Besouro Gago

Besouro Gago ("Besouro the Stutterer") is a minimally documented capoeirista who appears in a single secondary source as one of the teachers of Mestre Waldemar da Liberdade. The Grupo Liberdade Capoeira website lists him alongside Siri de Mangue, Canário Pardo, Zé Talabi, and Ricardo da Ilha de Maré as instructors who taught Waldemar during his training period in Periperi (1936-1940).

However, this claim presents a significant historical discrepancy. In his own 1989 interview, Mestre Waldemar explicitly stated: "I had four mestres: Siri de Mangue, one; Canário Pardo, two; Talavi, three, and Ricardo from Ilha de Maré, four". He did not mention Besouro Gago. This primary source testimony—from Waldemar himself—directly contradicts the claim that Besouro Gago was one of his teachers.

The name "Besouro" (beetle) was a common apelido in capoeira circles during this era, and should not be confused with the legendary Besouro Mangangá (Manoel Henrique Pereira, 1895-1924). The addition of "Gago" (stutterer) distinguishes this person. Nothing is known about his origins, training, or fate.

Given the single-source nature of this claim and its contradiction with Waldemar's own testimony, the relationship between Besouro Gago and Waldemar should be treated with extreme caution until corroborating evidence emerges.