Alison Tremblay

Alison Tremblay was born on November 30, 1990, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, into a family with deep roots in martial arts. Around age 10, her family relocated to Carleton Place, Ontario — a move that would prove pivotal to her athletic development. Her father, Peter Tremblay, had been a dedicated martial arts practitioner since 1972, adding jiu-jitsu to his training in 1998. By 2000, having earned his blue belt, Peter began teaching Alison at the family's facility, Alpha MMA, establishing himself as one of the early pioneers of the grappling art in the Ontario region.

Despite consistent jiu-jitsu training from a young age, Alison's primary competitive focus during her early teens was hockey. It was not until 2007, at age 16, that she stepped onto the tournament mat for the first time. The experience proved transformative — energized by competition, she immediately committed to six training sessions per week. That pivotal decision marked the beginning of a competitive career that would carry her to the sport's highest levels.

Alison's path through the belt ranks unfolded under her father's guidance at Alpha MMA in Carleton Place, making her development a distinctly family-driven journey. From the moment she began competing seriously in 2007, she demonstrated a consistent ability to perform at the top of her divisions across belt levels.

Blue and Purple Belt Dominance

At blue belt, Alison announced herself as an elite talent with back-to-back runner-up finishes at the IBJJF World Championship in 2010 and 2011, while also capturing Pan American No-Gi titles in the weight and absolute divisions in 2011. Her momentum carried seamlessly into purple belt, where she claimed World Championship gold in 2012 and added Pan American No-Gi titles in both 2012 and 2013.

Brown Belt Excellence and Black Belt Promotion

The pattern of excellence continued at brown belt, where Alison earned the World Championship title in 2014 alongside a third-place finish in the brown belt absolute division at the same event. That sustained record of achievement across multiple belt levels culminated on November 22, 2014, when she received her black belt promotion — a milestone reflecting both her competitive results and the depth of her technical development. Throughout this journey, she competed as a member of Brazilian Top Team (BTT), one of the most storied organizations in the sport's history.

Alison's transition to the black belt division following her promotion in November 2014 was immediate and emphatic. Competing in the Super Pesado (Super Heavy) division, she wasted no time establishing herself among the sport's elite at its highest level.

Establishing Black Belt Credentials

In 2015, she captured the Pan American No-Gi Championship at black belt, demonstrating that her no-gi credentials translated powerfully into the new division. That same year, she advanced to the final of the IBJJF World Championship, earning a silver medal after falling to Fernanda Mazzeli. The result, while a narrow defeat, firmly confirmed her standing among the world's best competitors and reflected a career-long pattern of performing on the sport's grandest stages.

A Legacy in Canadian Jiu-Jitsu

Across her competitive career, Alison built one of the most decorated records among Canadian female practitioners of her generation, accumulating medals at IBJJF World Championships and Pan American events spanning blue, purple, brown, and black belt divisions in both gi and no-gi formats. Representing Canada throughout, she served as a standard-bearer for the growth of women's jiu-jitsu in the country.