Catriel Oliveira

Catriel Oliveira Rodrigues was born on July 6, 2000, in Nova Iguaçu, Brazil — a city in the greater Rio de Janeiro metropolitan area with a deep-rooted jiu-jitsu culture. By his own account, Catriel was not an easy child to manage. His energy and aggressive temperament became a concern at school, prompting the principal to reach out to his parents and suggest martial arts as a constructive outlet — a way to channel his intensity while introducing much-needed discipline into his daily life.

Heeding that advice, Catriel's parents enrolled their 11-year-old son in a local judo club, marking his first steps onto the martial arts mat. The experience lasted approximately four months before logistical considerations prompted a change. A BJJ social project operating closer to home offered a more practical option, and at nearly 12 years old, Catriel made the transition to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. His early instruction came from coaches Flávio dos Santos and Edson da Silva at an affiliate of Sylvio Behring's team, where he absorbed the foundational techniques that would define his athletic identity.

The transition proved to be a natural fit. Catriel took to competition almost immediately and developed a genuine appetite for testing himself on the mat. As he progressed to orange belt, however, it became clear that his school was not oriented toward high-level competitive development. The training environment had introduced him to the sport, but it could not satisfy the competitive ambitions already taking shape.

The next chapter of Catriel's development began in late 2015 when he discovered that Júlio dos Anjos — then regarded as one of Brazil's top purple belts — was running a training room just a few blocks from his home in Nova Iguaçu. The proximity was fortuitous. Catriel began attending dos Anjos' sessions regularly, drawn by the higher caliber of training and the competitive mindset that defined the environment. He soon formally joined GF Team, gaining access to the infrastructure, coaching, and sparring partners his ambitions demanded.

The impact was immediate and measurable. Competing across both the IBJJF and AJP circuits in the Meio Pesado division, Catriel assembled one of the most decorated colored belt résumés of his generation. At blue belt, he won the IBJJF South American Championship in 2016, claimed a 3rd place finish in the absolute division as a juvenile competitor that same year, took gold at the 2019 IBJJF Rio Open, and captured the CBJJ Brazilian Nationals NOGI title in 2017. At purple belt, he added the 2019 IBJJF Rio BJJ Pro to his résumé before elevating his game even further at brown belt.

The brown belt years proved decisive in building his international profile. Catriel won the AJP Grand Slam London in 2020, then delivered a string of dominant performances in 2021 — claiming gold at the AJP Asia Continental Pro, the AJP Grand Slam Abu Dhabi, and the AJP Abu Dhabi World Pro Qualifiers. The crown jewel of his colored belt career came with gold at the AJP Abu Dhabi World Pro, a result that announced him as one of the sport's most compelling emerging talents. Along the way, he recorded victories over respected competitors including Jansen Gomes, Pedro Lucas, Pedro Machado, and Sebastian Rodriguez — results that underscored his readiness for the black belt division.

For all his success on the competition circuit, Catriel's achievements did not translate into financial stability. By the start of 2021, with a wife and young child to support, he found himself seriously contemplating walking away from jiu-jitsu altogether. The gap between competitive accomplishment and economic security had grown difficult to sustain, and the prospect of leaving the sport he had dedicated his adolescence to was becoming increasingly real.

The turning point came from an unexpected direction. Júlio dos Anjos, who had relocated to the United Arab Emirates, reached out and offered Catriel a coaching position at his newly opened gym in Abu Dhabi. The offer represented far more than employment — it was a lifeline that allowed him to remain in the sport while building a stable foundation for his family. He accepted, relocated to Abu Dhabi, and found renewed purpose both as a coach and as a competitor.

In August 2021, that renewal was formalized in the most meaningful way possible when Júlio dos Anjos promoted Catriel to black belt — a milestone tied directly to his gold medal performance at the AJP World Pro tournament. The promotion was awarded jointly under Júlio dos Anjos and Júlio César Pereira, reflecting both the direct coaching relationship with dos Anjos and the broader lineage of GF Team that had shaped Catriel's development from orange belt onward. The black belt represented the culmination of a decade of work that had nearly been abandoned months earlier.

Catriel's transition to black belt competition was seamless. Competing in the Meio Pesado division (88.30 kg / 195.0 lbs), he wasted no time establishing himself on the AJP Tour. Among his first black belt appearances, he claimed gold at the AJP Vice President Cup in 2021, signaling that the elevated level of competition had not disrupted his momentum.

The 2022 season reinforced that assessment. Catriel captured gold at the 2022 AJP Grand Slam Abu Dhabi — one of the AJP Tour's most competitive annual events — while also reaching the finals at the AJP Grand Slam London that same year. His runner-up finish at the AJP Grand Slam Moscow in 2021 added further evidence of his consistency at the highest level of AJP competition. His base in Abu Dhabi, established through his coaching role at dos Anjos' academy, provided logistical advantages that allowed him to compete regularly on the AJP circuit and maintain the competitive rhythm that accelerates development at the black belt level.

Representing GF Team under the guidance of Júlio dos Anjos and Júlio César Pereira, Catriel Oliveira's trajectory — from a restless child in Nova Iguaçu to a black belt standout on the international AJP circuit — stands as a testament to the transformative potential of jiu-jitsu, and to the well-timed intervention of coaches and mentors who recognized his talent when he was closest to walking away.