1956 The national volleyball squad went to Paris (France) to compete for the first time in the World Championships, placing 11th.
1956-1962 The national side picked up a total of four Continental trophies.
1959 With players such as Lucia Mendes de Moraes and Martha Miraglia, Brazil won the Second Pan American Volleyball Tournament in America’s city of Chicago, ahead of the host nation (silver) and Peru (bronze).
1960 Under the guidance of coach Zoulo Rabelo (also coach of Flamengo, one of the nation’s mos popular clubs) and with athletes such as Martha Miraglia,Norma Rosa Vaz and Lucia Mendes, the host country Brazil finished fifth in the Global Championship in Rio de Janeiro.
1962 During the Global Tournament in the USSR/Soviet Union, the women’s volleyball team finished eighth.
1963 With the direction of coach Geraldo Faggiano, the host Brazilians placed first in the Pan American Games in Sao Paulo. It was the second time the Brazilians had won in Pan American volleyball history. The country’s top athletes were Joana mary and Vera de Trezoitko. Here, there were interesting facts: Brazil’s player Zilda Coco Ulbricht became the world’s oldest player with 36 years old.
1963 Following their victory against Peru, the host country Brazil became champ in the Summer Universiade in Porto Alegre.
1964 Roberto Moreira Calcada, President of the Brazilian Volleyball Confederation declined to send teams to Regional tournament, which was held in Argentina’s capital of Buenos Aires. The event was won by Peru.
1967 Incredibly, the host nation Brazil lost to Peru in the VII Continental Championships in Santos.
1969 In Caracas (Venezuela), Brazil defeated Peru to win the VIII South American Cup for the first time since 1962.
1970 The nation’s volleyball squad only muster a 13th place finish in Bulgaria, home to the FIVB World Championship.
1971 In the Uruguayan capital of Montevideo, the Brazilian contingent could not win the IX Regional competition.
1973 Astonishingly, Brazil’s national squad obtained bronze in the Summer Universiade in the then Soviet Union, behind the host country and Bulgaria.
1973 During the First FIVB World Cup in Uruguay’s capital of Montevideo, Brazil beat the host nation 3-1 (15-5, 15-5, 14-16, and 15-2) to finish 9th, among 10 squads in the international meet.
1974 The athletic delegation left Brazil for Mexico to attend the World Championship, where it placed 15th.
1975 The Brazilian women’s side were second in the XI Continental Cup in the Paraguayan capital of Asuncion.
1975 The women’s volleyball squad ranked as one of the six best delegations in the Americas during the quadrennial Pan American Games in Mexico City in October.
1976 The national squad, spearheaded by Maria Isabel Barroso Salgado, won the Junior South American Competition in Bolivia’s capital of La Paz.
1977 After losing to Peru in the XII Continental tournament, the nation’s team was eliminated to attend the II World Cup on Japanese soil.
1978 The Brazilian squad was one of the world’s top seven at the Moscow Global Tournament, well ahead of Peru (its main rival).
1979 For the fifth time in a row, the Brazilian players won the silver medal in the XIII South American Championships after losing to Peru in the gold-medal game in Buenos Aires.
1979 Incredibly, the world-class team of America, headed by California’s Flora Hyman, was defeated by Brazil in the bronze medal match during the VIII Pan American Games on Puerto Rico; Brazil’s first Pan American medal since 1963. The score was 3-2: 15-8, 7-15, 15-11, 7-15, 15-11.
1980 The Portuguese-speaking country, spearheaded by Heloisa Santos Roese, was unable to win a berth in the upcoming Olympics when it ranked as number three in the Olympic International Qualification, behind Romania and the host country Bulgaria and well ahead of Hungary, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, and Mexico. Before going to Bulgaria, the Brazilian squad made a tour of Eastern Europe.
1980 Because of an international boycott, Brazil’s volleyball players made a trip to what was then the USSR, upon capturing an Olympic berth (the U.S. team was replaced by Brazil) and making its first appearance as one of the Olympic teams in the women’s Olympic Cup at the Moscow Summer Games.
