COB Hall of Fame elects ten new honorees in 2020

In all, nine sports are represented in the list released by the entity

The Hall of Fame of the Brazilian Olympic Committee (COB) will gain ten new members in 2020. From the election process held last Monday, 27, the following names were chosen: Adhemar Ferreira da Silva (athletics), two-time Olympic champion in the triple jump; Aída dos Santos (athletics), fourth place in the high jump at Tokyo 1964, best individual result of a Brazilian in Olympic Games until Beijing 2008; Aurélio Miguel (judo), Olympic champion in Seoul 1988 and bronze at Atlanta 1996; Bernard Rajzman (volleyball), who joined the Silver Generation at Los Angeles 1984; Reinaldo Conrad (sailing), two-time Olympic bronze medalist:Mexico City 1968 and Montreal 1976; Sebastian Cuattrin (canoeing speed), 11 medals in Pan American Games; Tetsuo Okamoto (swimming); first Olympic medalist in Brazilian swimming: bronze in the 1,500m freestyle, at Helsinki 1952; Wlamir Marques (basketball), two-time world champion (1959 and 1963) and bronze at the Rome 1960 and Tokyo 1964 Games; in addition to the coaches Nelson Pessoa (equestrian jumps), who played the Olympic Games five times as an athlete and led the Brazilian team in winning bronze at Atlanta 1996 and Sydney 2000; and Mário Jorge Lobo Zagallo, bronze at Atlanta 1996 and the only professional to have participated in four of Brazil's five winning campaigns at World Cups.

"The Hall of Fame is a COB initiative that aims to eternalize those who helped to build the Olympic history of Brazil, in addition to filling this gap in the recognition and appreciation of the country's sport idols.Our goal is to highlight the achievements and glories of the great Brazilian athletes and coaches", said the president of COB, Paulo Wanderley, who also praised the new ones.

"This year's edition of the Hall of Fame will have a selection of historical characters from our sport and will be marked by two aspects: the variety of sports contemplated (nine) and the longevity of the honorees' careers.We can mention, for example, Wlamir, who was captain of the selection for a decade; Conrad, who competed in five editions of the Olympic Games; and Zagallo, world champion in 1958 as a player and member of the Brazilian coaching staff until the 2006 World Cup", analyzed the COB president.

Another point to be highlighted is that, with the entry of a representative from canoeing, one from soccer and a third from equestrian, the COB Hall of Fame reaches 11 sports contemplated, practically half of the number of honorees (24) so far .

The new members of the Hall of Fame will participate in ceremonies organized by the COB in which they will leave marks of their hands or feet in molds that will later be exposed in an exclusive space at the Time Brasil Training Center, located in the Maria Lenk Water Park , Rio de Janeiro.In the case of Adhemar Ferreira da Silva and Tetsuo Okamoto, already deceased, there will be posthumous tributes.

"The names selected for the COB Hall of Fame in 2020 prove that Brazil is a multisport country.Our athletes have achieved great results in different modalities and at different times.There are already 11 represented sports and many others are yet to come.Every year our Hall of Fame is getting more valuable and complete", said COB general director, Rogério Sampaio, who also ensured the creation of digital content that allows fans to get to know the idols of Brazilian sports even better :

"We will soon have a space on the COB website with the profile of the members of the Hall of Fame, their achievements, photos, videos and an area that allows the interaction between athlete and fans", he added.

This year, due to the pandemic of the new coronavirus, the COB carried out the process of electing the new members of the Hall of Fame completely online.The members of the Evaluation Committee received virtually the voting forms, and the meeting took place via videoconference.The commission was formed by seven members of the COB board of directors; two members of the COB Athletes Commission; four of the COB Board of Directors; and only one of the national representatives of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Andrew Parsons. Bernard Rajzman, who would also be able to participate, ended up being excluded from the election process to avoid conflict of interest.

