Brazil is currently the second worst hit country by the coronavirus behind the United States, with more than 600,000 cases and over 36,000 deaths.
Joao Gomes & Felipe Lima. Photo Courtesy: Becca Wyant
The Brazilian Olympic Committee (BOC) will be sending around 200 athletes to various parts of Europe to train for the Olympic Games between July and December, according to a report from Inside the Games. Portugal has been a confirmed destination for Brazilian athletes to train, and was chosen because of the country’s advanced stage in the confrontation of COVID-19, and its existing relationship with the BOC.
The BOC had already been planning on using Portugal as a staging camp for some of its athletes ahead of the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
The action is part of the Emergency Program to Support the Olympic System, which was conceived in mid-May this year after two months of social isolation, according to the Brazilian Olympic Committee.
“The BOC understands the unique moment that the whole world is going through, with a direct impact on all segments of society, including sports. In this sense, we fulfill our role of keeping the Olympic System healthy and of offering our athletes the best training and performance conditions, with maximum security,” says the entity’s president, Paulo Wanderley Teixeira.
The Brazilian Olympic Committee will pay for athlete tickets, accommodation and meals over a six month period. Details for the national swim team have not been finalized yet.
“We have a close relationship with the Portuguese Olympic Committee and we have already started negotiations for the Mission Paris 2024. With the pandemic, we believe that using Portuguese sports facilities will allow us to offer athletes safe and high-level sites to resume their activities,” explains Brazilian Olympic Committee general director and Olympic judo champion, Rogério Sampaio.
“For the BOC it is worrying to see our athletes without training conditions due to the real need to maintain isolation to control the pandemic in the country. We know how important it is to win the battle against the coronavirus, at the same time that we work for the Brazil Team to be on an equal footing with its main opponents”, says the head of mission at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games and vice president of Brazilian Olympic Committee, Marco Antônio La Porta Jr.
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