Donato Pires dos Reis
Directed the Rio academy where Carlos and George Gracie taught in 1930, the school that later became the Academia Gracie.
Biography
Sources for this profile
Riqueldi Straub Lise, Natasha Santos, Fernando Renato Cavichiolli and André Mendes Capraro, 'A biografia escrita por Reila Gracie e as fontes jornalísticas: revisando a história hegemônica', Movimento (UFRGS), vol. 23, no. 4, 2017, pp. 1149–1160.(opens in a new tab)
According to Rio newspapers of September 1930 (A Noite, Diário de Notícias and Correio da Manhã), the Academia de Jiu-Jitsu at Rua Marquês de Abrantes 106 in Rio de Janeiro was inaugurated on Saturday, 6 September 1930, with invited members of the city's press present.
Where in the source: pp. 1155–1156, section on the first jiu-jitsu academy in Rio, text after footnote 10 — '6 de setembro'
Accessed:
Diário de Notícias of 7 September 1930 described the academy as founded by Donato Pires dos Reis, a Brazilian from the state of Pará, whom it called a jiu-jitsu specialist who had learned the sport from Japanese masters.
Where in the source: p. 1156, first block quote (Diário de Notícias, 7 Sept. 1930, p. 23) — 'um paraense'
Accessed:
Diário de Notícias reported that the academy had three teachers — Pires dos Reis himself, Carlos Gracie and Jorge (George) Gracie, the last as monitor — and that within days of opening it had 12 to 15 selected students.
Where in the source: p. 1156, same block quote, second half — 'conta com três professores'
Accessed:
In September 1930 a jiu-jitsu academy opened at Rua Marquês de Abrantes 106 in Rio de Janeiro under the direction of Donato Pires dos Reis, with Carlos Gracie and Jorge (George) Gracie as teachers.
Where in the source: p. 1156, Correio da Manhã block quote (9 Sept. 1930) and the A Noite quotation after it (8 Sept. 1930) — 'sob a direção'
Accessed:
Pires gave Diário de Notícias a long interview on the characteristics of jiu-jitsu and the teaching methods used at the academy; it was illustrated with a photograph captioned as the school's director with the two professionals, showing Pires in the centre, Carlos Gracie in a suit and George Gracie in a robe.
Where in the source: p. 1157, paragraph before Figure 1 — 'longa entrevista'
Accessed:
Reila Gracie's 2008 biography of Carlos Gracie dates the Marquês de Abrantes academy to 1925 and calls it the Academia Gracie de Jiu-Jitsu; Lise and co-authors show that the contemporary press dated the opening to September 1930 under the name Academia de Jiu-Jitsu, and argue that the biography leaves out Pires's role as the academy's founder, director and teacher.
Where in the source: pp. 1155–1157, discussion of the book's chapter 7 and the paragraph on the 'apagamento' of Pires
Accessed:
According to Reila Gracie's biography, as summarized by Lise and co-authors, Pires, who had also learned jiu-jitsu from Conde Koma (Mitsuyo Maeda), invited Carlos Gracie to assist him with the jiu-jitsu classes he taught for the special police in Belo Horizonte, and Carlos accepted.
Where in the source: p. 1156, paragraph on the four mentions of Pires in Reila's book — 'Polícia Especial'
Accessed:
Reila Gracie's biography, as summarized by Lise and co-authors, says that by 1931 the Gracies regarded Pires as an adversary because he had given jiu-jitsu lessons to Manoel Rufino dos Santos, a Greco-Roman wrestler who faced Carlos Gracie, and that later that year Pires left Rio de Janeiro without further news of him.
Where in the source: p. 1156, same paragraph, second and fourth mentions — 'desapareceu'
Accessed:
Jorge Priori, 'Academia de Jiu-Jitsu, 1930 – A primeira do Brasil', Caderno dos Esportes, 29 December 2019 (Wayback Machine capture of 16 April 2021), transcribing Correio da Manhã, 9 September 1930.(opens in a new tab)
Correio da Manhã's report of the opening described demonstrations of disarming an opponent armed with a dagger, and a bout in which Carlos Gracie, weighing 59 kg, controlled the 90 kg sportsman Edgard Rocha within 160 seconds.
Where in the source: Transcription of Correio da Manhã, 9 Sept. 1930, second paragraph — 'armado de punhal'
Accessed:
At the opening, Alarico Cintra gave a speech on behalf of professors Donato Pires dos Reis, Carlos Gracie and Jorge Gracie that presented jiu-jitsu as a method of personal defence allowing physically weaker people to overcome aggressors without firearms, and noted that the three teachers had declared in letters to newspapers that they would measure themselves against anyone trained in another fighting school.
