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Deborah Luisa Gautier Meza

Deborah Gautier taught children and organized tournaments for women and young athletes in Peru while pursuing international competition.

Biography

Deborah Gautier was organizing competitions for children and women years before she earned her black belt. The Peruvian instructor and competitor has combined running a school in Lima with international competition, from a South American title at purple belt to black-belt podiums at the IBJJF World Master. Learning and building a school Gautier discovered jiu-jitsu while studying communications and practicing boxing. In 2002, while living in the United States, she began training in the gi, the sport's jacket-and-trousers uniform. She also started teaching children there. She returned to Lima as a blue belt; her training later included a four-year break after having two children. By 2013, she was helping create events for younger competitors and women. That August, she co-organized a tournament with Marlon Ribeiro, Ricieli and Luigi Battistini, bringing together athletes from several schools in children's, youth and adult women's divisions. Another children's and youth tournament took place at her La Molina school in December 2015. Her work extended beyond classes to providing places where students from different schools could compete. An El Comercio profile in 2016 described her directing an academy and organizing tournaments while raising her children. In the same interview, Gautier spoke about learning to manage fear and insecurity, and to control how she used force. For her, the practice also involved how she behaved away from training. Competition alongside teaching Her own competitive progress ran alongside that work. At the 2015 IBJJF South American Championship, she represented Fight Sports and won women's Master 1 purple-belt featherweight. She also took silver in the open class, where competitors are not separated by weight. In 2017 she joined Almeida Jiu-Jitsu, coached by Tano Fernández. That July, El Comercio reported her victory at the CBJJE World Championship in São Paulo: competing at brown belt, she entered the 64 kg lightweight division, above her usual category, and won a match to take gold. Fernández was part of the same Almeida JJ Peru delegation and also competed. A presentation outlining her goals for 2019 brought her teaching and competition plans together. She described coaching adults and children at Almeida JJ La Molina, teaching at the Roosevelt and San José de Monterrico schools, organizing BJJ Champs, and encouraging women's participation through seminars. She wanted to take her children's team overseas and win a black-belt World Master title herself. Those plans had a practical side. Her sponsorship proposal itemized the costs of travel, accommodation, entry fees, food and local transport. In return, she offered sponsors space on her uniform and publicity. Fernández awarded her black belt in July 2019. La República identifies her as the first Peruvian woman to reach that rank. Gautier later told the newspaper that Caio Almeida awarded her first black-belt degree during his visit in 2022. World Master and the next team At black belt, she reached the podium in the IBJJF's age-group World Master competition. In 2022 she earned silver in women's Master 3 featherweight, listed under Atos Jiu-Jitsu. She followed with bronze in Master 4 featherweight in 2024 and 2025, representing Jfc Almeida JJ Peru. Her 2025 season also included bronze in the same age, belt and weight category at the IBJJF Pan Championship. She paid for her 2025 World Master trip herself, preparing around her responsibilities at the academy. In her September 2025 interview, she described using play to build trust in children's classes and teaching adolescents and women. She was building a women's team, with the hope that her students would compete internationally too.

Sources for this profile

  • Alejandro Cuadros, La República, interview/profile, 8 September 2025.(opens in a new tab)

    • La República identifies Gautier as Peru's first female BJJ black belt.

      Where in the source: Opening identification; anchor: primera mujer

      Accessed:

    • She discovered jiu-jitsu while studying communications and boxing, then began gi training in the United States in 2002.

      Where in the source: Training-origin section; anchor: 2002

      Accessed:

    • She started teaching children in the United States and returned to Lima as a blue belt.

      Where in the source: Paragraphs before and after academy photograph; anchor: azul

      Accessed:

    • Her training included a four-year interruption after having two children.

      Where in the source: Return-to-Peru paragraph; anchor: cuatro años

      Accessed:

    • She joined Almeida Jiu-Jitsu in 2017; Tano Fernández promoted her to black belt in July 2019.

      Where in the source: Promotion paragraph; anchor: julio de 2019

      Accessed:

    • She said Caio Almeida awarded her first black-belt degree during his 2022 visit.

      Where in the source: Her account immediately after black-belt promotion; anchor: 2022

      Accessed:

    • For the 2025 World Master, she funded her trip herself and fitted competition preparation around running her academy.

      Where in the source: World Master section on funding and preparation; anchor: academia

      Accessed:

    • Her children's teaching uses play to develop trust. She also teaches adolescents and women, builds a women's team, and hopes her students will compete abroad.

      Where in the source: Final teaching section; anchor: metodología lúdica

      Accessed:

  • Redacción EC, El Comercio, CBJJE championship report, 8 July 2017.(opens in a new tab)

    • Gautier is Peruvian.