1981 Surprisingly,the Brazilian women’s side, led by Jackie Silva, won its major international trophy when it was one of the three finalists, along with Cuba (silver) and the People’s Republic of China (gold), in women’s volleyball at the World University Games in Bucarest, Romania.
1981 Under the guidance of head coach Enio Figueiredo, the host nation Brazil defeated Peru (among the traditional women’s volleyball powers on American mainland) to win XIV the Regional title in Santo Andre’s Pedro del Antonio Gymnasium, allowing it to compete in the III FIVB Japan World Cup for first time since 1973. Curiously, it was one of the most-watched events on television in Brazil that year(transmitted by O Globo Television Network).
1982 The 1981 South American champion, headed by Jackie Silva, was runner-up to Japan in the Pre-World Cup (called “Mundialito”) in Sao Paulo, following important wins over the Olympic champion USSR (3-2: 7-15, 11-15, 15-8, 15-13, and 15-13) and the Asian bronze medalist South Korea (3-2: 15-13, 15-8, 3-15, 4-15, and 16-14). In the six-team tournament, there were other two teams: Argentina and Mexico.
1983 During the World University Games at Edmonton (Canada), the Brazilian athletes, called “Meninas do Brasil” by the nation’s journalists, giving a lesson of perseverance and passion to finish first in the world’s greatest sporting event.
1983 The defending champion Brazil failed to defend its continental trophy after losing to Peru on home soil. Maria Isabel Barroso Salgado and Jacqueline Silva cried upon losing the South American title.
1983 Brazil’s volleyball was one of the best four teams on the American mainland following their performance in the IX Pan American Games in Venezuela.
1984 Under the direction of Marco Aurelio Motta, the national delegation the Under-17 and Under-20 South American titles in Chile and Peru. In both events, Ana Beatriz Moser, who played for Transbrasil Club at the time, became one of the Most Valuable Players.
1984 Cuba’s Olympic team, headed by Mireya Luis and Lazara Gonzales, made a trip to Brazil to play friendly matches.
1984 Prior to going to the Los Angeles Olympics, the women’s volleyball squad of West Germany made a tour of Brazil.
1984 After training very hard during five months at Centro Tecnico Aeroespacial in Sao Jose dos Campos, Sao Paulo, Maria Isabel Barroso Salgado –the country’s best female player– and her fellow Brazilian team-mates went to Japan and South Korea as part of a pre-Olympic preparation to the 1984 Summer Games in Los Angeles (CA).
1984 In the Olympiad in Southern California, Sandra Survagy and her fellow Brazilian players nearly upset America following a dramatic game. The score was 3-2. In the eight-team tournament, the country finished sixth, ahead of West Germany and Canada.
1985 Ana Lucia (1,76-m tall) was elected as one of the two top players in the Under-20 World Cup in Italy, behind Cuba’s famous Mireya Luis Hernandez. She played for Athletico Paulistano in her homeland country.
1985 Brazilian-born Heloisa Santos Roese was selected to join a world All-Star team, made up of the world’s top volleyball players such as Josefina Capote (Cuba), Kumi Nakada (Japan), Cecilia Tait (Peru), Rose Magers (USA), and Dina Kachalova (USSR).
1986 Against all odds, Brazil earned a berth in the semi-finals and finished fifth at the FIVB World Championships in the then Czechoslovakia.
1987 With the direction of Jorge Barros, the national delegation could only muster fourth place in the Pan American Games in the States, behind Cuba, Peru and the host nation America.