Where in the source: Transcribed speech in the Correio da Manhã report — 'Alarico Cintra'; later passage — 'qualquer outra escola'
Accessed:
- Conflicting accounts
Searching the Biblioteca Nacional's digital newspaper archive, Jorge Priori found the name 'Academia Gracie' appearing in the Rio press for the first time in Correio da Manhã on 9 December 1934, at the same address, Rua Marquês de Abrantes 106.
Where in the source: Paragraph after the transcribed speech — '9 de dezembro de 1934'
Accessed:
Josh Simon, 'The Origins of the Gracie Academy, Donato Pires dos Reis', Simon BJJ / BJJHistory.org (undated page, © 2025).(opens in a new tab)
Pires came from Belém and trained at Mitsuyo Maeda's academy there; according to Josh Simon, an article of June 1921 identifies him as a student of Jacyntho Ferro, Maeda's assistant instructor.
Where in the source: Main article, first paragraph — 'from Belem'
Accessed:
Simon writes that during the 1920s Pires spent much time in Belém training jiu-jitsu at Maeda's academy and boxing at João Scherrer's boxing school, performed jiu-jitsu exhibitions and had several amateur boxing bouts.
Where in the source: Main article, second paragraph — 'Escola de Pugilismo'
Accessed:
Pires said in several later interviews that he had received a certification from Maeda, a claim his peers did not challenge; Simon found no official confirmation that Maeda gave him a rank or degree.
Where in the source: Main article, third paragraph — 'official confirmation'
Accessed:
In 1928 Pires received a two-year contract to teach the state police of Minas Gerais; shortly before starting, he met Carlos Gracie in Rio de Janeiro and asked him to come to Minas Gerais as his assistant instructor.
Where in the source: Main article, fourth paragraph — 'two year contract'
Accessed:
Josh Simon writes that Pires's academy was not the first jiu-jitsu academy in Rio, since Mario Aleixo's came earlier, but that it was the first in the city led by a student of a Japanese master, and that it was the academy that became the Academia Gracie.
Where in the source: Main article, fifth paragraph — 'Mario Aleixo'
Accessed:
Pires worked as a tax collector, travelled frequently across Brazil for that work, and also taught self-defence programmes to law enforcement in other states.
Where in the source: Main article, paragraph on why he left — 'tax collector'
Accessed:
- Conflicting accounts
Simon states that Pires left the academy about three months after it opened, that Carlos and George Gracie took over as head instructors in December 1930, and that why Pires left is not known.
Where in the source: Main article, paragraphs after the O Globo quote — 'December 1930'
Accessed:
After leaving the Rio academy Pires stayed involved in jiu-jitsu, commentating on fights and serving as a fight official, and in 1939 he opened the 'Studio Scientifico de Defesa Pessoal' in São Paulo with George Gracie as his assistant instructor.
Where in the source: Main article, last text paragraph — 'Studio Scientifico'
Accessed:
- Conflicting accounts
Simon reports that the academy was being advertised in newspapers as 'Academia Gracie' from October 1932.
Where in the source: Main article, paragraph on the takeover — 'Oct 1932'
Accessed:
Pires's academy opened in September 1930 at Rua Marques de Abrantes 106 in Rio de Janeiro with Carlos and George Gracie as assistant instructors; O Globo announced the opening and named Pires as its director.
Where in the source: Main article, paragraphs on the opening and the O Globo notice — 'Sep 8, 1930'
Accessed:
Josh Simon, 'Carlos Gracie's Instructor, Jacyntho Ferro', Simon BJJ / BJJHistory.org (undated page).(opens in a new tab)
Josh Simon writes that among Jacyntho Ferro's students only Donato Pires and Carlos Gracie are known to have gone on to establish their own jiu-jitsu academies, and that Ferro died in 1929.
Where in the source: Article on Jacyntho Ferro, closing paragraph — 'establish their own'
Accessed:
Josh Simon, 'The Story of the Red Cat, George Gracie', Simon BJJ / BJJHistory.org (undated page, © 2025).(opens in a new tab)
Simon writes that when Pires opened his Rio academy in September 1930, Carlos Gracie was hired as assistant instructor and George Gracie as monitor, and that George and Pires kept up a friendship for many years.
Where in the source: Article on George Gracie, paragraph on the 1930 academy — 'monitor'
Accessed:
Simon writes that during his periods of estrangement from Carlos and Hélio Gracie, George Gracie trained at other academies, including with Donato Pires dos Reis, whom Simon calls Carlos's former training partner and boss.
