Gi and no-gi black belt world champion Angelica Galvao recently suffered a severe knee injury in training and will subsequently miss the majority of 2016 competition season. 

The Team Atos black belt, who is married to fellow world champion Andre Galvao, hurt her knee in a post-training conditioning session. The severity of the injury means she will require surgery and will be out for a projected 6-9 months. 

“Two Fridays ago – after competition training – I was doing suicide sprints. When I had to stop, squat and turn back, my body turned but my not my foot. I believe my joints were over-tired from the intense competition training before the sprints,” says Galvao. 

Watch Angelica Galvao fight in the No-Gi Worlds

I have a complete tear of the ACL and a partial tear of the MCL. Surgery is next month, doctor said 6-9 months [recovery]. But I’m already doing pre-surgery physiotherapy and working my upper body and the left leg, trying to stay as healthy and as strong as I can. 

Right now I just want to focus on recovering, but I definitely plan to compete at the end of the year, November or December.