Pierre-Olivier Leclerc

Pierre-Olivier Leclerc is a professional Canadian grappler and a black belt in Jiu-Jitsu under Firas Zahabi, as well as a representative of the Montreal, Quebec-based TriStar Gym. Leclerc has also worked extensively with John Danaher as well as the B-Team squad and was part of the well-known workgroup that pioneered the revival of the leg-lock game in professional grappling during the late 2010s.

Pierre-Olivier Leclerc Jiu-Jitsu

Full Name: Pierre-Olivier Leclerc

Nickname: n/a

Lineage: Carlos Gracie > Helio Gracie > Carlos Gracie Jr > Renzo Gracie > John Danaher> Firas Zahabi > Pierre-Olivier Leclerc

Main Achievement:

• 1st Place ADCC Dallas Open (2023)
• 2nd Place IBJJF European Championship NOGI (2024)
• 2nd Place ADCC Las Vegas Open (2024)
• 2nd Place KASAI Qualifier (2018)
• 3rd Place BJJ Fanatics GP (2021)

Main Achievement (Colored Belts):

• 1st Place IBJJF Pan Championship NOGI (2019 purple, 2022 brown)
• 2nd Place IBJJF European Championship NOGI (2019 purple)

Favorite Position/Technique: Foot Sweeps & Heel Hooks

Weight Division: Peso Médio (82kg/181lbs)

Team/Association: TriStar Gym

Pierre-Olivier Leclerc Biography

Pierre-Olivier Leclerc was born in May 1993, in Longueuil, Québec, Canada, where he grew up.

Being in Canada, Winter sports were a part of Pierre’s upbringing, particularly Skiing and Ice Hockey, the latter of which, Leclerc competed in extensively for 10 years.

At the age of 18, Pierre-Olivier Leclerc relocated to Montreal, Longueuil’s neighboring city. While living in the largest city of the Québec province, POL gained an interest in mixed martial arts (MMA), partially influenced by Canada’s most popular cage fighter, George St-Pierre (GSP).

To help him get initiated in combat sports, Leclerc sought the gym that developed GSP, TriStar, in 2014. There, he met head coach Firas Zahabi, who became his mentor in this new endeavor.

The following year, 2015, the heel hook revolution was well underway in the sport of Jiu-Jitsu, led by American athlete Eddie Cummings and his training partners at New York’s famous Blue Basement workspace. Following the trend, coach Firas Zahabi brought Cummings and one of Eddie’s main colleagues, Gary Tonon, to help the TriStar team learn this segment of the game. The experience opened the eyes of Pierre-Olivier Leclerc and his close training partners Oliver Taza & Ethan Crelinsten to the power of this new school of grappling, which led the trio to focus on leg locks and entanglements.

Another one of Pierre’s TriStar colleagues, MMA fighter Tom Breese, was also interested in the teachings of coach John Danaher at the Blue Basement. He started making regular trips to New York and, at one point, while preparing for a cage match, Breese brought one of Danaher’s top students, Gordon Ryan, to be part of his training camp at TriStar. Ryan was a purple belt at the time, but his talent was already undeniable.

The experience of training alongside Ryan helped Leclerc and his friends develop even further in their leg-lock games. The enthusiasm led some of them to start making regular trips to New York, USA, to train at the aforementioned Blue Basement, including Pierre.

Although always a representative of TriStar throughout his career, Pierre spent extended periods with John Danaher during his purple and brown belt days. After Danaher’s workgroup split and some of John’s students formed the B-Team, Leclerc also spent much of his training with this squad in Austin, Texas.

Pierre-Olivier Leclerc was promoted to the black belt rank on January 14, 2023, by his instructor, Firas Zahabi.

REGARDING PIERRE LECLERC’S RECORD

Although BJJ Heroes traditionally accounts for adult black belt records only, as this is regarded as the professional division of the sport in the Gi, Pierre-Olivier Leclerc competed almost exclusively in No-Gi where waters are murkier, particularly in events outside of the major federations’ jurisdiction. As a purple belt, Pierre was already competing against black belts in events such as Kasai & the ADCC Trials, therefore, we also added his matches in these (and other) professional events in a time when Leclerc was still a colored belt, given the matches’ significance in his career.