Where in the source: Article on George Gracie, cross-training paragraph — 'former training partner and boss'
Accessed:
- Conflicting accounts
Simon writes that George Gracie signed up for an amateur boxing event in Rio in 1927 but did not compete, while Donato Pires did compete in that event.
Where in the source: Article on George Gracie, boxing paragraph — 'that very event'
Accessed:
Roberto Pedreira, 'Top 9 Classic Historical Myths and Misconceptions about Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu', Global Training Report (© 2016, last updated 15 October 2019), Wayback Machine capture of 18 October 2019.(opens in a new tab)
Roberto Pedreira describes Donato Pires dos Reis as the jiu-jitsu instructor of Carlos and George Gracie, and writes that Pires entered a Brazilian amateur boxing championship in Rio, weighed in and gloved up, and won by walk-over when his opponent did not appear.
Where in the source: Myth 6, 'Fact' paragraph on boxing — 'walk-over'
Accessed:
Pedreira argues that Carlos Gracie on several occasions added details from Pires's life to his own biography, and that Carlos's later claim of about 20 unbeaten boxing fights may have been an inflated version of Pires's single walk-over win.
Where in the source: Myth 6, same paragraph, closing sentences — 'dipping into'
Accessed:
Roberto Pedreira, review of Reila Gracie's Carlos Gracie: o criador de uma dinastia, chapter 6, Global Training Report (2013), Wayback Machine capture of 6 September 2019.(opens in a new tab)
In Reila Gracie's account, as summarized by Roberto Pedreira, Carlos Gracie ran into Donato Pires dos Reis, an acquaintance from Belém, on a street in Rio, and Pires helped him land work as a jiu-jitsu instructor in Belo Horizonte.
Where in the source: Review of chapter 6, paragraph beginning 'One day he met' — 'acquaintance from Belém'
Accessed:
Robert Drysdale, 'Who was Oscar Gracie and who taught him Jiu-Jitsu?', Global Training Report, 13 February 2018 (Wayback Machine capture of 15 February 2018), quoting Estado do Pará, 26 June 1921.(opens in a new tab)
A notice in the Belém newspaper Estado do Pará of 26 June 1921 announced jiu-jitsu contests at the Campo da Recreativa between Donato Pires dos Reis and 'Oscar Gracie', both described as students of Professor Jacintho Ferro, with Conde Koma (Mitsuyo Maeda), Ferro and Matheus L. Pereira as referees.
Where in the source: Transcribed 1921 notice near the top of the article — 'alumnus do prof. Jacintho Ferro'
Accessed:
Robert Drysdale considers 'Oscar Gracie' in the 1921 notice most likely a misprint for Carlos Gracie, and cites a later remark by Pires that 'some people' exaggerated their training with Maeda, which Drysdale reads as aimed at Carlos.
Where in the source: Paragraphs after the notice — 'some people'
Accessed:
Portal do Vale Tudo, 'Robert Drysdale levanta polêmicas sobre a origem do Jiu-Jitsu no Brasil e relembra principais conquistas da carreira', 24 April 2020.(opens in a new tab)
Speaking in April 2020, Robert Drysdale said that in an O Globo article of the period Donato Pires dos Reis, a student of Jacyntho Ferro, disputed Carlos Gracie's account by saying Carlos did not even know Maeda, and Drysdale added that Pires was certainly Carlos's teacher.
Where in the source: Second and third paragraphs — 'Nem ao menos o conhece'; fourth paragraph — 'certamente foi professor'
Accessed:
Wikipedia, 'Carlos Gracie' (English), revision of 24 July 2026 (current on 29 September 2026), citing Marcial Serrano, O Livro Proibido do Jiu-Jítsu vol. 1 (2010), and Roberto Pedreira, Choque vol. 1 (2014).(opens in a new tab)
- Conflicting accounts
Wikipedia's article on Carlos Gracie, citing books by Marcial Serrano and Roberto Pedreira, states that in June 1931 Pires moved to Santa Catarina because of his job in the Brazilian economy ministry, leaving the academy in Carlos Gracie's hands.
Where in the source: Section 'Association with Donato Pires', last sentence of the first paragraph — 'In June 1931'
Accessed:
The same Wikipedia article states that when a 1931 match between Carlos Gracie and the wrestler Manoel Rufino dos Santos was announced, Pires, described as Carlos's teacher, said in the press that Carlos's claim to be a direct student of Mitsuyo Maeda was false.
Where in the source: Section 'Conflict with Manoel Rufino dos Santos', second sentence — 'through the press'
Accessed:
- Conflicting accounts
Genealogy and source research: Josh Simon, simonbjj.com(opens in a new tab)