A young Filipino jiu-jitsu artist achieved another milestone in her budding career, bagging the gold medal in the world’s biggest jiu-jitsu tournament for kids.
Aleia Aielle M Aguilar of Six Blades Jiu-Jitsu outpointed Lyla Rose Warren of Shark BJJ in their Pee Wee 2 grey finals match in the Pan Kids IBJJF Jiu-Jitsu Championship 2025 recently at the Silver Spur Arena inside Osceola Heritage Park in Kissimmee, Florida.
“She [Aielle] is not afraid to compete on the global stage at her incredibly young age. I am proud of her,” her father, Alvin Aguilar, the founding father of Filipino mixed martial arts, Universal Reality Combat Championship (URCC), and DEFTAC, said.
“She fought pretty well, and her instinct, confidence, and consistency were great all along,” he added. “She fought different, taller, and stronger opponents from the other clubs abroad, and she was not afraid to go up against anybody on the mat.”
In her run-up to the championship round, the seven-year-old three-time jiu-jitsu world champion in Abu Dhabi Jiu-Jitsu Pro (AJP) since 2022 was simply consistent in her work, as none of her opponents managed to score.
Earlier, the young Aguilar defeated Trinity Grace Thome of Gracie Barra in the quarterfinal round of the division featuring participants under 46.60 pounds.
The victory set her up for a semifinal meeting with Maite Almeida De Oliveira of Carlson Gracie Team, who drew a bye. The Filipina did not waste time adding De Oliveira to her growing list of victims.
She then advanced to the finals opposite Lyla Rose Warren, who had earlier defeated Zara Scarlett Hernandez of Pablo Silva BJJ in the semifinals.
Lyla Rose Warren settled for silver, while De Oliveira and Slade ReShae of Alliance Team were both rewarded with bronze medals.
