12 Stories of Brazilian athletes who are true examples of overcoming

We are used to seeing famous and successful athletes shining in their sports, but behind each one there is an impressive story of self-improvement, whether for some physical, financial or even emotional condition. Their lives require a lot of discipline, effort and even emotional balance for living far from their families.

O awesome.club selected a list of 12 Brazilian athletes who showed that to achieve their goals it takes a lot of dedication and persistence. Come and discover their golden paths!

At age 15, Aline was involved in a car accident, causing paraplegia in her lower limbs. Four years after her rehabilitation, the athlete started practicing sports for people with disabilities, such as running, starting her sports career in 2010. Focused and determined, she realized a possibility to participate in the 2018 Winter Games, through Ski Cross Country, and, from then on, became the first Brazilian in the Winter Paralympics.

Raised by his paternal grandparents after being abandoned by his parents, Thiago found himself in love with heights and with a dream of flying, he began to train pole vaulting while still in his teens. His first Olympic tournament was in 2010, at age 16. However, it was at the 2016 Olympics that the athlete became a Brazilian hero by winning first place in the category, setting a historic Olympic record by flying at 6.03 m, guaranteeing the much-desired gold medal.

As a sprint canoeing athlete, he went through several obstacles and difficulties in his life, but the biggest one was dealing with the loss of his brother while he was in training in the national team. Edson considered quitting the sport, but his friend Hans Mallmann helped him by giving support and support to his kayaking partner. Edinho, as he is also called, participated in the Pan American Games and the 2016 Olympics.

Elected six times the best soccer player in the world, Marta has played in the Brazilian women’s team since 2002, making history in the sport. But, incredible as it may seem, at the beginning of her sports career, still playing in a team made up of boys, in Dois Riachos, the athlete was banned from playing precisely because she was “very good”. With that, she moved to Rio de Janeiro, where she turned professional, following her career in the Brazilian national team.

One of the most remarkable episodes in Olympic history was through Brazilian Vanderlei, who, while leading the marathon race at the 2004 Athens Olympics, was attacked by a former Irish priest, who pushed him off the track. With the help of the Greek spectator, Polyvios Kossiva, the athlete did not give up, he returned to the track, finishing the race and, still, winning the bronze medal. For his sporting spirit and humility after the race, Vanderlei was honored with the Pierre de Coubertin Medal, in addition to being chosen as the 2004 Brazilian Athlete of the Year.

The first Brazilian gymnast to win a gold medal at the Artistic Gymnastics World Championships, in 2003. Daiane dos Santos, in an interview, said that “sometimes, your happiness depends on a bold step”. Her routine required a lot of dedication and abnegation, training 8 to 9 hours a day, every day, and even so, the athlete says that she went through moments of fatigue, pain, stress and prejudice, but her love for the sport made her the gymnast who he was. Currently, she has the Brazilian social project, to educate children through sport.

“Having a physical disability doesn’t mean I’m unable to get where I want,” said Raíssa Rocha Machado, Brazil’s javelin thrower and gold medalist at the 2019 Parapan American Games in Lima. The athlete, who has congenital malformation in her legs, revealed that she did not dream of the sport and that in her childhood she wanted to be a lawyer or delegate. In 2016, with the Paralympics in Rio, she had the beginning of depression, but through her love for the sport, she continued her career, seeking to be the best in the world in athletics.

Considered the fastest woman in Brazil, Vitória Rosa says that being an athlete in the country is not easy, especially when you are a woman, with little incentive, sponsorship and recognition. Therefore, it takes a lot of struggle, overcoming and strength. The sprinter left home at the age of 14 to fulfill her dream of running, in addition, she says that each stumble is an experience, and that after falling so much, she learned to get up.

Winner of three gold medals in the same edition of the Olympics, the record holder in canoeing Isaquias Queiroz had to overcome some obstacles in his life, such as burning with boiling water; the loss of your father; an abduction; removal of his kidneys after falling from a tree and a car accident. With overcoming and hard training, the canoeist’s goal is to be the greatest Brazilian Olympic athlete in history.

The athlete’s life is full of obstacles, and with Poliana Okimoto it was no different; competing since the age of 7, the swimmer was slapped in the ear during a competition and ended up hurting her eardrum. After undergoing surgery, she did not swim for a while. In addition, during the 2012 Olympic Games, she had hypothermia and was unable to finish the race, in addition to having been without food in the final part of the competition. But she outdid herself in the sport at the 2016 Olympics.

Considered the best tennis player of the 20th century in Latin America, winning titles in three different decades, Maria Esther Bueno was the first Brazilian to win a gold medal. Collecting 589 titles, the tennis player underwent 20 surgeries, and in 1969, after one of these surgeries, doctors said she would no longer move her arm. Proving otherwise, Maria returned to the court, winning the Japan tournament in 1974.

In an aesthetic and harmonious sport, the twins Bia and Branca became world famous after competing in the 2007 Pan American Games and the 2016 Olympics. On their YouTube channel, the swimmers spoke openly about the fatigue they felt on account of training, and that ended up causing an eating disorder, where the sisters took all their stress out on food. Today, the athletes are healthy and recovered.

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