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Wednesday October 28, 2009

A smashing stand-out in football-mad Brazil

THOMAS Moretti is a rare breed among football-crazy Brazilians.

He has been mad on badminton since childhood and is willing to take extreme measures to fulfil his ambition to feature in the Olympics.

The 18-year-old from Sao Paolo is the Brazilian national junior singles champion. And he has set himself the target of clinching Brazil’s wildcard spot for the men’s singles in the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

Moretti did not mind the tiring two-day journey from Sao Paolo to Alor Setar to make his debut in the world junior boys’ singles competition, which starts today.

Brazilian touch: Thomas Moretti getting a feel of one of his racquets Tuesday.

“I came here alone without any coach or manager. I am excited because it will be an eye-opening experience to rub shoulders with the best junior players in the world,” said Moretti, who arrived in Malaysia last Sunday.

“My only previous exposure to world-class badminton was in watching YouTube clips on the Internet. I was at the stadium to watch the team final (between China and Malaysia). The level of badminton played was at a different level to what I am used to back home.”

Moretti earned his big break to compete in the World Juniors after emerging as the Under-19 singles champion in the Pan-Am Championships in Puerto Rico. His expenses to play in Malaysia are being borne by the Badminton Pan American Confederation.

“Contrary to people’s perception, there is a thriving badminton scene in Brazil,” he said.

“In Sao Paolo alone, there are about 2,000 badminton players. The number is small compared to other popular sports but it shows that the interest in badminton is growing.

“At present, the players from South America might not be able to match the top Asians. But there are more local and regional competitions being organised now.”

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