In Piazza del Duomo, in Milan, a clock shows the countdown to the Winter Olympic Games that the country will host between February 6th and 22nd.
Last Wednesday (29), he marked 100 days until the Olympics, which will be in the Italian city and in the mountains. The Milanese still don’t talk that much about the Games. Now, for athletes, there is very little left. And, for Brazilians, there is a different excitement.
For the first time, Brazil has a chance of winning a medal at the Winter Games. The best place to date is Isabel Clark’s ninth place in snowboard cross in Turin 2006. Since then, the country has never come close to climbing the podium.
This week, some journalists and I visited the future Casa Brasil in Milan. During the Olympic Games, it is normal for participants to set up their “houses” – where they showcase their cuisine and culture. It’s a step forward, because Brazil has never had one at the Winter Games. Athletes who are in the running for a place also came, as many Olympic qualifiers are about to begin.
One of the athletes is competing for an unprecedented medal. Nicole Silveira, from skeleton, was born in Porto Alegre and lived most of her life in Canada. It was discovered by chance. He had practiced other sports, he was a bodybuilder. In 2017, the Brazilian Ice Sports Confederation (CBDG) invited her to test skeleton. Nicole bought the idea, started training as an adult and had a meteoric rise.
After 13º place in Beijing-2022, Brazil’s best result on ice, the Brazilian Olympic Committee (COB) and CBDG, seeing the medal potential, put together a plan to accelerate its development until 2026, investing in equipment and technical staff.
Nicole has been coached since 2023 by Richard Bromley, who led South Korea to an unprecedented Olympic gold in skeleton in 2018. The athlete also joined forces with Belgian world runner-up Kim Meylemans. They are now married, they are together in training and in their Olympic dream. In this cycle, Nicole won two World Cup medals and was fourth in the World Championships.
Another Brazilian who could be on the podium is Lucas Pinheiro Braathen, from alpine skiing. Born in Oslo, he has a Brazilian mother and a Norwegian father and until 2023 he competed for Norway. Two-time junior world champion, he began playing for Brazil the following year and, since then, has won five World Cup medals.
For this Olympic cycle, the COB invests, generally speaking, in technical commissions, support for athletes with a focus on Olympic classification and experience, and equipment. The bobsled team got new, more modern sleds – previously they used to borrow or second-hand. They were 13th in the World Cup, Brazil’s best placement to date. The Olympic top 10 is not a distant reality.
The call for the Brazilian delegation will be on January 19th and the objective is to take between 13 and 20 athletes. It could be the greatest team in history if it surpasses the 13 from Sochi-2014. After the last two Games were in South Korea and China, a competition in Europe, with a better time zone for Brazil, helps bring athletes closer to the public.
In past cycles, getting the job was victory. Now, the situation is different. Just like in Turin 2006, perhaps Italy will bring good luck to Brazil again.
The columnist traveled at the invitation of the COB.
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