Time. What is measured in minutes, hours, days, years, that encompasses, for mankind, the notions of present, past and future. Moment or appropriate occasion in which something happens. Era. Period. In the dictionary, twelve definitions and infinite combinations. Untouchable. Intangible. For Ricardo Pradro, time is relative.

Olympic athlete with 15 years old, champion and world record holder with 17, silver medalist in Los Angeles 1984 with 19 and retired from the pools with 23, it did not take long for him to become a legend of the Brazilian sport. With 5' 6.5", he became gigantic because of his technique under water. He dominated the four styles and was on the top of the most complete event of Swimming, the 400m medley.

“If you want to be a good swimmer, you have, first, to be a good athlete. Being a good athlete is to know the basis of all sports, to be a good runner, for instance. It is to be a good athlete in general, and a better swimmer. Nowadays, when people are specialists, this is not so important, particularly sprinters. Today, you see athletes racing in just one event. But, in my opinion, in the opinion of a guy from another era, I think the good thing is when the guy knows how to swim the four styles, when he has a solid base of resistance, when he has trained high mileages when young, and then specializes in his twenties."

Check out the photo gallery of Ricardo Prado's career

A watershed

“From another era”, Ricardo popularised the Brazilian swimming in the 80’s. There were twenty years without any Olympic medal, since the bronze of Manuel dos Santos in Rome 1960. Since then, eight editions of the Games and podium in six of them.

He is considered the most complete swimmer of the countrie’s history and a watershed of a way that culminated with the gold medal of Cesar Cielo in Beijing 2008, the first of a Brazilian on the sport.

“The structure of the sport improves while people practice the sport and open the way. Manuel dos Santos has opened the way, Rômulo Arantes and Djan Madruga as well. They were athletes who were pioneers in this territory. In the 80’s, when I appeared, I think Swimming has never been so in vogue. Gustavo [Borges] came right after me, just like Xuxa [Fernando Scherer]. I think the gold medal has something of all of us, but above all, I think it is talent and effort of César,” he considers.

Post career

The precociousness of the retirement, without mincing the words, came with the lack of motivation. Nowadays, it would have been different. “Currently, the sport offers things that it didn’t offer at that time. The Brazilian Swimming is much better today, we have better coaches, great clubs investing in training, in structure, in international trips. The athletes now have everything I didn’t have. If it was today, I would have prolonged my career and maybe got some more results. Today, the Brazilians athletes have everything they need here. They don’t need to leave the country, and it is not even advisable in most cases.”

Always followed by his studies, most of it in the United States, the athlete career has finished without surprises. The natural transitional to a new profession could serve as an example for many. With bachelor and master degrees in Economy, and another bachelor degree in Physical Education, he has worked as Swimming coach, sports commentator on TV and sporting events manager. For athletes of today, however, the time has changed.

“With a more professional sport, athletes start to earn money. Everytime you receive something, you have to give something back. I know that there are athletes that receive money from a sports club and the club doesn’t want them to study, for example, to have exclusive dedication. With the sports becoming more professional and with the sponsorships, a lot of athletes are preferring to study later, what I believe it’s an error. Formerly, we trained at dawn, because we have to go to school afterwards, in the morning. Then, we would come back and train in the afternoon again. Today, we don’t see it very much”, he recalls.

Pan-american Games and Olympic Games

At the Rio 2016 Organising Committee for the Olympic Games, as Sports Competition Specialist, Ricardo is part of the team responsible for mounting all of training and competition areas. Purchase of equipments, technical specifications verification and direct contact with the International Federations are part of his daily routine.

Also in charge of the competition events calendar, the idol has time in his hands. Side by side with the Sports Director and former Olympic athlete Agberto Guimarães, he was part of the team that prepared the Rio 2007 Pan-american Games, considered the best edition in history.

“The Pan-american Games gave an idea of the greatness and responsibility that we have ahead us. It is very interesting to work in an institution such as the Organising Committee, where your work influences the work of many, where communication is very important, where you have to exchange services with people beside you the entire time. It is a constant teamwork.”

At the Rio 2016 Committee, new employees, but old fans, are taken by surprise when crossing with the idol in the aisle. The images of Ricardo Prado in the pools from all over the globe, on TV, and on the magazine’s cover of the 80’s are part of our memories. The victories of a watershed, in sport and life, the time cannot erase.