Master Carlos "Caique" Elias is one of only 8 men outside of the Gracie family to be awarded their Black Belt from Grand Master Helio Gracie. He received the promotion from both Grand Master Helio and Master Rickson. This was a huge honor for the man Grand Master once called his best student. Now a Coral Belt under Master Rickson Gracie, Master Caique carries on the Gracie tradition with honor and loyalty to the family that started it all.
Caique grew up as a family friend of the Gracies and was a surfing buddy with Relson Gracie. He was close to the family and always eating in their home, so often that Helio once asked "why am I feeding this other child that is not mine?". At the age of about 16 in1974 Caique began his Jiu Jitsu training after seeing how well Relson and Rickson Gracie handled themselves in fights on the beaches of Rio.
Master Caique studied first under Rickson with the supervision of Helio, then under his friend Relson, and then once again under Rickson and Helio. During his years of training, he earned the respect of the Grand Master and would often be the student that would defend the academy's honor during challenge matches or train with a new student who needed to be shown the effectiveness of Gracie Jiu Jitsu. Over time Caique became close with Helio and would even join him and at times Grand Master Carlos Gracie on shopping trips to local markets. On these trips, the men would share their philosophies about life and Jiu Jitsu with Caique. These conversations along with his training had a huge and positive effect on Caique and shaped him into a loyal and dedicated Jiu Jitsu practitioner.
After Caique finished school he trained and even instructed part-time and in 1996 he was personally invited by Helio to move to the United States to instruct at the new Gracie academy in California with the new UFC legend Royce Gracie. Caique took Helio up on his offer and moved to America where he taught at the Gracie academy for 5 years.
After teaching for the Gracie's Caique opened his own academy, Caique Jiu Jitsu. There he carries on the Gracie traditions and values with his sons Pedro and Thomaz. The Elias family have trained many new generations of Jiu Jitsu practitioners and started their own legacy of, tradition, Self-defense, and honor.
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