FlaBasquete's physical trainer, Diego Falcão, serves Brazil at the Pan American Games
Making his debut in the national team, the red-black professional explains how the athletes selected for the tournament are prepared.
By Communication - Official Club Website - in
Flamengo basketball recently won three consecutive Brazilian championships, the League of the Americas, ten state championships, and the World Cup. The players who lifted the trophy are well-known among the fans, but behind these great players lies a competent coaching staff that makes all these achievements possible. One of them is the physical trainer, a Paraíba native with an unmistakable accent, Diego Falcão. At just 34, he has an enviable track record with the Red-Blacks and will be one of the club's representatives on the Brazilian men's basketball team at the Pan American Games in Toronto.
In addition to his highly successful experience with Flamengo, Falcão has another advantage to excel at the Games: he will work alongside coach José Neto, Brazil's assistant coach, with whom he has worked for seven years. "We already have a training methodology, a characteristic we work with, and the national team is no different. Neto helps me with communication within the coaching staff, planning and organizing overloads, and also serves as a link with Rubén Magnano (Brazil's coach), since I'm making my debut as the team's physical trainer. This connection directly impacts the athletes, with quality training that will bring us closer to our goals every day," said Falcão.
The Flamengo physical trainer also explained what the pre-competition work is like with the athletes who are returning after a grueling season, including state, national, and international championships. "The preparation is theoretically the same as a team preparing for a longer championship. The main issue is the quality of the training, which has to be completed in the short time we have with the national team: only five weeks of preparation before the competition. That's a short time to incorporate all the content; it's not an easy preparation," says Falcão, who also explained how the players are evaluated.
"When an athlete arrives, we have an idea of their condition based on how their season went, but we always start with all the medical and physical evaluations, where we know what the athlete's situation is. The basketball culture has been improving a lot, they are arriving much more prepared to start training. This awareness has helped our work to keep the group physically and technically balanced until the competition," he praised.
Basketball at the Pan American Games
Brazil is in Group "A" and opens against Puerto Rico on July 21st. Next, the Brazilians face Venezuela (22nd) and the United States (23rd). Group "B" consists of Argentina, Canada, Mexico, and the Dominican Republic. According to the competition rules, in the first phase, the teams play each other in a single round robin within their respective groups. The top two teams in each group qualify for the semifinals, using the Olympic crossover system: A1 vs. B2 and B1 vs. A2. The winners decide the title, while the losers compete for the bronze medal.
In addition to his highly successful experience with Flamengo, Falcão has another advantage to excel at the Games: he will work alongside coach José Neto, Brazil's assistant coach, with whom he has worked for seven years. "We already have a training methodology, a characteristic we work with, and the national team is no different. Neto helps me with communication within the coaching staff, planning and organizing overloads, and also serves as a link with Rubén Magnano (Brazil's coach), since I'm making my debut as the team's physical trainer. This connection directly impacts the athletes, with quality training that will bring us closer to our goals every day," said Falcão.
The Flamengo physical trainer also explained what the pre-competition work is like with the athletes who are returning after a grueling season, including state, national, and international championships. "The preparation is theoretically the same as a team preparing for a longer championship. The main issue is the quality of the training, which has to be completed in the short time we have with the national team: only five weeks of preparation before the competition. That's a short time to incorporate all the content; it's not an easy preparation," says Falcão, who also explained how the players are evaluated.
"When an athlete arrives, we have an idea of their condition based on how their season went, but we always start with all the medical and physical evaluations, where we know what the athlete's situation is. The basketball culture has been improving a lot, they are arriving much more prepared to start training. This awareness has helped our work to keep the group physically and technically balanced until the competition," he praised.
Basketball at the Pan American Games
Brazil is in Group "A" and opens against Puerto Rico on July 21st. Next, the Brazilians face Venezuela (22nd) and the United States (23rd). Group "B" consists of Argentina, Canada, Mexico, and the Dominican Republic. According to the competition rules, in the first phase, the teams play each other in a single round robin within their respective groups. The top two teams in each group qualify for the semifinals, using the Olympic crossover system: A1 vs. B2 and B1 vs. A2. The winners decide the title, while the losers compete for the bronze medal.