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Published 01/27/2022 15:34 Updated 01/27/2022 15:52

Fourteen of the 17 summoned to represent Brazil at the Beijing Winter Games are part of the Bolsa Atleta

Jaqueline Mourão at the Pyeongchang Games, in South Korea, in 2018. She completes eight editions of the Olympic Games in Beijing - Photo: Abelardo Mendes Jr. /rededoesporte.gov.br

 

Brazil will have 17 representatives at the Beijing 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. 11 athletes will compete in the Olympic Games in five modalities between February 4th and 20th. Six athletes will represent the country in two modalities at the Paralympic Games, which will take place between March 4th and 13th. In total, 14 athletes are part of the Bolsa Atleta program of the Federal Government.

 

In the group of Olympians, most represent the bobsled. The team has Edson Bindillati, Edson Martins, Erick Vianna and Rafael Souza. Jefferson Sabino will be the reserve. In cross country skiing, Manex Silva, for men, and Jaqueline Mourão and Bruna Moura, for women, were called up. The spot in alpine skiing went to Michel Macedo. The team completes itself with Sabrina Cass, in freestyle ski moguls, and Nicole Silveira, in skeleton.

 

In the Paralympic Games, Aline Rocha, Cristian Ribera, Guilherme Cruz Rocha, Robelson Moreira Lula and Wesley dos Santos will compete in cross-country skiing. André Barbieri will compete in snowboarding. It is the largest national delegation in an edition of the Winter Paralympic Games.

 

Of the 11 Olympians, nine (81%) are currently part of the Bolsa Atleta, a direct sponsorship program of the Special Secretariat for Sport of the Ministry of Citizenship. The nine sponsored are divided into the Podium (1), Olympic (6) and International (2) categories. Jefferson Sabino is not currently part of the program, but he has in his curriculum the granting of the Athlete Scholarship in six public notices, all during the times when he competed in athletics. Among the Paralympics, five of the six athletes (83%) are part of the program. Three in the podium category, one in the International and one in the National.

 

Investment by the Federal Government via the Athlete Scholarship in Olympic and Paralympic winter sports between the Pyeongchang Games, in South Korea, in 2018, and those in Beijing, in 2022, totals BRL 4.1 million. The amount was enough to grant 159 scholarships to 92 athletes among the Olympians and another 23 scholarships to 17 athletes among the Paralympics. In a cut that takes into account only investments in those selected for Beijing 2022 throughout the athletes' careers, federal investment accumulates R$ 3.1 million.

 

 

 

Jacqueline for the eighth time

One of the highlights of the delegation is Jaqueline Mourão, 46, from Minas Gerais. Between the summer and winter competitions, the athlete will compete in Beijing for the eighth edition of the Games. With that, she is the Brazilian with the most Olympic participations in history, ahead of sailor Robert Scheidt, soccer player Formiga and rider Rodrigo Pessoa, all with seven.

 

On Chinese soil, Jaqueline will also have the opportunity to write another unpublished chapter. "It will be sensational to close my cycle as the only person to be in summer and winter Games held in the same city", said athlete, who was also in the 2008 edition, held on Chinese soil, in the mountain bike cycling event.

 

The mountain bike, by the way, was the proof of Jaqueline's Olympic debut, in the Athens Games, in 2004, in Greece. It was also the race in which she competed in the Tokyo Games last year, in Japan, and finished in 35th place. The athlete's other four participations were in cross country skiing and biathlon, between the editions of Turin, Italy (2006), Vancouver, Canada (2010), Sochi, Russia (2014) and PyeongChang, South Korea ( 2018).

 

Throughout her career, Jaqueline had the frequent company of the Bolsa Atleta of the Federal Government. Her name appears on the list of recipients in 13 public notices for the program, with total transfers exceeding R$465,000.

 

"Bolsa Atleta is of paramount importance in my career. Without it I would not have continued for so long. It is the base, security. I started at Bolsa Atleta back there, when it started. How do I practice these two sports, especially in the snow , the financial support is small. Practically 100% comes from the Bolsa Atleta. I feel recognized", said the athlete, who is part of the program's Olympic category.

 

"Besides, I spend a lot of time in Canada. I see the situation of the athletes there. And it's nice to see an action by the Brazilian Federal Government giving us this security, a structure that many athletes from other countries don't have. We're lucky . It makes a big difference", he concluded.

 

 

 

Aline, Paralympic pioneer

Aline Rocha, 30, from Paraná, became paraplegic after