Giovanna Jara

Giovanna Jara de Souza is a professional jiu-jitsu player and a black belt, a promotion earned from her own mother, Lucinha Jara. Giovanna first made waves in the sport in the juvenile division when she conquered two (2) Brazilian National titles before breaking through in the adult division where she improved on her past success. Jara also conquered a place at the 2022 ADCC World Championships after winning the Brazilian Qualifiers as a purple belt, an uncommon feat for a colored belt athlete at this level of competition.

Giovanna Jara Jiu-Jitsu

Full Name: Giovanna Jara de Souza

Nickname: N/A

Lineage: Carlos Gracie > Helio Gracie > Rickson Gracie > Marcelo Behring > Waldomiro Perez > Roberto Godoi > Marco Barbosa > Cicero Costha > Bruno Damieri > Lucinha Jara > Giovanna Jara

Main Achievements (Pro):

• 1st Place ADCC 2nd Brazil Trials (2022)
• 2nd Place AJP Grand Slam, MIA (2022)
• 3rd Place AJP Grand Slam, RJ (2022)

Main Achievements (Colored Belts):

• 1st Place IBJJF World Championship (2021** blue, 2022** purple)
• 1st Place IBJJF Pan Championship (2022** purple)
• 1st Place CBJJ Brazilian Nationals (2021 blue, 2022** purple)
• 1st Place CBJJ Brazilian Nationals NOGI (2022 brown)
• 1st Place CBJJ South American Championship NOGI (2021 blue)
• 1st Place CBJJ South Brazil Championship (2020 blue)
• 1st Place AJP Abu Dhabi World Pro (2021 blue)
• 1st Place AJP South American Pro (2022 purple)
• 1st Place AJP Grand Slam, RJ (2019 / 2020 blue)

Main Achievements (Junior / Juvenile):

• 1st Place Brazilian Nationals (2016 / 2017)
• 3rd Place Brazilian Nationals (2018 / 2019)

Favorite Position/Technique: Open Guard

Weight Division: Peso Pesado (79.3 kg / 174.8 lb)

Team/Association: Fratres

Giovanna Jara Biography

Giovanna Jara was born on January 23, 2003, in Costa Rica a municipality located in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul, growing in in Campo Grande, also in MGS.

Drawn to sports from an early age, Giovanna started playing handball in the scholastic circuit as a child, an activity she would play for a number of years.

At the age of 10, when watching the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) with her father was somewhat of a family ritual, Jara became growingly interested in fighting, particularly fascinated by grappling. The interest propelled Giovanna’s dad to sign her on to a local jiu-jitsu gym – GFTeam Campo Grande.

After a handful of classes, Giovanna was already hooked on the sport, and shortly after she started competing and doing well in the local tournament scene. The victories would lead Jara to compete at a national level in her early teens, winning her first Brazilian title at the age of 13.

Sometime after being promoted to blue belt, Giovanna changed training camps and switched to Alliance – Campo Grande – where the roll of positive results kept coming and where she earned her purple belt.

Despite her good results on the mats, Jara was struggling financially and saw no professional future in the sport. Resigned to what the future had in store for her, Giovanna decided to put her sporting aspirations aside and become a BJJ hobbyist, settling for a life outside of the sport and accepting a marriage offer from her, then-boyfriend.

Soon after Giovanna decided to quit seeking a professional route for her sporting endeavor she received information that the Dream Art project – one of the sports foremost pro teams – was looking for a female athlete of her weight for their squad. After following the application process, Jara was accepted.

At the time, Dream Art only had lodging for the male squad, nevertheless, Jara immediately jumped on the opportunity to join the workgroup, leaving her hometown and her settled life to pay for her own room as she tried to finally go pro. Giovanna arrived on January 2021 and was finally moved on to the Fighter’s House in April of that year.

Under the guidance of Dream Art’s coaches, Giovanna’s career went above and beyond anything she had done previously, earning her brown belt from coach Isaque Bahiense in June 2022 after a double gold medal at the IBJJF World Championship. Jara would change teams and join Fratres in 2023, earning her black belt on May 23 of that year, from her mother, Lucinha Jara.

NOTE REGARDING GIOVANNA JARA’S RECORD

Traditionally BJJ Heroes has only accounted for black belt records as they signify an athlete’s entry into our sport’s elite ranks. Jara, however, is a special case as she’s been competing in the pro-grappling circuit since her colored belt days. This has left BJJ Heroes with a delicate predicament of defining when to start accounting for the young standout’s match records.

Considering the real challenge Giovanna Jara offers to any big event he competes in, we have decided to add her matches at a pro-level prior to being ranked as a black belt, for historic purposes. Our readers should keep in mind that Jara was still a brown belt during her 2022 run. Her first competition as a black belt was the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam, Miami, in 2023 (labeled on her record as ADGS Miami).