We have many big names in the sport training like Beatriz Mesquita, Penny Thomas, Carol Vidal, and Mackenzie Dern. We have two girls here from Europe, Margareth Aase, who is from Norway, and Maxine Thylin, who is here from Sweden. We have a whole new generation of blue belts from the U.S. and Brasil. Now we just have to focus. We have trained hard every day. I just want to say thanks to all the girls on the team for all the good training. Good luck, girls!”

Beatriz Mesquita

Leticia’s right-hand girl on the team is black belt Beatriz Mesquita. Bia fights in the light division and will fight in her weight class and the open. “I’m feeling better than ever,” she says. “We had a great training camp, and so, I’m ready to get my first title at the black belt level.” Bia isn’t looking forward to fighting any particular competitor at the Worlds. “A fight is a fight,” she says. “In 10 minutes a lot of things can happen, but for sure I have to focus on the last champion because they will be there to defend their title.” Bia won her weight at the Worlds in 2007 as a blue belt, in 2008 and 2009 she won her division as a purple, and also the open in 2009. She wants to feel that thrill again this year and has trained hard enough to make it happen. “I have to keep training hard all the time,” she says, “No rest, no vacation. The Worlds is the most important tournament of the year, so I have to be ready. If I’m not, then I will miss my chance. Everyone there will be doing their best, and they want to win the gold. I’m no different.”

Mackenzie Dern

Mackenzie learned Jiu-Jitsu the old-fashioned and natural way, from her father Wellington “Megaton” Dias. She grew up on the mats. Through the years she has “wowed” the crowd with her amazing techniques and exciting game. This year at the 2012 Worlds, Mackenzie will compete as a brown belt in the featherweight division. “I plan on doing the open class, but I will only know after my fights, since you can only compete in the absolute if you are on the podium,” she says. “My expectations for the 2012 Worlds are to have a lot of good fights and to have this be the best year so far! I really like how the black belts are going to have to bring both blue and white gi’s so it is easier to tell the difference between the competitors. It will look really professional! Also, I am excited to see the girl black belts. The feather division is full of a lot of tough girls and I think we will all have great fights.”

Unlike her teammates, Mackenzie has already taken a peek at the brown belt athletes and says there are a lot of girls in the whole brown belt category that she knows. “I have seen a lot of them over the years and each year they are getting so good,” she says, “I can’t say who I think will be the toughest competition because the only girls I know in my division are Miki Takahashi and Tracey Goodell, but I am sure that all the girls in the division are going to bring everything to the fight, so right now I am just getting prepared for them. I am going to try my best to get my sixth World title!”

GMA member school Renzo Gracie Cape Town will have a very special visitor next September 17th.

Black belt world champion Penny Thomas will be in her homeland South Africa for a period of training.

RGCT head instructor Kurdt George is planing a seminar with Penny.

If you are near by you can’t miss this opportunity to train with one of the most victorious athletes of female Jiu-Jitsu.

Log on to renzogracie.co.za for more info.

Talita overwhelmed with emotions after winning title / Photo: Ivan Trindade

Around the pyramid at CSU Long Beach, whisperings of, “Who’s that girl?” could be heard while Talita Nogueira of Ryan Gracie was competing against Penny Thomas in the medium heavy finals at the 2011 Worlds. When Nogueira clinched gold, there was a roar from the crowd, in support of the “underdog’s” amazing feat.

“That girl” was none other than 25-year-old brown belt Talita Nogueira from São Paulo, Brazil. This was the first time Nogueira had ever been to the Worlds and she was beyond excited. “I’m so happy and proud to be here,” she smiles, “I have a daughter, I have financial problems. It was not easy for me to get here. Winning is unbelievable!”

As for her Worlds experience against the famed Penny Thomas, Nogueira says, “I knew I had just ten minutes to prove how hard I’ve been training. It was the most important match of my life. I controlled the fight and I won. Penny is so tough, I had to stay very focused.”

