Ingridd Alves

Ingridd Alves was born on January 29, 1995, in Teresina, the capital of the Brazilian state of Piauí. Raised as the daughter of a military man, she spent her childhood moving across Brazil whenever her father received a new posting. The constant relocations never dulled her competitive edge — throughout her school years, she channeled her energy into sports, competing at a serious level in both futsal and volleyball.

Adulthood, however, brought a different kind of challenge. Alves gradually fell into a sedentary lifestyle and eventually surpassed 100 kilograms (220 lbs). The physical changes carried real emotional weight, manifesting in persistent insecurities and a struggle with self-esteem. In late 2014, she made a decisive choice: she walked into a jiu-jitsu school housed inside a military club, and everything changed. In a January 2021 interview with BJJ Heroes, she described the sport with characteristic humor as a "love at first choke." Within months, she shed 30 kilograms (66 lbs), and jiu-jitsu had reshaped not just her body but her entire perspective on life.

Finding Competitive Fire

Alves's appetite for competition emerged almost immediately, well before she had fully settled into the sport. Her very first competitive match ended when she was choked unconscious — an experience that might have ended many beginners' journeys. For Alves, it had the opposite effect, pulling her back to the training room with sharper focus and a more determined competitive drive.

Development Under Coach Albuquerque

Her growth as an athlete unfolded under the guidance of coach Edilson Albuquerque, whose gym, though situated outside Brazil's major BJJ hubs, cultivated a serious and demanding training environment. The academy built affiliations with notable organizations over the years, including the well-regarded Northeastern Brazilian team SAS and the international NewSchool Brotherhood. Alves maximized the opportunities these networks provided, traveling to Fortaleza to train extensively under coach Eduardo Cunha and supplement her preparation. Through disciplined coaching and intelligent use of every available resource, she built a reputation on the Brazilian competitive circuit that far exceeded what her training base might have suggested.

Rising Through the Ranks

Alves's progress through the belt ranks came with increasingly significant results at major events. Between 2018 and 2020, competing at purple and brown belt, she collected titles at the IBJJF European Championship, the IBJJF South American Championship, and multiple AJP events, including the Brazil National Pro and the Brasília Pro. Back-to-back runner-up finishes at the CBJJ Brazilian Nationals in 2018 and 2019 at purple belt underscored her consistency at the national level. In early 2021, she relocated to São Paulo and joined the Guigo Jiu-Jitsu Academy — a move that marked the start of the most accomplished phase of her career.

A Dominant Black Belt Debut: 2021

Alves's transition to black belt competition produced results that quickly confirmed her place among the sport's elite heavyweights. In 2021, she delivered one of her most dominant seasons, sweeping both the weight and absolute divisions at the IBJJF South American Championship and the CBJJ Brazilian Nationals. That same year, she captured the AJP Abu Dhabi World Pro title and the AJP North America Continental Pro absolute crown, while also completing a weight and absolute double at the AJP Brazil National Pro — establishing herself as a force across multiple international circuits simultaneously.

Sustained Excellence: 2022–2023

The seasons that followed confirmed the 2021 breakthrough as the foundation of a lasting career, not a peak. In 2022, Alves won the AJP Africa Continental Pro and reached the final of the ADCC Brazilian Trials, where a runner-up finish demonstrated her crossover capability in no-gi grappling. She continued to accumulate AJP Grand Slam podium appearances throughout this period, including multiple silver medals at the Rio de Janeiro leg of the circuit.

The 2023 season brought further high-level results, headlined by a second AJP Abu Dhabi World Pro title and Grand Slam gold medals at both the Rio de Janeiro and Abu Dhabi events. A bronze at the AJP Abu Dhabi World Pro and a silver at the IBJJF Pan Championship completed a year that reinforced her standing among the top competitors in the Pesado division (79 kg / 175 lbs).

Ascending the IBJJF Podium: 2024–2025

Alves's trajectory through the IBJJF's major calendar events reflected a clear and steady upward progression. After finishing runner-up at the 2024 IBJJF European Open, she returned to the same competition the following year and claimed gold at the 2025 IBJJF European Championship. At the Pan Championship, a silver in 2023 gave way to a title at the 2024 Pan Jiu-Jitsu IBJJF Championship. A bronze medal at the 2024 IBJJF World Championship completed a year in which she stood on the podium of every major IBJJF event she entered — a testament to the sustained excellence that defines her black belt career.