Mariana Brochado's year of overcoming obstacles began last Monday, with the first training session of 2008. Under the watchful eye of her coach, Marco Lamah, Mariana performed her first strokes with her mind focused on the Beijing 2008 Olympics in August.

After missing out on the Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro, the swimming muse doesn't want to miss the biggest and best celebration in world sport.

Determined, disciplined, and a fighter, Mariana hopes to qualify for the 200m and 400m freestyle events and the 4x200m relay. At the 2004 Athens Olympics, the red-and-black athlete was a finalist in the same relay, achieving a strong seventh-place finish for Brazil.

Training daily in two shifts, morning and afternoon, Mariana Brochado hopes to repeat the same performance that put her on the Brazilian team in 2004. To achieve this, the muse will have to achieve as many victories as possible in the competitions that will be held before the start of the XXIX Olympic Games in history.

Photo (Satiro Sodré): Mariana Brochado during the Athens Olympics - 2004