Michella Almeida of Gracie San Diego was recently promoted to Blue Belt by Regis Lebre & Johnny Faria. Michella started training Jiu Jitsu at the Gracie Academy in October of last year when the school first opened its doors. After only a few months, Michella decided to take her new love to the competition level. Her first tournament was Gracie Nationals, where she rolled through her division and took home a gold medal. With that tournament under her belt, she decided to step up her training in early 2010 and work toward the Pan American & World Jiu Jitsu Championships. At the 2010 Pan American Championships, Michella fought threw her division to land her in the finals where she took home second place. Following the Pan Americans, she continued on to compete at the Jiu Jitsu World Championships in June, where she again won another gold medal. Michella has been training hard for the upcoming Jiu Jitsu competition season with her sights set on becoming champion at both Pan Americans & the World Championships in 2011.