Allegations have recently surfaced within the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu community after athlete Alyssa Mila publicly accused Checkmat co-founder Ricardo “Rico” Vieira of inappropriate conduct that she says occurred when she was 16 years old.

Mila shared her account in a series of social media posts describing experiences she characterizes as boundary-crossing behavior during her time training at Checkmat. She stated that she had spoken about the situation several years ago without naming the individual involved, explaining that fear, pressure, and uncertainty about being believed influenced her earlier decision to remain silent.

According to her recent posts, she chose to identify Vieira now amid broader public discussions in the sport related to athlete safety, accountability, and protection of minors.

Public Statement and Allegations

In her statement, Mila described multiple interactions she alleges made her feel unsafe and unsupported at the time. She also said that when she confided in people around her, her concerns were minimized, which contributed to years of silence before she felt ready to speak publicly.

These claims are based on Mila’s personal account shared online and have not been independently verified:

“In June 2018 I traveled to Spain with Leo’s family and another family for a jiu jitsu camp. The first day we got we all sat down to eat together, as Ricardo sat directly across from me next to his wife and kids. He started to use his foot to caress my leg and inner thigh repeatedly and I sat there extremely uncomfortable he kept doing it with a smile on his face. He pretended to bend down to grab something and used his hand to rub my inner thigh again repeatedly and as he did it he was smirking like he was enjoying it. I sat there completely frozen not knowing what to do.

One session after training was finished, me and my teammate were walking out of class and Ricardo decided to walk with us along with his kids, he threw his arm over me to “hug” me but I noticed he was trying to force his hand down my shirt and grab my b*o*o*b. I kept trying to pull his hand out and off of me but he kept forcing it down to grab me and he did this with a smile on his face and he was laughing like it was funny. I felt scared and completely frozen. Once I was able to pull his hand out I ran away to my room.

The last night me and my teammate decided to walk and look around the resort we had past by their rooms which I didn’t know was theirs. Their door was open and asked me and my teammate to come inside the room and repeatedly asked “they had something to show us”. I stopped my teammate and politely told them no we’re not going inside and told my teammate let’s go it’s not safe.

I told my teammate what he was doing to me I was scared I felt alone and I questioned myself and why he was doing this to me. I was scared to go to anyone because I thought I would get in trouble. A few months goes by and he taught a class at HQ, I already voiced to my same teammate how I was uncomfortable but I’m gonna try and work through it anyways. It got worse, he started picking on me during the class on purpose, singling me out in front of everyone repeatedly I told myself what is going on right now. I told my teammate watch him he’s only doing this to me and that teammate did and noticed it and questioned why he was doing that to me as well.

I didn’t understand, once it was time to roll me and my teammate sat on the opposite end of the Mat and Ricardo walked all the way to us and called me out to roll, I was scared and asked my teammate to help me I didn’t want to go and is there anyway to go with someone else. My teammate sat there with a blank stare and I had to go or else I’ll get in trouble for saying no to a black belt. We started rolling and he took my back and kept k*i*s*s*i*n*g me on the neck repeatedly I kept pushing away his head multiple times, he started to moan in my ear and tried to grab my b*o*o*b*s in any opening he can and i just felt helpless i wanted the time to end so bad and when it did he turned around and k*i*s*s*e*d me on the lips and laughed i looked around for help as there was so many people around me, no one saw nothing.

I ran to my teammate and said everything that happend and I told my teammate I need help All my teammate said is what can I do I don’t know what to do. I explained to her how I felt so uncomfortable and weird and I didn’t want to be there anymore it just hurt. I went home without saying anything, I let another teammate know what happend but their response was because Ricardo never did no wrong to that teammate that teammate is still gonna remain friends with him.

My “friends” knew about this situation but stayed quiet as I was to scared to even tell anyone and afraid no one would believe me I blocked it out for years until I felt ready to say something. This was the first and only times he touched me i*n*a*p*p*r*o*p*r*i*a*t*e*l*y it was led prior from months before he would say s*e*x*u*a*l remarks towards me and wanting to do things to me but just waited until I was 16.”

No Legal Finding Reported

As of publication, no legal ruling connected to these allegations has been reported. Any response from Vieira regarding these specific claims was not included in the material reviewed.

Under standard legal principles, individuals accused of wrongdoing are presumed innocent unless proven otherwise through formal investigation or court proceedings.

Wider Discussion in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

Regardless of legal outcomes, the situation has intensified ongoing conversations within Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu concerning:

• Safeguarding of minors in training environments
• Power dynamics between instructors and young athletes
• Reporting mechanisms and institutional responsibility

Advocates across the community continue to call for clearer protection policies and transparent procedures for addressing misconduct allegations.

The situation remains developing, and any future statements, investigations, or legal actions may further shape how the case—and its broader implications for the sport—unfolds.

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