Making this achievement all the more amazing is that Nogueira only started training Jiu-Jitsu a little over five years ago. “Everyone else here started training so many years ago,” she says, “I’ve come so far in such a short amount of time. It’s good to see I’m at their level.”

Talita against Penny / Photo: Ivan Trindade

When she was 17 years old, Nogueira had her daughter. A year later, she was going through some tough times and she had some friends who were training Jiu-Jitsu. They asked her to join them, and she did. Since then, she’s never looked back.

“I’ve been training so hard,” she says, “I have a good professor (Pitta Junior), and a good family. I’ve been training hard to be the best. That’s my priority.” Along with her desire to be a world champion in Jiu-Jitsu, which she now is, she also wants to be a great mom, so she’s had her daughter training Jiu-Jitsu with her since she was three years old. “You can be a mother and a competitor at the same time,” she says.

Like the other world-class athletes, Nogueira says if you believe in yourself you can reach your dreams. And she should know because she just reached hers.

Talita se emociona com o título. Foto: Ivan Trindade.

O público americano, que ainda não a conhecia, se perguntava na Pirâmide em Long Beach: “Quem é essa garota?”. Passaram a conhecer melhor depois da final contra Penny Thomas, que definiu a categoria médio do Mundial de Jiu-Jitsu 2011. Todos souberam quem é a faixa-marrom de 25 anos, representante da Ryan Gracie, em São Paulo. Foi a primeira vez de Talita Nogueira, a Treta, no Mundial. E a mais nova campeão era só sorrisos:

“Estou muito contente por estar aqui. Tenho uma filha, tenho problemas financeiros, não foi fácil chegar aqui. Vencer, então, foi inacreditável!”, comentou, logo após bater a experiente Penny Thomas.

“Senti que eram os dez minutos para provar o quanto duro havia treinado. Era a luta mais importante da minha vida. Controlei e venci. Penny é muito dura, tive que me manter focada”, completou.

Mais surpreendente ainda é o fato de Talita ter iniciado no Jiu-Jitsu há apenas cinco anos.

“Todos começaram a treinar há tanto tempo. Vim de muito longe num curto espaço de tempo. É bom ver que estou neste nível.”

Talita contra Penny. Foto: Ivan Trindade.

Talita teve uma filha com apenas 17 anos. Nos tempos difíceis, foi apresentada ao Jiu-Jitsu por alguns amigos. Desde então, não parou de treinar.

“Venho treinando muito duro. Tenho um grande professor (Pitta Junior) e uma boa família. Treino duro para ser a melhor, foi sempre a minha prioridade.”

Com o desejo de ser campeã mundial, agora realizado, Treta não deixou de ser uma boa mãe. Inclusive, a filha a acompanha nos treinos desde os três anos de idade. “É possível ser mãe e competidora ao mesmo tempo”, encerra.

Gabi defeated Penny Thomas in the over-65kg by 9 to 0. Photo: Luca Atalla.

Gabrielle Garcia, 25, added another honor to her numerous Jiu-Jitsu accolades. Two-time World Pro champ? That too, but not just that.

“I’m the first woman to train with Sheikh Tahnoon,” says the black belt, with a mixture of disbelief and pride, upon returning to Brazil.

In a conversation with GRACIEMAG.com the heavyweight speaks of training with the powerful Sheikh of Abu Dhabi and breaks down her performance at the 2011 World Pro, which came to a close last Saturday.

PERFORMANCE:

I’m overjoyed with the win, as I very much wanted to win the tournament for a second time. Only I really know how much I trained, how much I dedicated myself. I’m really happy with my performance, I feel it was my best championship so far. I took more risks and did things I’d never done in competition before.

THE SHEIKH

I had a great stay in Abu Dhabi. Besides the title, I was the first woman to train with Sheikh Tahnoon! I was received at the palace by him, and can really only be happy about opening doors for women’s Jiu-Jitsu. Sharing a mat with Sheikh Tahnoon, Renzo Gracie and Cobrinha was a great honor. I returned home fulfilled.

