Brazilian champion coach Zé Roberto. JUNE NAVARRO/INQUIRER
SAO PAOLO, BRAZIL—Brazilian champion coach Zé Roberto gamely posed for photos as the Philippine women’s national volleyball team milled around him at the end of another intense workout.
Roberto, who triumphantly navigated Brazil through three Olympic gold medals, likewise revealed that nothing is hidden to his string of success in the global volleyball arena.
“There are no secrets (to success in world volleyball). It’s purely about hard work, hours of practice and repetition and playing against the best teams in the world on a regular basis,’’ said Roberto.
The multi-titled Brazilian mentor is the proud owner of Sportville where the national spikers sweated it out for almost two weeks in a training camp mapped to prepare them for a medal finish in the coming 31st Southeast Asian Games in Hanoi, Vietnam.
“Spend plenty of hours in the gyms, learn the fundamental skills and compete against the best teams, best players and best coaches in the world. These things are important to reach the top of the world rankings,’’ said Roberto.
PH head coach Jorge Edson Souza de Brito was a vital cog under Roberto in Brazil’s gold-medal men’s team during the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain.
But Roberto spent more time in Brazil’s national women’s volley program, bringing home the gold medals from the 2008 Beijing Olympics and the 2012 London Olympics while winding up with a silver medal in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
Volleyball celebrities Alyssa Valdez, Aby Marano, Jaja Santiago, Jema Galanza, Mylene Paat, Ces Molina and Kat Tolentino posed for posterity with Roberto, who hosted a customary Brazilian barbeque dinner for the team.
IN PHOTOS: Barbecue dinner courtesy of Brazil’s national women’s volleyball team head coach Ze Roberto on Day 12 of the Philippine national women's volleyball team training camp in Brazil. | @junavINQ pic.twitter.com/OzdEOXzjUO
— INQUIRER Sports (@INQUIRERSports) April 26, 2022
Roberto likewise left middle blockers Ria Meneses, Majoy Baron, Dell Palomata, liberos Dawn Macandili and Kath Arado plus setters Kyle Negrito and Iris Tolenada in awe with a long list of achievements for Brazil’s women’s squad on the global scene.
The Philippine National Volleyball Federation headed by its president Ramon “Tats’’ Suzara has brought the women’s squad here for a two-week camp supported by the Philippine Sports Commission, Philippine Olympic Committee, Rebisco, PLDT and the City of Taguig.
Coaches Odjie Mamon, Grace Antigua, Raffy Mosuela, Tina Salak and therapist Grace Gomez have been assisting de Brito in their twice-a-day workouts for the country’s medal bid in the SEA Games on May 12-23.
“We worked hard to become Olympic champions. It’s a continuous process of trying to improve and the need to have good experience against the other teams,’’ said Roberto, who returned home from Turkey and Italy on Tuesday after watching the finals of the Turkish Volleyball League and the semifinals of the Italian League.
Brazil is currently ranked No. 2 in the world in women’s volleyball.
The PH spikers will head back to Manila after winning four of their five tuneup matches against Brazilian teams, an encouraging indication of their readiness to pluck a medal in the Hanoi Games where defending champion Thailand and host Vietnam are the teams to beat.