Vitor Benite: from overcoming to the Brazilian National Team
After spending almost six months out with a knee injury, the red-black wing/point guard is decisive in winning the third NBB championship and returns to the national team
By Communication - Official Club Website - in
Several rounds before Flamengo became the third NBB champion in May of this year, there was a possibility that winger/point guard Vitor Benite wouldn't even make it onto the court in the grand final. In the third round of the NBB6, in the match between Flamengo and Palmeiras, Benite left the match with a sprained left knee, later diagnosed with a torn anterior cruciate ligament and a torn lateral meniscus. Doctors gave him a six- to eight-month recovery timeframe, but the athlete exceeded expectations.
"I was able to return to playing basketball in just over five months, and I'm so happy that everything worked out. After everything that happened, I came back and won another title with Flamengo. It was a gift for my entire recovery. I felt more than just a sense of accomplishment; I was so happy, it's hard to even explain. I didn't expect to come back like that, playing well in a final, a really tough game, a match that will go down in the history of our club," said Benite.
Wearing the Brazilian National Team jersey, Vitor, just 24 years old, was present at the last two editions of the Copa América, in 2011 and 2013, and at the Pan American Games in Guadalajara, in 2011. Since the beginning of this month, Benite has been participating again in the team's preparatory training, fighting to be among the 12 athletes who will defend Brazil in the South American Championship, which will be held in Venezuela, starting on July 24th.
"I think I earned this call-up to the South American National Team not just because of my season or my return. I've been on the National Team since I was 16, so I think it was the many matches I've played for Brazil that gave me this happiness of being able to be here again after a serious injury to defend the country's colors," said the winger/guard.
Brazil is in Group A and will face Paraguay, Ecuador, and Argentina in the first round on July 24, 25, and 26, respectively. Group B includes Chile, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela. The top three teams in the tournament will qualify for the 2015 Pan American Games, to be held in Toronto, Canada. The top four teams in the South American tournament will also secure a spot in next year's Pre-Olympic Tournament of the Americas.
"I was able to return to playing basketball in just over five months, and I'm so happy that everything worked out. After everything that happened, I came back and won another title with Flamengo. It was a gift for my entire recovery. I felt more than just a sense of accomplishment; I was so happy, it's hard to even explain. I didn't expect to come back like that, playing well in a final, a really tough game, a match that will go down in the history of our club," said Benite.
Wearing the Brazilian National Team jersey, Vitor, just 24 years old, was present at the last two editions of the Copa América, in 2011 and 2013, and at the Pan American Games in Guadalajara, in 2011. Since the beginning of this month, Benite has been participating again in the team's preparatory training, fighting to be among the 12 athletes who will defend Brazil in the South American Championship, which will be held in Venezuela, starting on July 24th.
"I think I earned this call-up to the South American National Team not just because of my season or my return. I've been on the National Team since I was 16, so I think it was the many matches I've played for Brazil that gave me this happiness of being able to be here again after a serious injury to defend the country's colors," said the winger/guard.
Brazil is in Group A and will face Paraguay, Ecuador, and Argentina in the first round on July 24, 25, and 26, respectively. Group B includes Chile, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela. The top three teams in the tournament will qualify for the 2015 Pan American Games, to be held in Toronto, Canada. The top four teams in the South American tournament will also secure a spot in next year's Pre-Olympic Tournament of the Americas.