#FlaBasquete officially presented itself this Monday (15) and started the 22/23 season at CUIDAR. Before being released for training, the red-blacks must undergo blood tests, electrocardiogram and nutritional assessment, among others.

"The preseason evaluation of Flamengo's basketball players represents one of the most important steps before formal sports practice. In addition to identifying life-threatening cardiovascular conditions, this screening is important for season planning, as it highlights the athletes' individual needs in terms of overall health and physical performance. To this end, the athletes undergo blood and clinical tests in partnership with the Hermes Pardini laboratory, cardiological, physical, physiotherapy, nutritional, and cognitive evaluations at CUIDAR, visual acuity evaluations at IORJ, and dental evaluations in partnership with Odontofitness," explained Izabel Miranda Rholfs, Mais Querido's sports science manager. She also spoke about the importance of CUIDAR's work in monitoring the Flamengo Olympic athletes.

"The Unified Center for Identification and Development of High-Performance Athletes integrates the collective work of sports managers, sports scientists, physical trainers, physicians, physiotherapists, nutritionists, and psychologists to improve athlete performance, with the goal of preventing injuries and Overtraining Syndrome. Decisions and actions are based on management concepts to establish organized processes that allow a natural flow of work between professionals from different disciplines (interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary approaches) to develop athletes in their various aspects," he said.

Players also undergo the Ubrain protocol, a program that monitors the brain and creates a database of Flamengo athletes. This information is used as a clinical tool for treatment and support in returning to sports after concussion, as well as being essential for exploring the athlete's potential for training guidance, with the goal of improving performance and preventing injuries. Flamengo pioneered the implementation of the protocol in 2019. 

Participating in the activities are power forward Olivinha, center Vitor Faverani, guards Penka Aguirre, Matheus Leoni, and Renato Nascimento, forwards Gui Deodato and Rafael Rachel, and shooting guard Martin Cuello. Rafael Mineiro, Hettsheimeir, and Gabriel Jaú are with the Brazilian national team, as is coach Gustavo De Conti, and underwent CUIDAR tests last week.