Ana Sátila, Pedro Henrique and the Brazilian Team have just returned from training and competitions in Eastern Europe.

Iran Schleder | Sportscene - Two young paddlers have been shining on the Olympic horizon of Brazilian Canoeing for the past two years: Ana Sátila (17) and Pedro ‘Pepe’ Henrique Gonçalves are the hope of Latin American Canoe Slalom to win a sought after Olympic medal in Rio de Janeiro, 2016. 

Ana was the youngest athlete in the Brazilian delegation to the London Olympic Games in 2012 when she was only 16 years old. She was also the youngest paddler on the Lee Valley course in London. And Pepe (20), who is not much older than Anna, wás awarded the best athlete in his class in 2010 and the Junior South American Champion in 2009. Nowadays he is training hard as a senior paddler.

According to Pepe, the good results gained by Brazil during the European season in May were essential to the teams’ development in international competitions and a very good opportunity to face the best athletes in the world. Also, the knowledge acquired on each Canoe Slalom course is crucial as they adapt to local venues, making a big difference for future competitions, especially in the Olympic Games.

“Until the Olympic Games, our main objective is to participate in as many World Cups and World Championships as possible, as this will be indispensable to the Olympic athlete’s professional career”, said Pepe.

The “little big” Ana began her sporting career very early. Her father, Claudio Vargas, a boxer and swimmer, gave Ana a taste for the sport. At the age of 12, she was already Brazilian Champion in Canoe Slalom.

“My dad was great for me during that time. He knew how to train properly and he prepared me for all that I would find in the sports world”, she remembered.

She emphasizes that her young age does not belie the effort she puts into training. “Everything that I have achieved has been because of a lot of training and dedication, both have great value. I always set big goals and when I achieve any of them it gives me huge satisfaction”.

Ana’s school has been able to adapt their assessment program to suit her routine. She intends to do a Physical Education degree at university and later continue on to do a Nutrition course.

The future
The Brazilian athletes are now concentrating on the next Canoe Slalom World Cup events at Cardiff (GBR), Augsburg (GER) and La Seu d’Urgell (FRA), respectively.

João Tomasini Schwertner, President of the Brazilian Canoe Confederation:

Brazilian Canoe Slalom has grown tremendously since 2010, when we implemented the ‘Quality Stamp’ project of the Brazilian Canoe Confederation. The quantitative and qualitative growth is flagrant when we see the growing number of athletes in this sport’s ranking in recent years.  We have also been surprised at every international competition because our results are getting better so quickly. I have no doubt that in the Junior and U23 World Championships in Brazil in 2015, we’ll win big results.