Federal Investments
Rio 2016 will leave a legacy throughout Brazil
The Ministry of Sport is investing in the structuring of the National Training Network in the whole country and in supporting athletes with the aim of turning Brazil into a sport powerhouse.
Since Brazil earned the right to host the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games, back in October 2009, the federal government has been working so that the legacy from the world's biggest sporting event reaches all states and the Federal District. Over R$ 4 billion in investments have been providing for the building and consolidation of a National Training Network, with units that will benefit Brazilians in all regions and contribute to developing new generations of athletes.
Investments in physical infrastructure alone surpass R$ 3 billion. Resources have been allocated to build training centres for several sports, as well as 254 Sport Initiation Centres (CIEs), 47 Olympic standard athletics tracks and Olympic facilities in Rio de Janeiro. In addition, the resources have enabled the refurbishment and building - also in Rio - of training venues to be used at Games Time at military units, and at the Physical Education School of the Rio de Janeiro Federal University (UFRJ).
All this sport infrastructure will comprise the National Training Network, created by Bill 12,395/2011 and which the Ministry of Sport is putting together throughout the country. The network has the goal of interconnecting sport facilities, offering a space where talent may be spotted, youth levels developed, and athletes and teams trained, focusing on Olympic and Paralympic sports. It will also enable and enhance the exchange between coaches, referees, managers and other sport professionals. The way the network will be managed will be defined by the National Sport System, which is being designed.
Olympic capital
In the Deodoro Sport Complex in Rio de Janeiro, the Ministry of Sport is investing R$ 825.4 million in refurbishing already existing facilities – legacy of the Rio 2007 Pan and Parapan American Games, like the National Shooting Centre, National Equestrian Centre, Modern Pentathlon Centre and National Hockey Centre - and building new sport venues: Dedoro Arena, Canoe Slalom Stadium, Mountain Bike Centre and BMX Olympic Centre. Since the 2007 Pan American Games, the Deodoro complex has been put to intensive use. It has hosted over 200 national and international sporting events. The facilities are used to develop not very known sports like shooting, hockey and modern pentathlon.
The Ministry of Sport is investing over R$ 300 million in the Barra Olympic Park, building permanent sport venues like the Olympic Tennis Centre, the Olympic Velodrome and Olympic Halls 1, 2 and 3 (resources allocated to these are for air conditioning). The Handball Arena, which is being put up with resources from the Ministry (R$ 140.1 million), will be disassembled after Games Time and the materials will be used to build four public schools. The same will happen with the Water Sport Olympic Stadium (R$ 225.3 million in investment), which will be disassembled and sent to another state, yet to be decided. The permanent facilities in Barra da Tijuca, as well as the venues built in Deodoro are part of the Olympic Training Centre (COT), which will sit at the top of the National Training Network, leaving a legacy of excellence for Brazilian sport.
Training venues at Games Time – during Games Time, the Brazilian delegation and foreign squads will be able to train in modern sport facilities. The Ministry of Sport is investing R$ 184.3 million in the building, refurbishing and adapting of military units, and UFRJ Physical Education School. After 2016, these facilities, which will supply for several Olympic and Paralympic sports' needs, will be incorporated to the National Training Network.
- CCFEX. Photo: Bruno Carvalho/Ministry of Sport
Investments in military units are being made at the Army's Physical Training Centre (CCFEx), Naval School, Air Force University (Unifa), Physical Education Centre Admiral Adalberto Nunes (Cefan) and Air Force Club (Caer).
Sport infrastructure throughout the country
The Ministry of Sport is investing R$ 450 million in the building of training centres (CTs). The following are among the CTs already delivered: the Judo Pan American Centre in Lauro de Freitas (state of Bahia); the Athletics Arena Caixa in São Bernardo do Campo (state of São Paulo); the Diving Centre of Excellence in Brasilia (Federal District); the Indaiatuba Velodrome Track (state of São Paulo); and the Canoeing Centre in Foz do Iguaçu (state of Paraná).
