Manaus Olympic Village celebrates 34 years of sports history and training of internationally renowned athletes

The Manaus Olympic Village, a reference space in international sports, celebrates 34 years of foundation, with the mission of training high-performance athletes, promoting sports and promoting quality of life. Since its inauguration, the sports complex has established itself as one of the most important training and competition centers in Brazil, offering infrastructure for various sports.

“The Olympic Village is the training ground for high-level athletes and the stage for major competitions. Big names in Brazilian sport have come from here. Today, all our work is focused on ensuring that the Government of Amazonas ensures that we have strong names for the next Olympic cycles, which is why we continue to promote sport from the grassroots to high performance”, highlighted the head of the State Secretariat for Sports and Leisure (Sedel), Jorge Oliveira.

Opened on March 26, 1990, with an area of ​​202,775 square meters, the Olympic Village is a major milestone in the state’s sporting history, becoming a training base for athletes who have achieved international titles.

Highlights include Sandro Viana, bronze in the 4x100m relay at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games; and Eduardo Piccinini, swimmer who won three silvers at the 1995 Pan American Games, in Mar del Plata, Argentina. In addition to former Brazilian national team gymnast Bianca Maia Mendonça, who debuted in gymnastics at the age of six and won gold at the 2011 Pan de Guadalajara.

Maurren Maggi, the biggest name in Brazilian women’s athletics, trained at the Manaus Olympic Village before winning gold in Beijing 2008. Maintaining his legacy in Olympic sports, Pedro Nunes, from the javelin throw, is one of Amazon’s great hopes for the Olympic Games of Paris 2024. The athlete from Parintina, who trains on the Vila athletics track, won silver at the Pan-American Games in Santiago 2023 and holds the Brazilian record with 83 meters 89 centimeters, achieved at the Brazilian Grand Prix.

“The Olympic Village, for me, is very important. I lived here in the accommodation for five years, that was when I took my first steps in the sport, when I came from Parintins. Today, it is the place where I train and develop, bringing good results. I think this importance, the structure, the track, everything was better for my achievements”, said Pedro Nunes.

Photograph: Julcemar Alves/Sedel

Working since 1996 at the largest sports complex in Amazonas, Ricardo Porto is very happy to work for so many years in Vila. “I feel part of the state of Amazonas, of the history of the sport. I am part of the Government’s wheels that led to the training of several athletes that we have here today. So, I feel grateful,” he said.

Photograph: Julcemar Alves/Sedel

The Manaus Olympic Village has courts for collective and individual sports; a fitness center; a gym for table tennis; a room for boxing training; an athletics track, with grandstands for an audience of 1,500 people; a kart track and an Olympic-standard swimming pool

Pelci

The Sports and Leisure Program in the Capital and Interior (Pelci), the largest socio-sporting project in Brazil, has its largest nucleus in the Olympic Village, with more than 2 thousand athletes. The program has been the starting point for many athletes who dream of representing Amazonas and Brazil in sports such as artistic and rhythmic gymnastics, chess, table tennis, judo, volleyball, athletics, swimming, Jiu-jitsu.