BOC and Hamamatsu celebrate successful partnership in preparing Brazilian athletes for Tokyo
The delegation of the Japanese city was honored with a plaque of thanks for the hospitality and high-level structure
The Brazilian Olympic Committee (BOC) received, on Thursday, the 3rd, in Rio de Janeiro, representatives from Hamamatsu, one of the training bases for Brazilian athletes for the 2021 Tokyo Olympic Games. The visit served to celebrate the success of the partnership and strengthen ties between the sports entity and the Japanese city. The chair of the BOC, Paulo Wanderley, accompanied by members of its board of directors, presented the mayor of Hamamatsu, Yasutomo Suzuki, with a plaque in gratitude for the hospitality and all the structure offered to the Brazilian delegation.
The city of Hamamatsu has the largest Brazilian community in Japan, with about ten thousand people, and was the base of rhythmic gymnastics, judo, and table tennis in preparation for the Olympic Games. In all, 76 Brazilian athletes used the local structures for training.
"This was a unique opportunity that the Olympic Games gave us. This historical moment raised the interest and dedication of our youths in sports practice due to the presence of Brazilian athletes. We would very much like to maintain this link with the Brazilian Olympic Committee. We will always be willing to serve you and collaborate with you", said the mayor of Hamamatsu, who highlighted, in particular, the presence of Brazilian Judo, which since 2017 has held several training sessions in the city and brought the opportunity to promote integrations with children from local community schools.
The director general of the BOC, Rogério Sampaio, received from the hands of the mayor of Hamamatsu a letter from the children thanking the BOC for the presence of Brazilian athletes in the city. A deed of undertaking was also signed to carry out future actions together, reinforcing the legacy of the Brazilian passage through Hamamatsu. The directors of Development and Sports Science, Kenji Saito, and Communication, Paulo Conde, were also present at the event.
In addition to the representatives of Hamamatsu, the Japanese delegation included the Consul General of Japan in Rio de Janeiro, Ken Hashiba. At the end of the meeting, the BOC directors presented to the Japanese the new BOC headquarters, which is in the final stages of assembly.
