Diego Sodre

Diego Sodré's entry into Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu was rooted not in a commercial academy, but in a grassroots initiative within his own neighborhood. At the age of 10, he was introduced to the sport when coach Othon Sevalho opened a small jiu-jitsu school in the community, offering free classes to local children. That accessible, community-driven environment planted the seeds of what would grow into a decorated international competitive career.

Developing under Othon Sevalho's early guidance, Sodré built a technical foundation that stayed with him throughout his progression. He would later benefit from the additional coaching of Nabil Aziz, a dual influence that sharpened both his technical game and competitive mindset. Growing up alongside his older brother Alex Sodré — himself an accomplished grappler — added another layer of competitive drive to his upbringing, creating a household environment that accelerated both athletes' development through the ranks.

Diego Sodré's climb through the colored belt divisions was defined by consistency and a pattern of winning at the sport's most prestigious events. Competing under the Clube Feijão banner, he began accumulating national and international titles from blue belt, capturing gold at the IBJJF South American Championship in both 2016 and 2017 and earning his first CBJJ Brazilian Team Nationals title in 2016.

The purple belt years marked a decisive step forward. In 2019, Sodré claimed gold at the IBJJF World Championship at purple belt — one of the most fiercely contested divisions in the sport — while also winning the CBJJ Brazilian Nationals and the AJP Grand Slam London that same year. Those performances confirmed him as one of the standout prospects of his generation.

His brown belt campaign in 2020 carried that momentum forward, highlighted by back-to-back AJP Grand Slam titles in Rio de Janeiro and Los Angeles. A particularly meaningful milestone followed when Sodré won the Spyder Invitational "Road to Black" tournament — a fitting symbolic prelude to the next chapter of his career. On December 7, 2020, Rodrigo Feijão promoted Diego Sodré to black belt, recognizing a colored belt résumé built on sustained excellence across multiple continents and competition formats.

Sodré's transition to the black belt division produced immediate results at the elite level. In 2022, he delivered arguably his most complete competitive year, winning gold at both the IBJJF Pan Championship and the IBJJF European Championship while capturing the AJP Abu Dhabi World Pro title — a trio of major victories that announced his arrival among the Peso Pena division's premier competitors. He backed up the Abu Dhabi World Pro title with a repeat performance in 2023, confirming that his 2022 results reflected genuine depth rather than a single standout season.

At the IBJJF World Championship, Sodré has proven himself a consistent medal contender across multiple years. He claimed bronze at the 2021 edition in his first major black belt Worlds result, reached the final in both 2022 and 2023 to earn silver medals on each occasion, and added another bronze in 2024. That run of five consecutive World Championship medals across four years places him firmly among the elite in the 70 kg division. Bronze finishes at both the IBJJF Pan Championship and IBJJF European Championship in 2024 further underscore a sustained level of performance across the full IBJJF calendar.

Throughout his black belt career, Sodré has competed in the Peso Pena division at 70 kg (154.5 lbs) as a representative of the Clube Feijão–Nova União team coalition.

Diego Sodré's black belt lineage traces directly to Rodrigo Feijão, a respected figure in Brazilian jiu-jitsu whose competitive and coaching credentials lend authority to the athletes he has developed. Feijão oversaw Sodré's progression through the ranks and awarded him his black belt in December 2020 — a promotion that reflected years of proven results on the mat.

The coaching structure surrounding Sodré has been a defining element of his development. The complementary influences of Nabil Aziz and Othon Sevalho — the latter present from the very first free community class of Sodré's childhood — represent a continuity of technical investment that spans his entire career. That unbroken coaching relationship, stretching from a neighborhood school with no-cost access through to elite black belt competition, speaks to the depth of personal and technical commitment made in his growth as an athlete.

Competing within the Clube Feijão–Nova União coalition provided Sodré with a high-performance team environment that has produced competitive athletes across multiple weight classes and generations. The coalition's combined resources and competitive depth have served as a consistent backdrop to his evolution — from a community beginner introduced to the sport for free, to a multiple-time world-level medalist representing Brazil on the international stage.