Penny Thomas (born 2 July 1979) is a South African submission grappler and 3rd degree Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) black belt[a] practitioner and coach.

At the time, South Africa lacked formal BJJ schools or qualified instructors, and Atkinson had been practicing with his brother using Carlson Gracie instructional VHS tapes.

[6] In 2007, she earned a silver medal while participating in the Men's Gi brown belt division of the 2007 Triple Crown Aloha State BJJ Championship.

[b][1] In 2007, Thomas relocated to San Diego to train under Leticia Ribeiro, joining the Gracie Humaita female team; in May of that year, she became ADCC Submission Fighting World champion, after defeating Lana Stefanac in the final.

[5] At the 2009 ADCC World held in Barcelona, Spain, Thomas won a silver medal after defeating Shanti Abelha in the quarter-final and Cris Cyborg in the semi-final,[13] before losing by leglock to Hannette Staack in the final.

[17] At the 2010 IBJJF World Championship, competing under Gracie Humaita, she won silver in the brown and black belt medium heavy division,[18] losing to Michelle Nicolini by 3×2 advantage points in the final;[19] the following year, she participated in the 2011 Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship, earning a silver medal after a points-based loss in the Women's +65 kg final against Gabi Garcia.