Dos Santos swaps dance for archery at the Sambodromo

Original article by the Olympic News Service at Rio 2016.

The Rio 2016 Olympic Games archery competition will not be the first appearance in Rio’s Sambodromo for recurve archer Ane Marcelle Dos Santos, who has often performed on the historic parade ground with her samba school.

The Sambodromo, designed by Brazil’s renowned architect Oscar Niemeyer, is where Rio’s famous samba schools strut their stuff during the city's Carnaval every February. Dos Santos is a member of the Salgueiro school.

“My last full parade with Salgueiro was in 2014. But it has been part of my family for many years,” the 22-year-old said.

“My earliest memory of the Sambodromo is a picture I have with me and my grandfather as part of the ‘old guard’ (the older members of the school), back in 2006.”

“I started archery in 2009 and made the national team in 2011. The national team is based in Campinas near Sao Paulo, and there were a few times due to training I couldn't make it here to perform.”

After the Games, said Ane Marcelle, she hopes to both continue her archery – and be back in the Sambodromo with her samba school.

“Luckily I've never had to choose between archery and the samba school. Although there’s an expression here that says: ‘If you've got ginga you can do anything’,” she concluded.

Ginga, depending on who you ask, translates to something like “dance rhythm”, “swagger” or “je ne sais quoi”.

Dos Santos will participate in archery’s women’s team and individual events at Rio 2016.

The archery competition at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games starts on the 5 August in the Sambodromo.