      Where in the source: Headline: peruana Deborah Gautier

      Accessed:

    • El Comercio reported that she won CBJJE world-championship gold in São Paulo in July 2017 at brown belt, entering the 64 kg lightweight division above her usual class and winning one match.

      Where in the source: Opening report, paragraph describing Gautier's result; anchor: un combate

      Accessed:

    • Her 2017 team was Almeida JJ Peru, coached by Tano Fernández, who also competed on the trip.

      Where in the source: Subheading: entrenador de los tres; final delegation paragraph.

      Accessed:

  • El Comercio, three Peruvian sportswomen, 28 November 2016.(opens in a new tab)

    • By November 2016 she was directing a jiu-jitsu academy and organizing tournaments in Lima while raising two children.

      Where in the source: Deborah Gautier; photograph caption and organizadora de campeonatos en Lima.

      Accessed:

    • She described learning to manage fear, insecurity and the application of force through jiu-jitsu, and spoke of conduct outside training as part of the practice.

      Where in the source: Deborah Gautier; closing answer: miedos e inseguridades.

      Accessed:

  • Sniper Gym Peru, Macaco, second children's and youth tournament report, 2 September 2013.(opens in a new tab)

    • Gautier co-organized an August 31, 2013 tournament with Marlon Ribeiro, Ricieli and Luigi Battistini. It included children's, youth and adult women's divisions and drew athletes from multiple schools.

      Where in the source: Opening paragraph of the dated event report; anchor: 31 de Agosto

      Accessed:

  • Sniper Gym Peru, Macaco, children's and youth tournament report, 19 December 2015.(opens in a new tab)

    • A children's and youth tournament was held at Gautier's La Molina school on December 19, 2015; the visiting Sniper academy reported its young athletes' participation.

      Where in the source: Opening paragraph; anchor: escuela de Deborah Gautier

      Accessed:

  • Deborah Gautier, personal sporting/sponsorship presentation, 2019 objectives, slides 1–10.(opens in a new tab)

    • In her presentation outlining 2019 goals, Gautier described coaching both children and adults at Almeida JJ La Molina, teaching at Roosevelt and San José de Monterrico schools, organizing BJJ Champs and promoting women's participation through seminars.

      Where in the source: Slide 3: Headcoach; teaching activities.

      Accessed:

    • Her stated plans combined international competition with promoting women's jiu-jitsu and taking her children's team to overseas events; winning a black-belt World Master title was already among her goals.

      Where in the source: Slide 6: Misión; international competition objectives.

      Accessed:

    • The presentation sought sponsorship for international trips, listing travel, lodging, entry, meals and transport costs and offering uniform patches and publicity to sponsors.

      Where in the source: Slides 8–10: Beneficios para el auspiciador; budgets and sponsor benefits.

      Accessed:

  • IBJJF, official event results; event and division specified in claim.(opens in a new tab)

    • At the 2015 IBJJF South American Championship she won women's Master 1 purple-belt featherweight and took second in the open class, representing Fight Sports.

      Where in the source: Female / Master 1 / Purple / Feather (56.50kg) and Open Class; Deborah Luisa Gautier Meza.

      Accessed:

  • IBJJF, official event results; event and division specified in claim.(opens in a new tab)

    • At the 2022 IBJJF World Master Championship she placed second in women's Master 3 black-belt featherweight, listed for Atos Jiu-Jitsu.

      Where in the source: Female / Master 3 / Black / Feather (129.00lb); Deborah Luisa Gautier Meza.

      Accessed:

  • IBJJF, official event results; event and division specified in claim.(opens in a new tab)

    • She earned bronze in women's Master 4 black-belt featherweight at the 2024 IBJJF World Master, representing Jfc Almeida JJ Peru.

      Where in the source: Female / Master 4 / Black / Feather (129.00lb); Deborah Luisa Gautier Meza.

      Accessed:

  • IBJJF, official event results; event and division specified in claim.(opens in a new tab)

    • At the 2025 IBJJF Pan Championship she took bronze in women's Master 4 black-belt featherweight for Jfc Almeida JJ Peru.

      Where in the source: Female / Master 4 / Black / Feather (129.00lb); Deborah Luisa Gautier Meza.

      Accessed:

  • IBJJF, official event results; event and division specified in claim.(opens in a new tab)

    • At the 2025 IBJJF World Master Championship she again took bronze in women's Master 4 black-belt featherweight, representing Jfc Almeida JJ Peru.

      Where in the source: Female / Master 4 / Black / Feather (129.00lb); Deborah Luisa Gautier Meza.

      Accessed:

Competition results

Recorded tournament results, newest first
YearEventResultDivision
2025IBJJF World Master ChampionshipSource: larepublica.peGiVerifiedBronzeGiVerified
2017CBJJE World ChampionshipSource: elcomercio.peGiVerifiedGoldGiVerified

Lineage

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Open lineage