A valuable asset has been added to Rio’s 2016 candidature team. Janeth, a former basketball player and twice Olympic medalist (Atlanta 96 silver and Sydney 2000 bronze), fell in love with the project and is the new Rio 2016 Ambassador. No other environment could make her feel more at ease to start acting as Rio 2016 candidature Ambassador than the Beijing 2008 Games.

Famous both in Brazil and abroad – she played eight seasons with WNBA, the American basketball league – Janeth has been assigned the mission of spreading the word about Rio 2016 project.  The former basketball player is convinced that an edition of the Olympic Games could give young Brazilian athletes many opportunities she did not have. “The Rio Arena, built for the Pan American Games, is wonderful, and the Olympic Games would bring even larger benefits to sport in Rio de Janeiro. The impacts will be felt all over Brazil. Talents will be easier to find and the new generation will have a smoother path to thread”, said Janeth, Brazilian 1994 world champion. 

Janeth is already familiar with the proposals of the Rio 2016 project for areas like transportation, security, environment and, of course, competition venues. And, she is promising a lot of hard work until October 2, 2009, when the host city of 2016 Olympic Games well be elected by the International Olympic Committee.  “I am really fascinated with the project. I will take a headlong dive into this campaign. Success could change Rio and the whole country”, Janeth said.

The president of Rio 2016 Candidature Committee Carlos Arthur Nuzman, highlighted the significance of the presence of the new Rio 2016 Ambassador.  “ Janeth is an example both as an athlete and as an individual. She will be a great representative of Rio’s candidature”,  he said.