The  419 children between  13 and 15 years of age who took part in the Olympic Day Run, around the Maria Lenk Aquatic Park on Sunday, marked the beginning of the celebrations of the anniversary of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), on Monday, June 23. The date celebrates the foundation of IOC in 1894 by Baron Pierre de Coubertin, in Paris. Several events were organizes to celebrate the Olympic Day such as basketball, volleyball, field hockey and table tennis camps, diving performances, a swimming competition and an exhibit of Pan American Games Rio 2007 photographs. A full program will be held along the week in Rio de Janeiro and in the states of Alagoas and São Paulo.

The winner of the men’s 3km run was 15-year old Gustavo Elias dos Santos, representing Caxias Olympic Village and 14-year old Ingrid da Silva Norberto, from the  Mangueira/Petrobras/Belford Roxo Olympic Village won the women’s competition. A newcomer to athletics, Gustavo finished the race in 12m09s, one second ahead of  Luquian de Carvalho, who is also 15 years old and 2007 state 1000m race champion.   Douglas Santos de Lima, representing Mangueira/Petrobras, Belford Roxo crossed the finish line in 12m12s.

“It was a hard and highly competitive race. It took courage and guts to win” reported Gustavo who started to run just four months ago.  His best prior result in athletics had been a fifth position in the Olympic Day Run for Peace.

A big fan of marathon champion Frank Caldeira, before being discovered by the teachers of the Mangueira Olympic Village, during a street race in which he took part side by side with his father Antonio, an aircraft mechanic and former amateur athlete, Gustavo used to play football.

“In football I was an average player. In athletics I have now found myself a place in sport”, rejoiced Gustavo, an 8th grade student who is already seen by experts as an athlete whith a significant potential to be lapidated.

In the women’s race, five times junior state champion and Brazilian student games champion Ingrid Norberto finished the race in 13m19s, followed by  Jacira Coutinho de Freitas dos Santos (13m39s), representing Suderj/CETAN, and  Ane Clayta Oliveira dos Santos (13m53s), representing Escola Municipal Silveira Sampaio, who finished, respectively, in second and third places. Ingrid started her carrier in athletics after a teacher at the Mangueira/Petrobras/Belford Roxo Olympic Village saw her racing with a friend.

“I left the dance school I was attending and threw myself body and soul in athletics”, recalled the 8th grade athlete who lives with her grandparents in Belford Roxo.

At the opening ceremony of the Olympic Day  Run, beach volleyball Olympic medalist Adriana Samuel read the massage sent by International Olympic Committee president Jacques Rogge to all participants. The event was also attended by the Municipal Secretary of Sport and Leisure, João Batista Raposo de Mendonça; the president of Rio de Janeiro Athletics Federation Carlos Alberto Lancetta; and the president of the Brazilian Field and Indoor Hockey Federation Sydnei Rocha.