1987 Despite being South American silver medalist, but taking advantage of its stature, the junior national team began to make name for Brazil to take its major international title when it surprisingly gained the Under-20 World Cup by beating the host nation South Korea (3-0) at Seoul’s Chamsil Gymnasium (on September 13, 1987). On the other hand, one of the most memorable facts was when the underdog team survived an intense battle of five sets to win the match against the then USSR in the first round. The score was 15-17, 6-15, 15-6, 15-13, and 15-13. This game was key to Brazil’s ambition in the thirteen-team tournament. The South American side was Brazil’s tallest team in the history of women’s volleyball. Curiously, they finished second to Peru in the Continental Tournament a year earlier. Among Brazil’s main stars were Ana Beatriz Moser (1,85m tall), Ana Paula Lezza (1,87m), Marcia Cunha (1,86m),Fernanda Venturini (1,82m), Fatima Apareceida (1,87), Xilene Rocha (1,84), Denisse Sousa (1,80), and Kerly dos Santos (1,90m). Three sportswomen —Simone Storm, Moser and Cunha— received special awards in the Republic of Korea. Furthermore, Brazil’s Marco Aurelio Motta was elected as the best coach.
1988 Following Cuba’s boycott to the Seoul Olympics, Brazil won the right to attend the women’s Olympic competition in the Games of the XXIV Olympiad. The 1988 team brought five members of their junior national team which won the Seoul 1987 World Cup: Kerly dos Santos, Ana Moser, Marcia Cunha,Fernanda Venturini, and Simone Storm. The team’s roster also included Vera Mossa, Eliani Costa, Ana Maria Richa, Maria Trade, Ana Ramos, Ana Lucia Barros, and Sandra Survagy. On the other hand, this squad was second to the Soviet Union’s delegation in the Pre-Olympic Cup in the Italian capital of Rome.
Brazilian-born Fernanda Venturini emerged as one of volleyball’s most prominent setters.
1990 The former junior team produced one of its first wins when Ana Moser and her fellow sportswomen won the bronze in the Second Goodwill Games by beating Peru 3-2 (the nation’s first win over Peru since 1981) in America’s city of Seattle.
1990 The Brazilian women’s squad did not win medals in the Global competition in the People’s Republic of China, but it had the distinction of having one player elected as the “Best Attacker”. Her name: Ana Moser.
1991 Brazil’s World Cup volleyball star Ana Moser led the national side to win the South American gold medal on home soil
1991 The country’s female athletes reached the finals in the X Pan American Volleyball Championship on Cuba, capturing the silver medal; Brazil’s first Pan American medal since the late 1970s.
1992 Moser’s team made the second round in the VIII Women’s Olympic Volleyball Tournament in the Barcelonese Games, but it was eliminated by the Unified Team (ex USSR) 3-1 (15-10, 13-15, 15-5, 15-5) in the semi-finals.
1993 The defending champion Brazil, headed by Marcia Cunha, could not retain its continental trophy in Peru’s city of Cuzco.
1994 Thanks to Moser’s play, the Brazilian side became a powerhouse in women’s volleyball around the globe by winning the FIVB World Grand Prix and obtaining a world silver medal.Without a doubt, the country’s most famous volleyball player was Moser.
1995 The Latin American nation was silver medalist in the FIVB World Cup in the Japanese capital of Tokyo.
1995 Under Bernardo Rezende’s guidance, the nation’s volleyball players were runners-up to America in the Third FIVB Grand Prix.
1996 The country’s long dream of Olympic medal occurred in the Atlanta Centennial Games following Brazil’s win in the bronze-medal game. Before that match, the 1996 Brazilian Olympic team lost a tense five-set semifinal to Cuba.
1996 In this Olympic year, Ana Moser and her squad defeated the number-one-ranked Cuba to finish first in the Fourth Grand Prix in the People’s Republic of China, recupering the title which it won in 1994 and becoming the fourth team in the Western Hemisphere to win the title for the fourth time in a row.
1998 Under the guidance of head coach Bernardo Rocha de Rezende, nicknamed “Bernardinho”, the Brazilian women’s volleyball team defeated the defeating champion Russia to take the VI Grand Prix in Hong Kong.
1998 The Portuguese-speaking country finished fourth at the World Championship.
1999 For the first time since 1971, Cuba lost to Brazil 3-2 in the finals of the Pan American Sports Games in Canada’s city of Winnipeg. The Pan American gold medalists were Karin Rodrigues, Jania Conceicao, Virna Dias, Erika Coimbra, Leila Barros, Elisangela Oliveira, Helia Sousa, Walewska Oliveira, Andrea Texeira, Raquel Silva, C. Alburquerque, and Renata Carvalho.
