Josué Heliodoro is called up for camping with the Brazilian Artistic Gymnastics Team
Rubro-Negro coach Roberto Nassar also makes up the national squad
By Romulo Paranhos - inIn the 2019 season, Flamengo will also have representatives on the Brazilian Men's Artistic Gymnastics Team. Flamengo's Josué Heliodoro, a junior athlete, and Roberto Nassar, a coach in the same category, were called up to participate in the Brazilian Gymnastics Confederation's training camp with the other gymnasts and coaches who make up the national team. In total, 17 athletes from the Adult and Junior teams have been gathered since Monday (21) at CT Time Brasil, located in the Barra da Tijuca Olympic Park.
Josué Heliodoro took his first steps in artistic gymnastics for the red-and-black team at the age of seven. Now, at 16, the boy from Gávea has been called up for the first time to join the Brazilian National Team, which is training hard to face challenges throughout the year. The young gymnast spoke to the Official Website about this special moment in his career and the goals he aims to achieve.
"When I received this news, I was overjoyed; I thought it was sensational. Until recently, I watched Arthur Zanetti and other athletes from the national team on television, and today I have the opportunity to train alongside gymnasts who are role models for me. We're training hard with an eye on the Junior World Championships and the South American Championships. I'm giving my all to these activities so I can achieve good results in these competitions and bring medals to Brazil and Flamengo," said Josué.
Roberto Nassar, coach of Mais Querido who also manages the boys of the National Team, analyzed the importance of the red-black call-up for the club.
"The main thing is to show that all the groundwork done since 2013 is yielding positive results, proving that the process is being conducted correctly. Men's gymnastics typically takes a very long time to reap the rewards; they start at six or seven years old, and results only appear around 20 years old. So, having an athlete already called up to the Brazilian Youth team shows that the work is on the right track. This is very important because it motivates the rest of the red-and-black squad, demonstrating that, in addition to striving for results, the goal is to be on the national team as well," the coach emphasized.
During the training period, which runs until January 31, Brazilian gymnasts will undergo medical and technical evaluations, lectures with a referee, coaching and meetings with coaches, in addition to training, the main focus of the meeting.
The artistic gymnastics teams of Clube de Regatas do Flamengo rely on resources from their sponsors – AmBev, Rede D'or, IRB Brasil RE, CSN, Brasil Plural, EY – via the Federal Incentive Law/Ministry of Sports (IR), in addition to support from the Brazilian Committee of Clubs (CBC) resulting from the decentralization of resources originating from the Pelé Law.