In addition, the following are part of the network: the Brazilian Paralympic Centre, which will provide for 15 sports in São Paulo; the Northeast Olympic Development Centre in Fortaleza (state of Ceará), which will cater for 26 sports; the Handball Development Centre, which will be opened in São Bernardo do Campo (state of São Paulo); the Cycling Training Centre in Londrina (state of Paraná), the 6 BMX tracks, which are being built in 6 towns; the Equestrian Centre, being built in Barretos (state of São Paulo); the Badminton Sport Complex, being built in Teresina (state of Piauí); and the National Athletics Training Centre, being built in Cascavel (state of Paraná).
Investments being made in the building of 254 Sport Initiation Centres (CIEs), in 240 municipalities in all Brazilian states and the Federal District add up to R$ 910 million. It is the biggest sport infrastructure legacy project for the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The programme was rolled out in 2013 and has the aim of spotting talents, developing athletes and encouraging the practice of sport in socially vulnerable territories, at official standard sport facilities. Each CIE will provide for 13 Olympic and 6 Paralympic sports, as well as a non-Olympic sport (futsal). The units will be the foundation of the National Training Network, ensuring the infrastructure's wide reach.
The Ministry of Sport is investing R$ 301.8 million in the building of 47 official standard athletics tracks. Sixteen have been delivered already in all of the country's regions. The refurbishing, building, equipping and operating of official standard athletics tracks in the country is the result of a partnership between the Ministry and state governments, town halls, as well as universities, the Brazilian Athletics Confederation (CBAt) and clubs. The tracks are a Rio 2016 Games legacy and will be part of the National Athletics Training Network, which will develop the sport, interconnect training centres and train human resources.
Cutting-edge equipment in several states
Ministry of Sport's investments in the country's sport infrastructure also include the procurement of equipment and materials for several sports. The purchase of equipment is the result of partnership agreements between the Ministry and sport organisations like confederations, federations and clubs. With the new modern equipment, development nuclei are being set up in states, where young people may train with national team athletes.
The equipment purchased benefitted already existing training centres in several places like Associated Wrestling, taekwondo and fencing, all in Rio de Janeiro, as well as archery in Maricá (state of Rio de Janeiro). The following 13 gymnastics training centres in 15 cities may be added to the previously mentioned CTs: the Gymnastics Centre of Excellence (Curitiba/state of Paraná), the Federal District Gymnastics Regional Centre, the Gymnastics Training Centre (Porto Alegre/state of Rio Grande do Sul), the Espírito Santo Olympic Centre (Vitória/state of Espírito Santo), the National Rhythmic Gymnastics Training Centre (Aracaju/state of Sergipe) and the Trampolining Gymnastics Regional Centre (Goiânia/state of Goiás). In addition, six Olympic and Paralympic table tennis training centres were equipped in six cities (Brasilia, Piracicaba, São Caetano do Sul, São Bernardo do Campo, São Paulo and Santos), as well as 29 basketball courts in gymnasiums and clubs.
- Arena Caixa – Gymnastics Centre that will be used for acclimatising Brazilian and foreign athletes for the 2016 Olympics.
Since 2010, the Ministry has signed 144 partnership agreements with sport organisations, transferring over R$ 350 million. In addition to the purchase of equipment, the agreements enabled significant investments in the preparation of high performance athletes (taking part in competitions and training programmes in Brazil and abroad), spotting and developing new talents, and hiring multidisciplinary teams.
Athlete Grant Programme
As the federal government's flagship programme that provides support to athletes, the Athlete Grant was implemented in 2005 and since then, has awarded 43 thousand grants. In 2015, over 6,131 Olympic and Paralympic athletes were programme beneficiaries, as well as another 1,001 non-Olympic athletes. Investments surpassed R$ 600 million over the last decade, thus, turning the public policy into the world's biggest individual and direct sponsorship programme.