UNEXPECTED LOSSES AT WORLD PRO:

No one is exempt from defeat. We’re mortals, not machines; so nothing is preestablished. There were athletes who were jetlagged, who made it there at the last minute, and the trip from São Paulo lasted thirty hours. I was saddened that some people lost, as I kept up with the training and dedication of a lot of people there, but those losses surely serve for personal growth, for maturity. There are no more favorites these days, everyone is really prepared.

FOCUS ON THE WORLDS:

Now my focus is the IBJJF World Championship, in California. I really want to win at weight and open weight, and I’m going to be even more dedicated. I want to close out the absolute with Lu (Alzuguir) and win my third world championship. First, though, I’ll compete at the Cup in Milan, Italy. The event values girls too. And I’m not going to hide behind any title, I’ll compete against anyone – I want to etch my name in Jiu-Jitsu history.

Gabi venceu Penny Thomas na final acima de 65kg, por 9 a 0. Foto: Luca Atalla.

Gabrielle Garcia, 25 anos, adicionou mais uma honraria ao seu vasto currículo no Jiu-Jitsu. Bicampeã do World Pro? Também, mas não somente isso.

“Sou a primeira mulher a treinar com xeque Tahnoon”, constata a faixa-preta, num misto de incredulidade e orgulho, após voltar ao Brasil.

Em bate-papo com o GRACIEMAG.com, a peso pesado gaúcha fala do treino com o poderoso xeque de Abu Dhabi, e analisa sua atuação no World Pro 2011, torneio encerrado no último sábado.

ATUAÇÃO:
A alegria é imensa com a conquista, pois eu queria muito meu bicampeonato. Só eu sei o quanto treinei, o quanto me dediquei. Fiquei muito feliz com meu desempenho, achei que foi meu melhor campeonato. Arrisquei mais e fiz coisas que eu nunca tinha feito em competição.

O XEQUE:
Tive uma passagem fantástica por Abu Dhabi. Além do título, fui a primeira mulher a treinar com xeque Tahnnon! Fui recebida por ele no palácio, e só posso ficar feliz de estar abrindo novas portas para o Jiu-Jitsu feminino. Dividir o tatame com xeque Tahnoon, Renzo Gracie e Cobrinha foi uma grande honra. Voltei realizada.

ZEBRA SOLTA NO WORLD PRO:
Ninguém está livre da derrota. Somos mortais, não máquinas, então nada está pré-estabelecido. Teve atleta que sentiu o fuso horário, que chegou em cima da hora, e a viagem de São Paulo durou 30 horas. Fiquei triste por algumas pessoas que perderam, pois acompanho o treino e a dedicação de muita gente ali, mas tenho certeza que toda derrota serve ao crescimento pessoal, ao amadurecimento. Não existem mais favoritos hoje, todos estão muito preparados.

FOCO NO MUNDIAL:
Agora meu foco é o Mundial da IBJJF, na Califórnia. Quero muito vencer o peso e o absoluto, e vou me dedicar ainda mais. Quero fechar o absoluto com a Lu (Alzuguir) e buscar meu tri mundial. Antes, porém, luto a Cup em Milão, na Itália. É um evento que valoriza as meninas também. E não vou me esconder atrás de título nenhum, vou lutar tudo – quero escrever meu nome na história do Jiu-Jitsu.

Gabi defeats Talita Treta. Photo: Luca Atalla.

The World Pro female division’s finals have also materialized, in Abu Dhabi. Gabi Garcia beat three opponents and will next face Penny Thomas in the over-65 kg division.

“Thanks, God! I’m in another World Pro final! I fought really well today. I hope I wake up inspired tomorrow, to win another one,” commented Gabi Garcia over Twitter (@gabijiu).

One weight group down, the decider is between Gabi’s Alliance teammate Luanna Alzuguir and Bia Mesquita, a repeat of last year’s final. Luanna won by judges’ decision in 2010.

Check back with GRACIEMAG.com for further information.