1999 The 1996 bronze medal winning women’s volleyball team returned to Brazil after finishing as runner-up to Russia in the VII FIVB Grand Prix.
2000 The 1999 Pan American champion won its second consecutive Olympian medal to become one of the three finalists in the Millennium Games on Australian soil.
2000 The Brazilian national squad became one of the world’s top three teams in the World Grand Prix, alongside Cuba (winner) and the Russian Federation (runners-up).
2001 The women’s volleyball squad returned to Brazil after defending their South American title in Buenos Aires (Argentina).
2002 Brazil’s side was one of the world’s seven best teams in the Global competition in Germany.
2003 During the World Cup, the 2000 bronze medal winning women’s volleyball team placed second.
2004 The Portuguese-speaking country only muster a fourth-place finish in the XI Women’s Olympic Volleyball Tournament in the Games of the 28th Olympiad in Greece, behind China (gold), Russia (silver), and Cuba (bronze).
2004 In Italy, the XII FIVB Grand Prix was won by Brazil’s delegation for the first time since 1998.
2005 The Brazilian women’s volleyball team finished first to defend their Grand Prix title in Japan’s city of Sendai, becoming the most outstanding nation in that event with a total of five prizes, well head of the United States (2), Russia (3) and Cuba (2).
2005 The national delegation earned the Montreaux Volleyball Masters in Switzerland.
2006 The national side finished second at the FIVB Women’s World Championship, behind Russia.
2006 Under the guidance of head coach Jose Guimaraes, Brazil’s sportswomen caught the attention of the volleyball world when they winning their third straight FIVB Grand Prix in Reggio (Italy).
2007 Surprisingly, the host Brazilians were defeated by Cuba’s side in the gold-medal game in the Pan American Sports Games in Rio de Janeiro.
2008 The team’s Guimaraes became the second squad in Latin America to win a volleyball gold in the 112-year-history of the Summer Olympic Games.
Thaisa Menezes emerged as one of volleyball’s most powerful blockers.
2008 In Japan, the six-time winner of the women’s volleyball Grand Prix shocked the world to finish first in the international Prix at the expense of Cuba and Italy.
2009 Once again, Brazil won the World Grand Prix in Japan.
2010 The 2008 Olympic champion came close to winning the FIVB World Championship on Japanese soil, behind Russia.
2010 The team’s Guimaraes finished second at the FIVB Grand Prix in the People’s Republic of China.
2011 For the eighth time in a row, Brazil won the South American trophy on Peruvian soil.
2011 At the FIVB World Cup in Japan, the country’s national team failed to win a berth in the upcoming Olympics in London.
2011 The women’s volleyball team of Brazil was runner-up to the United States at the World Grand Prix in Macau ( since 1999 a special administrative region of China).
2011 The Portuguese-speaking nation became the most outstanding team in the Americas by winning the XVI Pan American Games in Guadalajara (Mexico).
2012 Under Jose Guimaraes’ guidance, the national volleyball team was silver medalist in the FIVB Grand Prix in the People’s Republic of China, behind America.
Bibliography
.Arbena, Joseph and David Gerald Lafrane. Sport in Latin America and the Caribbean, Jaguar Books, 2002
.FIVB Federation Internationale de Volleyball homepage: www.fivb.org
.Guevara Onofre, Alejandro. “Volleyball Hall Of Fame– The Untold Biography of Ana Moser”, Voices.yahoo.com
.Guevara Onofre, A. Fun Facts About Olympic Nations– Brazil”, www.ezinearticles.com
.———- “Carlos Nuzman– The Father of Rio 2016”, www.ezinearticles.com
.Martins, Lamyr. “Volei Juvenil: O Maior Salto Das Meninas”, Placar Magazine, 17 Septiembre 1987 (Portuguese)
.Nauright, John and Charles Parrish (editors). Sports Around the World, ABC-Clio, Santa Barbara, 2012
.Olderr, Steve. The Pan American Games: A Statiscal History, 1951-1999, Mc Farland & Co, 2003