As a result of being chosen as the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic hosts, in 2012, the federal government created the programme's highest category, the Podium Grant, aimed at athletes that have a chance of competing for medals at the Rio 2016 Games. Currently, 251 individual sports athletes (Olympic and Paralympic) are sponsored with grants varying between R$ 5 thousand and R$ 15 thousand.
The Podium Grant is a Brazil Medals Plan action, where the Ministry of Sport and state owned companies also support over 179 collective sports athletes (Olympic and Paralympic). Resources allocated from the plan have surpassed R$ 300 million.
Athlete Grant related impacts were measured in the 2015 Toronto Games, main multi-sport competition of the year for teams taking part in the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Out of the 862 athletes called up for the Pan American and Parapan American Games in Toronto, 675 were sponsored by the federal government's programme, which corresponded to 78.4% of the delegations.
Out of the 141 medals scooped up by Brazil at the Toronto Pan American Games, 121 (85.8%) were won by athletes and teams sponsored by the federal government's programme. In all, 243 medal winners are programme beneficiaries, among the 303 Brazilian athletes who made it to the podium in the competition.
In fact, in the Parapan American Games, Brazil consolidated its position as a powerhouse in the Americas, paving the way to finish among the top five in the Rio 2016 Paralympics. For the third time, Brazil finished top of the table. Out of the 257 Parapan medals, 254 were won by athletes sponsored by the federal government, which corresponds to a total of 98.8%. Out of the 215 athletes who won medals, 199 (92.5%) are beneficiaries of the programme.
Sport Sciences
The Brazilian government has also been investing in science and technology aimed at sport, so as to offer domestic athletes the best training conditions. For example, the Simulated Environment Research Centre is a result of a partnership between the Ministry of Sport and the Santa Maria Federal University (UFSM). Through a partnership agreement of R$ 1.2 million, an environmental simulation chamber and a high performance treadmill were purchased. The idea is to offer an environment similar to what athletes will find in certain competitions, as a way preparing and adapting them, in addition to conducting performance tests on clothing, medication and sport materials.
The centre also has a Hypoxia and Clean Environment Laboratory, which assists athletes with respiratory diseases or allergies. Furthermore, the Experimental Nutrition Laboratory is in charge of testing nutritional components athletes need in each type of environment, calculating the best use of supplements and hydration, for instance.
Simulated Environment Research Laboratory, at the Santa Maria Federal University (state of Rio Grande do Sul): the only one in Latin America that allows for simulations in different temperature, humidity and altitude conditions, varying from 0 to 9,000 metres high, -40C° to +50C° and 14% to 90% humidity.
Doping Control
- LBCD is already conducting analyses of samples for doping control. Photo: Roberto Castro/Ministry of Sport
The new headquarters of the Brazilian Doping Control Laboratory (LBCD) at the Rio de Janeiro Federal University (UFRJ) was the result of R$ 136 million in investments from the federal government (R$ 106 million from the Ministry of Sport and R$ 28 million from the Ministry of Education). In addition, the Ministry of Sport invested another R$ 54 million in the purchase of equipment and materials aimed at the laboratory's operations. The laboratory was reaccredited by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) in May this year, becoming the 34th in the world accredited by the institution and the second in South America. The other is in Bogota, Colombia.
The lab was quite busy in 2015 and will continue to run tests during the test-events anticipated to take place before Games Time. LBCD has also started to work with the biological passport of 37 Brazilian athletes, process that allows for blood and urine standards to be followed up for a longer period of time.
Doping control uses cutting-edge technology and productive chains from several sectors depend on qualified chemical analyses as the ones developed and used for this end. Therefore, Brazil will gain technical-scientific knowledge, because in addition to conducting blood and urine analyses for doping control, LBCD will continue to act in scientific and technological research in several areas, as well as in academic education and in the training of specialised professionals.
Source:
Ministry of Sport
Public Information Office
+ 55 (61) 3217-1875
imprensa@esporte.gov.br
