Last Sunday (September 13.09th) was different for 25 Flamengo resident athletes. The players, ages 17 and under, spent the afternoon exploring the vast world of literature at the Book Fair, held in Rio Centro, Rio de Janeiro. José Nogueira, a teacher for the Mais Querido youth teams, took the athletes to the fair. What was once unknown became a new passion: player biographies, religious books, and children's books were the group's favorites.

"The athletes' amazement and surprise at the event were the catalysts for the process of discovering the habit of reading. Many were able to combine their personal interests with the various works on display. Furthermore, each booth offered new possibilities and variety," explained Nogueira.

In addition to accessing literary diversity, the athletes participated in the Biennial's interactive activities. Their three-hour visit extended into the afternoon, due to the athletes' interest in being there.

"Despite the name, the Biennial is a multimedia event, with art, games, presentations, among others, which attracted their interest even more, to the point that we extended it beyond the scheduled departure time, since everyone wanted to continue at the event," said the educator.

As part of the training process, literature is an area that is being developed in the youth categories.

"Reading fills the idle time spent in the dorms. It brings differentiated knowledge through new experiences. It's part of the pedagogy project to encourage the habit of reading in order to form critical and conscious citizens, regardless of whether they are athletes or not. And being at the Biennial was a great opportunity for this," concluded Nogueira, who has worked with the team since December 2013, when the pedagogy department was established.

In addition to Nogueira, Wilson Victor, accommodation monitor, Luana Castro, Nutrition intern, and Jessica Paiva, social assistance intern, were also with the athletes on this visit.