Leandro Lo

Leandro Lo Pereira do Nascimento was born on May 11, 1989, on the east side of São Paulo, Brazil. He began Brazilian jiu-jitsu at 14 through Projeto Social Lutando Pelo Bem (PSLPB), the social project led by Cícero Costha, and quickly became the academy's standout competitor. Lo won his first IBJJF World title as a junior blue belt in 2005, collected major colored-belt medals despite an injury-interrupted purple-belt period, and received his black belt from Costha in July 2010.

Lo's senior breakthrough came in 2011 at the Abu Dhabi World Pro, where he defeated Celso Vinicius and Michael Langhi, ending Langhi's long unbeaten run and announcing himself as an elite lightweight. In 2012 he won the IBJJF World Championship, Pan Championship, and Brazilian Nationals at lightweight, then repeated as lightweight world champion in 2013 before moving up through middleweight and medium-heavyweight. His game evolved from the spider guard and triangle attacks of his early years into relentless toreando passing, pressure, opportunistic chokes, and a famously effective double-leg takedown when matches demanded points.

After winning the major lightweight titles, Lo kept chasing bigger divisions rather than protecting a single lane. He left PSLPB in September 2015 with teammates including Luiza Monteiro, Hélio Dias, Gustavo Braguinha, Ygor Schneider, Anderson Lira, and Wellington Luís to form Jiu-Jitsu New School Brotherhood. In 2016 he became the first Copa Pódio triple-crown champion by winning lightweight, middleweight, and heavyweight grand prix titles in the same year. In 2017 he added European, Pan, and Brazilian Nationals double-gold campaigns, and across 2018 and 2019 he added open-weight and heavyweight world titles to become a Worlds champion in five divisions.

Lo's final competitive chapter reinforced his historical importance. After injuries and difficult seasons, he trained at Unity Jiu Jitsu in New York, returned to medium-heavyweight, earned bronze at the 2021 Worlds, and in June 2022 defeated Rafael dos Anjos, Andre Porfirio, Bruno Lima, and Isaque Bahiense to claim his eighth IBJJF World Championship, ten years after his first black-belt world title. The win placed him among the small group of eight-time male black-belt world champions and gave his career a decade-long arc at the top of the sport.

On August 7, 2022, Lo was fatally shot at Clube Sírio in São Paulo after an altercation with an off-duty military police officer. He was 33. The loss was mourned across jiu-jitsu: IBJJF called him one of the greatest athletes the sport had produced and later announced his posthumous Hall of Fame induction on what would have been his 34th birthday. Lo remains remembered not only for records and titles, but for the charisma, rivalry, loyalty, and attacking pace that made entire arenas chant his name.