SHANTELLE Thompson's return to international competition might not have given her the result she wanted, but it gave her the lessons she needed.

Thompson is a proud Barkindji and Ngyampaa woman, three-time jiu-jitsu world champion, community leader and Order of Australia recipient.

She began Brazilian jiu-jitsu in 2011 as a form of physical therapy after the birth of her twins led to the develop...