Created in 2018, the Hall of Fame honored in its first edition, at the Brazil Olympic Award, the marathon runner Vanderlei Cordeiro de Lima, the only Brazilian to receive the Pierre de Coubertin medal; the sailor Torben Grael, the greatest Brazilian Olympic medalist; and the beach volleyball duo Sandra Pires and Jackie Silva, the first Brazilian Olympic champions.

In 2019, in addition to posthumous tributes to Maria Lenk (swimming), Guilherme Paraense (sports shooting), João do Pulo and Sylvio de Magalhães Padilha (both from athletics), entered the Hall of Fame: the judoka Chiaki Ishii, the world basketball champions Paula and Hortência, middle-distance runner Joaquim Cruz and volleyball coaches Bernardinho and Zé Roberto Guimarães.

Check below the main results of the honorees of the COB 2020 Hall of Fame:

Adhemar Ferreira da Silva (athletics)

- Two-time Olympic champion:Helsinki 1952 and Melbourne 1956

- Five times world record holder in the triple jump

- Three-time champion of the Pan American Games:Buenos Aires 1951, Mexico City 1955 and Chicago 1959

- Flag bearer at the opening ceremony of the 1960 Rome Olympic Games

Aída dos Santos (athletics)

- Only Brazilian competing at the Tokyo 1964 Olympic Games

- 4th place in the high jump in 1964, best individual result of a Brazilian athlete at the Olympic Games until Beijing 2008

- Two Olympic appearances:Tokyo 1964 and Mexico City 1968

Aurélio Miguel (judo)

- First gold medalist in Brazilian judo at the Olympic Games (Seoul 1988)

- Bronze at the Atlanta 1996 Olympic Games

- World runner-up in 1993 and 1997

- Gold at the Indianapolis Pan American Games 1987 and silver at Caracas 1983

Bernard Rajzman (volleyball)

- Silver at the Los Angeles 1984 Olympic Games

- World runner-up in 1982

- Four times medalist of the Pan American Games: gold at Caracas 1983, silver at Mexico City 1975, at San Juan 1979 and Indianapolis 1987

- Creator of the "Star Trek" serve

Reinaldo Conrad (sailing)

- Bronze medal at the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City and Montreal 1976

- Five participations in the Olympic Games:Rome 1960, Mexico City 1968, Munich 1972, Montreal 1976 and Moscow 1980

- Three-time champion of the Pan American Games:Chicago 1959, São Paulo 1963 and Mexico City 1975

Sebastián Cuattrin (canoeing speed)

- Eleven medals in Pan American Games, between Mar del Plata 1999 and Rio 2007: one gold, six silvers and four bronzes

- Four participations in Olympic Games:Barcelona 1992, Atlanta 1996, Sydney 2000 and Athens 2004

Tetsuo Okamoto (swimming)

- First Olympic medalist in Brazilian swimming: bronze in the 1,500m freestyle at Helsinki 1952

- Gold in the 400m freestyle and 1,500m freestyle, plus a silver in the 4x200m freestyle relay, at the Buenos Aires Pan American Games in 1951

Wlamir Marques (basketball)

- Two-time world champion:Chile 1959 and Brazil 1963

- Two Olympic bronze medals:Rome 1960 and Tokyo 1964

- Flag bearer at the opening ceremony of the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games

Nelson Pessoa (equestrian)

- Five participations in Olympic Games as an athlete: 1956, 1964, 1968, 1972 and 1992

- Gold in the Pan American Games Winnipeg 1967 and Mar del Plata 1995, in addition to silver at Chicago 1995

- Coach of the Brazilian team in the bronze medals conquests at Atlanta 1996 and Sydney 2000

Zagallo (football)

- The only professional to have participated in four of the five Brazilian titles at World Cups: he was a player in 1958 and 1962; he was a coach in 1970; and technical coordinator in 1994

- Bronze at the Atlanta 1996 Olympic Games (coach)

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