Thamara Ferreira

Thamara Ferreira Silva was born on November 26, 1995, in Suzano, São Paulo state, Brazil, and grew up in the neighboring city of Itaquaquecetuba. From an early age, she exhibited the discipline and competitive temperament that would define her athletic journey.

Her first serious pursuit was artistic gymnastics, which she trained under coach Rodrigo Miranda at both national and international levels. Her development earned her a place at the Brazilian National campus in Guarulhos, São Paulo — a testament to her early potential. She stepped away from gymnastics at 12, but the technical rigor and mental fortitude built during those years left a lasting imprint on her athletic identity.

Following gymnastics, Thamara transitioned to football (soccer), representing her regional team for two years before redirecting her energy entirely toward academics. She enrolled in a pre-college program with aspirations of earning a law degree — a path that proved short-lived but set the stage for her unexpected introduction to jiu-jitsu.

Thamara encountered Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu at 16 under entirely unplanned circumstances. Drawn back to physical activity during her pre-college studies, she stepped onto the mat through free BJJ classes offered at her campus — curious, competitive by nature, and with no prior knowledge of the sport or its culture.

Her first instructor was Marco Barbosa, a world-renowned black belt who guided her development through the blue belt stage. Despite training under such a distinguished figure, Thamara did not take to jiu-jitsu immediately. By her own account, it was the tournament format — the structured, high-stakes competitive environment — that kept her engaged during those early months. The sport's competitive framework resonated with the same drive that had fueled her years in gymnastics and football.

That initial reluctance gave way to genuine passion by blue belt. Fully embedded in grappling culture and certain of the direction she wanted her life to take, she made the decisive choice to leave her law degree behind and commit entirely to jiu-jitsu — a pivotal turning point that transformed her from a reluctant beginner into a full-time athlete with ambitions on the world stage.

Upon earning her blue belt, Thamara joined Cicero Costha — also known as PSLPB (Projeto Social Lutando Pelo Bem) — where she would remain through her entire colored belt career and into black belt. While Marco Barbosa had been instrumental in her foundation, it was within Cicero Costha's high-performance environment that Thamara fully emerged as a world-class competitor.

Colored Belt Highlights

Her record across the colored belt divisions reflects rapid and consistent growth. At blue belt, she captured gold at the IBJJF South American Championship in 2015 and claimed the CBJJ Brazilian Nationals No-Gi title that same year. As a purple belt, she reached the IBJJF World Championship final in 2017 while also winning the AJP Grand Slam in London. The brown belt years, however, marked her most prolific stretch: she claimed gi and no-gi gold at the IBJJF World Championship in 2019 and 2018 respectively, secured the AJP Abu Dhabi World Pro title, collected multiple CBJJ Brazilian Nationals titles, and earned victories across AJP Grand Slam events in Abu Dhabi, London, and Rio de Janeiro.

In June 2019, Cicero Costha awarded Thamara her black belt — the culmination of a decorated colored belt career and the beginning of an even more competitive chapter.

Thamara's transition to the black belt division was seamless. Competing at Peso Médio (69.00 kg / 152.5 lbs), she established herself as a consistent contender at the sport's highest level across both gi and no-gi formats.

Early Black Belt Success (2019–2021)

Immediately following her black belt promotion in 2019, she added AJP Grand Slam titles in Los Angeles and Rio de Janeiro to her résumé. The 2020 season brought gold at the 2020 IBJJF European Open, a Grand Slam victory in Abu Dhabi, and a bronze medal at the AJP Queen of Mats Heavyweight Grand Prix — a result earned against some of the most physically formidable competitors in the division. The 2021 IBJJF World Championship saw her earn silver, underscoring her consistency at the elite level.

Continued Growth and Landmark Victories (2022–2024)

Thamara continued building her black belt legacy with gold at the 2022 IBJJF Pan Jiu-Jitsu Championship and a string of AJP circuit podium finishes. In 2023, she secured gold at the IBJJF American Nationals and reached the silver medal position at both the IBJJF World Championship No-Gi and the American Nationals Absolute and No-Gi Absolute events — a performance that demonstrated her versatility across formats and weight categories. The 2024 season marked a landmark year, with Thamara winning both the IBJJF World Championship and the CBJJ Brazilian Nationals, affirming her place among the premier competitors in her division.

In 2020, Thamara made a significant shift in her professional environment, moving from Cicero Costha to Guigo Jiu-Jitsu, based in the São Paulo region. The transition came about organically: she had visited the academy to help teammate Yara Soares prepare for competition and found herself drawn to the culture head coach Luiz Guigo had built.

A Training Environment Built on Equality

What distinguished Guigo Jiu-Jitsu in Thamara's view was its philosophy of genuine equality on the mats — an environment where male and female athletes train alongside one another as true peers. She identified this as both rare and deeply valuable, reflecting the principles she wanted at the center of her continued development as an athlete.

Thamara became an official member of Guigo Jiu-Jitsu on August 10, 2020. The move carried the full respect and support of Cicero Costha, with whom she maintained a positive relationship following her departure. At Guigo JJ, she trains alongside Yara Soares, Meyram Maquine, and Eduardo Lopes, continuing to sharpen her craft within a team environment that matches both her competitive ambitions and her personal values.