March 21, 2022

11:03

Priscilla Peixoto – from Cenarium Magazine

MANAUS – “Sports are one of the greatest means of social inclusion. It was 8 months of work, from the inauguration of the project until today, and the first athletes have already started to compete in championships. We are very happy with the results and this shows us that we are on the right track”. The sentence is from Guilherme Torres, one of the people responsible for the ‘Young Ambassadors’ project, celebrating the victorious debut of the new athletes in the Amazonas Jiu-Jitsu Federation tournament held this Saturday, 19, at the Amazonas Legislative Assembly Gym.

João Victor Souza da Silva, Rafael Bessa de Carvalho, and Leandro Santa Rosa da Costa were the standout names in the tournament’s mixed martial arts challenge. For 6 months, participants of the project aimed at needy children and teenagers in vulnerable situations, the athletes competed in the adult category, weight 52kg and 54kg, respectively. João Victor is a purple belt in the sport and is also an athlete at AJ, an academy and training partner of the project. Rafael and Leandro are white belts.

“It is my first win and I am very happy. The ‘Young Ambassadors’ project was my first academy and incentive. It is a very important initiative for me because this project saves lives, takes kids off the street, off drugs, and helps us so much. Master Guilherme and my training friends teach me about life, in its ups and downs. It’s not just jiu-jitsu, it’s not just a sport, they teach how to live,” says the young Rafael Bessa, who has already expressed his desire to participate in the Amazon Jiu-Jitsu Championship, scheduled to take place in April.

About the project

The ‘Young Ambassadors’ project is an initiative linked to the Instituto Desembargador Cândido Honório – (Idesch) which develops sports activities and word studies for children and teenagers from 6 to 17 years old.

The Idesch is a non-profit associative entity, focused on research, teaching, and the development of multiple activities and, according to the president of the project, Cândido Honório Soares, the activities aimed at the children and young people can reveal many sports talents hidden in the city and also rescue, using the faith of those who for some reason have strayed from the path of “good”, losing focus either in studies, work, family, among others.

Within the project there is also the ‘Adopt a young ambassador’ program, where the sponsor will follow the sponsored athlete’s evolution, closely observed, both in terms of performance in training and, especially, in the school environment, which is a prerequisite to be registered with us. And we intend to help with a ranch for those most in need”, he explains.

Those interested in helping, as a volunteer, in the project or to participate to receive classes and guidance, just look for the profile @projetojovensembaixadores on Instagram and click the bio link, or send a direct and wait for a response. For those who want to know more closely, the project’s headquarters is located on Anderson Freire Street, number 8, Petrópolis, South Zone of Manaus.

“We will now make adjustments and resume training on Monday, 21. Next month, the other athletes will also debut in the championships. Our goal is to become world champions. Today, we are 70 students, but with a waiting list of 260. Soon, we will open new classes to accommodate more athletes”, concludes Guilherme Torres.