The last three men’s Olympic volleyball finals – at Athens 2004, Beijing 2008 and London 2012 – had one person in common: the Brazilian libero Sérgio Dutra Santos. Better known as simply Serginho, he left Greece with a gold medal and won silver at the next two Games.

Now aged 39, he has many Olympic memories, but they are not limited to the Games he participated in. His first is from Los Angeles 1984, when Joaquim Cruz beat Seb Coe to the 800m gold medal in that iconic stadium. Next came Brazil’s first volleyball Olympic gold medal, at Barcelona 1992. Then begin his personal memories, being so pumped up against that they almost wanted to fight their Italian rivals in Athens, the heartbreak of missing out on gold to Russia in London. See our video interview:

As well as what he achieved on the volleyball courts, Serginho has many recollections of meeting various great athletes at the Games. “The feeling when you enter the Olympic village is surreal. You see great athletes, who you think are immortal, passing by like normal people. I took many photos, it was impossible not to ask. You end up chatting with these big stars in the canteen, exchanging experiences. It’s really cool.”

For an athlete to be in such good shape as he approaches his 40th birthday (on 15 October) is not easy. But Serginho has a simple recipe, which he hopes will take to him one more Olympic final in Rio, and a golden goodbye. “I take care of myself; I don’t drink, I don’t smoke, and I believe that rest is a crucial part of training. I’m very happy to be playing at the highest level at 39. I hope to be well next year and give my best to win a gold medal and make history.”

Check out the first four interviews in this series, with Chad le Clos, Jessica Ennis-Hill, Sardar Singh and Carli Lloyd.