A major debate about the continued training of Flamengo's youth athletes and professionals took place in Rio's west zone this Wednesday (17). The eSuites hotel, in Recreio, was the stage for the event, which featured the participation of Joel Jota, former athlete of the Brazilian swimming team and renowned speaker on high-performance sports, and also our former captain Diego Ribas, multiple champion with the Sacred Mantle.

This was an initiative of the study group linked to Mais Querido's Human Development Department. Patrícia Negreiros, coordinator of the department; Luiz Carlos Azevedo, general manager of youth soccer; Rhuan Paes, supervisor of under-15 soccer; and Thiago Aprigio, coordinator of soccer from under-15 to under-17, are among the initiative's creators.

Among the almost 300 people present, athletes and technical committees from under-14 to under-20 participated in the afternoon of exchanging ideas.

"The main objective is to address issues involving player development, both as athletes and as individuals. Several biweekly meetings are held for technical staff, as well as specific events for athletes," said Thiago Aprigio.

Luiz Carlos de Azevedo also spoke a few words about the importance of adopting a holistic approach to work: "Everything we're doing is for you. Our daily work is to deliver the best possible experience to you. Ultimately, your success is our success. Only those who have prepared themselves mentally will reach the highest level. Talent and physical strength alone are no longer enough," he explained.

After retiring from swimming, Joel Jota built a solid career as a coach for high-performance athletes.

He has a master's degree in Sports Science, is an entrepreneur, speaker, and wrote the bestseller “Be, live, stay 100% present: the power of discipline, focus and mini habits to achieve your maximum potential” (Ed. Gente, 2019).

In his talk, he shared a little of his story and his personal quest to reach his idol and rival in the pool, Gustavo Borges:

"Many people spend their entire lives trying to be someone they're not. I spent my entire life trying to be Gustavo Borges, but I'm not Gustavo Borges. I don't have his size or physique," he explained. And this realization was the starting point for a series of revolutions in his professional career. Using focus and discipline as guiding principles for his work, he contributed the lessons he learned. "Success is trainable, and every champion is an average person with a lot of focus," Joel concluded.

After a coffee break, it was Diego Ribas' turn to speak. The former number 10 jersey holder for Mengão recalled his roots playing soccer on the dirt pitches in Ribeirão Preto, his hometown, and the path he took to achieve so much in football. His career has been marked by many happy moments, such as joining Santos' first-team squad at just 16 years old, packing Santos Dumont Airport with Flamengo fans upon his arrival at the club in 2017, and winning the Libertadores in 2019 and 2022.

However, a winning story isn't built on happy memories alone. He also recalled the difficulties he faced during the team's poor run and the demands of the red-and-black fans in 2018, as well as the most difficult moment of his career, the serious injury he suffered in 2019. All of these events required mental maturity, focus, and determination, attributes Diego considers essential to his professional success.

"A very special day. I'd like to congratulate Flamengo on this initiative. Being here today is truly a great pleasure, where we can contribute and share my story, my lessons, the decisions I made, what worked and what didn't, about mental strength, emotional management... I believe this strengthens Flamengo for its great goal of success. Everyone here, from the committee to the athletes, was very willing, engaged, and attentive. Today was a historic day, and I can only thank them," Ribas concluded.