On December 3rd, Flamengo's basketball physiotherapy and physical preparation team will participate in a seminar on sports injury prevention at the Brazilian Olympic Committee (COB) headquarters. The seminar, titled "Suggestions and Implementation of an Injury Prevention Program for Basketball," will be delivered by the COB's medical team.

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"It will be very important to update our working method," said Flamengo physiotherapist Ricardo Machado.

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Since 2008, Ricardo has been developing proprioception training with the club's athletes, a type of balance training aimed at preventing (or at least reducing) the most common muscle injuries among players (ankle, knee, spine and shoulder).

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"The results are incredible. In the last three years, since we started this work, muscle injuries have practically stopped," explains the physiotherapist.

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Proprioception training typically lasts 30 minutes and is performed two to three times a week. The practice consists of seven to eight exercises, and athletes perform each movement twice.

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"During preseason, the work is more intense, followed by maintenance. The athletes enjoy this type of work because they see the results," Ricardo concluded.