If you sang “Jacqueline a Sandra / Monica a Adriana”, you … (Are you getting old? No) … you experienced the birth of a sport that took one of the most emblematic moments of Brazilian sport starred in one. Olympic Games. Twenty-five years ago, the country’s two women’s beach volleyball pair won gold and silver medals on green and yellow podiums in the United States in Atlanta 1996.
Chat in Easy Chat with R7, Adriana Samuel, Monica Rodrigues’ partner at that Olympics, recalled the July 27 detail that changed the careers of four players and, without exaggeration, opened the way for other athletes in the way that had just been on the Olympic program. had attended. Not only for the special color at the time of victory, but that victory still means a lot to the memory of the game.
Adriana, who four years later would still win bronze at Sydney 2000, now with Sandra Pires, is still very fond of the silver medal. If, at first, it was a sign of dismay to learn that I would not finish supreme on the podium, the rival and friendly pair soon tried to make a proper welcome. They were medals for Brazil, for Brazilian women, who were on the podium for the first time in a centennial Olympic Games.
“I became aware of the historic achievement, which was filled with originality – for the first time in the sport, a Brazilian woman won an Olympic medal for the first time in the history of our country, the final between two Brazilian doubles, being a silver. medal and we still listened to our country’s anthem – after a long time and it is still sinking in”, said the former athlete, now a business owner and head of the Team Petrobras project for the Olympic and Paralympic Games .
After so long, as far as the debate may turn to those who don’t want to see the world through today’s eyes, it remains a certainty of a historical achievement that has surpassed the sport. Prior to the Brazilian doubles in beach volleyball, Aida dos Santos, fourth in the 1964 Tokyo high jump, had conquered the Brazilian woman’s best position. But still in Atlanta 1996, in addition to beach volleyball, indoor volleyball (bronze) and women’s basketball (silver) also won medals in the final days of the Olympics.
“This woman from Brazil was, in a certain way, coming true through our achievement. She was unforgettable”, said Adriana, who won the world title in the sport in The Hague, Netherlands, three years before that Olympics.
In addition to Jacqueline and Sandra, Monica and Adriana, Australians Natalie Cook and Kerry Pothurst.
players bikini
As well as from karate, freestyle bmx cycling, sport climbing, skate I Wave, which debuted in Tokyo 2020, beach volleyball also made its debut in the Olympic program in Atlanta 1996. As of today, the look of the IOC (International Olympic Committee) was to modernize its traditional competition program, please the spectators and even promote a healthy lifestyle. Body in harmony with nature in beach environment.
The certainty of the success of that pure California sport, which had been forgotten in the 1940s, lay in the great pairings that emerged among the sands of Copacabana and the success of the Brazilian circuit. Also, yes, beautiful bodies of women with bikini bottoms and sports bras. Meanwhile, men have always sported shorts and a tank top and even stylish sunglasses, which soon won the fashion showcase as well.
During the 1990s, close-up images from newspapers, magazines and TV were, at least, intimate, even though it caused discomfort for many people watching a family match and above all, players. Here, after all, was a competitive sport that involved women professionally, not just ripped bodies.
Adriana recalled that, on the same Olympic podium in Atlanta 1996, a certain order was issued for the couple to remain in their bikinis after the game. In all other modalities, the protocol was to go to the locker room, finally take a quick shower, put on the Confederation sweatshirt, and then go to the ceremony. Mexican Rubén Acosta was the president of the FIVB (International Volleyball Federation) at the time.
“If you look at the stage in Atlanta, we’re wearing bikinis, because I remember the president of the International Volleyball Federation forcing us to wear bikinis. Normally if you look at the Olympic podium, everybody’s warm. wears… so much so that four years later in Sydney we wear warm clothes. And then, I remember there was a question, yes. We went to put on our clothes and got an order from somewhere saying we were in bikinis Will go in ”, said Adriana, who is actually still sanded with her compatriots on the podium.
Years have passed and even today things are changing. In London 2012, for the first time, the bikini is no longer a mandatory accessory at the Olympic Games. There’s a lot to protect the woman’s body, but also because the climate in the English capital isn’t the best for keeping your feet out. In addition, Muslim athletes also received the right to wear more clothing than in the early years of the sport.
“But I think it’s not just about volleyball. It’s about society, it’s culture, it’s matchbox, it’s probably structural”, said the former player.
support to athletes
With so much experience on the court and then on the sand, Adriana knows what a high performance athlete’s routine is like. As soon as he retired from the sport in 2001, he did not have much time to think and soon began to take care of sponsorship from other great names in the Brazilian sport. Adriana Behr and Shelda, brothers Tande, along with partner Giovan Gavio, Ricardo and Emanuele, all from Beach, were names that helped with their business form.
Currently, he is responsible for managing the Team Petrobras project and deals with everything from building the entire team to the athlete’s relationship with the brand. After some time, the project returned for real at Rio 2016 pan Toronto 2015 and continues in Tokyo 2020. In all, there are now 19 names under one umbrella that provide peace of mind so that athletes can think only of themselves. Inside activities on courts, tracks, rings, mats or in water.
“This whole model is built in. Working with athletes today has been a trajectory of years.” The fact that I have been an athlete is because I know how important an athlete is to an athlete and at what time. Free to attend any program or give interview. On the other hand, I also know how to tell the brand that we are on the eve of an important competition. Lastly, I am a fan of all the athletes I work with.”
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