Athletes from the Brazilian rowing team are helping flood victims in Rio Grande do Sul. The trio of Alef Fontoura (Pinheiros), Evaldo Becker (Flamengo) and Daniel Lima (GNU) have been working to rescue families and animals alongside volunteers at the headquarters of Grêmio Náutico União, in the Moinhos de Vento neighborhood, in Porto Alegre. Due to the seriousness of the situation in the south of the country, the duo formed by Becker and Piedro Tuchtenhagen, qualified for the Swiss Pre-Olympics, decided to withdraw from the competition.
Rowing athletes help rescue victims in Rio Grande do Sul
– Piedro and I chose not to go to the Pre-Olympics with our families and friends amidst this chaos – explained the athlete.
Evaldo and Piedro’s decision to give up their Olympic dream comes with an added weight: this will be the last edition in which the lightweight double sculls category will be on the program. The duo qualified for the Pre-Olympics after winning in the repechage of the qualifying games, which took place at Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas, South Zone of Rio de Janeiro, in March this year.
Evaldo, a Flamengo athlete, is from Rio Grande do Sul, and had to rescue his own daughter in the tragedy in Rio Grande do Sul. Daniel’s house was completely flooded and lost practically everything. The rower had to sleep in a shelter, but remains tireless in the rescue operations for flood victims.
– We have guides and material to rescue more people, but at the moment we don’t have a boat to continue our work – said Alef.
While the boat doesn’t arrive, the rowers join the volunteers at Grêmio Náutico União and work at the club’s headquarters in Moinhos de Vento.
The Pre-Olympic will be in Lucerne, Switzerland, from May 19th to 21st. Among the Brazilians already qualified for Paris are Lucas Verthein, in the men’s single sculls, and Beatriz Tavares, in the women’s singles sculls.
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Tags: Athletes rowing team withdraw PreOlympics provide assistance victims rowing
