Table tennis defines world champion Hugo Calderano is a lonely sport. It is always traveling and adapting to different cultures. Therefore, after the Paris Olympics cycle, he decided to rebuild his team and change his routine, prioritizing his well-being and spending more time in “places with sun” because it gives him more energy.
Hugo had already anticipated that, after Paris-2024, he would have a quieter career approach so that his head and body could breathe a little more.
“I want to enjoy more, enjoy a little more. Table tennis is still my priority. It’s just that it is a lonely sport, where we travel to many countries. I am vegetarian, so I also have difficulty with food there in Asia. What is happening is a different approach so that it is not this total sacrifice.
The months were important to see the period farther away, with confidence that time would do their work to decrease, with the help of the family, companion Bruna Takahashi and close friends.
The world title won in Macao last Sunday (20), he said, was a remnant of solid work that he did thinking about the Paris Olympics, but with this necessary reconstruction after the defeats in both the semifinal and bronze dispute of the games. In an interview after the world’s number 1 match, Lin Shidong, won by 4 games at 1, he said he was down a month ago.
“Indeed, the post-non-compliance was not easy. I had to rebuild myself, think of perspectives, there is this passing period. I’m resilient, I’m not afraid to suffer, and I need to have a lot of courage. I had already recovered, returned to training, I’m having fun again. The title was an opportunity I was ready to embrace. I was doing nothing different.
This will also be Calderano’s last year at Liebherro Ochsenhausen, a team from Germany in which he has nine seasons and plays the second leg of the Bundesliga semifinal next Sunday (27). If it advances, the last match for the team will be played in June. The decision walks with the desire to enjoy the longevity of his career.
“It was a decision thinking of freedom. I put as goal to fight for titles this end of the cycle. Next year, I will play less or not play for clubs. The idea is to know other training centers, to be contact with the sun. [por títulos]. This title was not something that will make me satisfied. I will continue to fight for titles, medals at the Olympic Games and I don’t see why I wouldn’t continue to evolve my game. “
In January, Hugo announced the end of his partnership with the technical team that has accompanied him in the last 15 years, including the departure of French coach Jean-René Mounie, who now holds the position of international consultant at the Brazilian Table Tennis Confederation. He had the company of Thiago Monteiro in Macau, in the second tournament they were together as a coach and athlete – first, he lost early in the tournament.
“I joked that it is 8 or 80 with Thiago, but it is better than 50/50, when it is lost in octaves, because it is more exciting. It is a big name of table tennis, which was for many years the number 1 in Brazil. We have not worked much together, we have changed ideas, but he gave me a support in the competition. One technician is not disturbing me and then being there for if I need something, to support, give it a strength, and he did it very well. “
Regarding the preparation for the next cycles, Hugo was clear: he feels he is prepared to play at a high level in the “next four, six, eight years.”
