Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Athlete Cassio Felipe Sousa Costa Accepts Sanction for Anti-Doping Rule Violation

Colorado Springs, Colo. – USADA announced today that Cassio Felipe Sousa Costa, of Austin, Texas, an athlete in the sport of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, has accepted a one-year period of ineligibility for an anti-doping rule violation after testing positive for a prohibited substance.

Sousa Costa, 25, tested positive for clomiphene as the result of an in-competition drug test conducted at the 2024 World International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation (IBJJF) Jiu-Jitsu No-Gi Championship on December 14, 2024. Although the IBJJF is not a signatory to the World Anti-Doping Code (the Code), USADA was contracted by IBJJF to conduct testing for the event and collected and analyzed Sousa Costa’s sample in accordance with the World Anti-Doping Agency’s International Standards.

Clomiphene is a Specified Substance in the class of Hormone and Metabolic Modulators, which are prohibited at all times under the Code and the USADA Protocol for Olympic and Paralympic Movement Testing, which applied with slight modifications to the 2024 World International IBJJF Jiu-Jitsu No-Gi Championship.

After a thorough review of the case, USADA determined that Sousa Costa’s positive test was caused by a medication prescribed for therapeutic purposes under the care of a physician. Although the substance was taken at the direction of a physician, Sousa Costa did not meet the criteria for a Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE). The Code requires that athletes obtain a TUE before using a prohibited substance.

Sousa Costa’s one-year period of ineligibility began on December 30, 2024, the date his provisional suspension was imposed. In addition, Sousa Costa has been disqualified from all competitive results obtained in competitions sanctioned by the IBJJF or by any Code signatory on and subsequent to December 14, 2024, the date his positive sample was collected, including forfeiture of any medals, points and prizes.

Roberto Villa

Roberto Villa is the CEO, Founder, Executive Writer, Senior Editor of FightBook MMA. Has a passion for Combat Sports and also a podcast host for Sitting Ringside. He’s also a former MMA fighter and Kickboxer.