Da madrugada de treinos ao lugar mas alto do pódio: a historia do título que marcou o basquete de Rondônia (From the morning of training to the pitch and from high up on the podium - A history of the title that marked basketball in Rondonia)

♪ I've been waiting for you ♪

It 's a project I have to go through .

O basquete universitário feminino da Afya, from Porto Velho (RO), had a week of celebration after winning the unprecedented title in the 3a Divisão dos Jogos Universitários Brasileiros (JUBS).

For coach Heitor Neto, the gold took on a special weight after two previous frustrations.He already had two silver medals - one with the women's team and another with the men's - but he had never risen to higher ground".The size of this achievement is enormous.It was our first university gold medal",said the trainer.

mothers, students and workers who trained until midnight

The list of champions is not made up only by high-performance athletes, as the players are divided between routine courses such as medicine, law and marketing, employment, childcare and training in Porto Velho that frequently started at 9:30 or 10:00 p.m. and ended at midnight.

Armadora Kerllyn Rodrigues, who is also her mother, summed up the sacrifice: "I left the gymnasium at midnight and arrived very late at home.

"Foi como Davi contra Golias: nós eramos o Davi", compares Kerllyn, who defines the season as a "championship uncertainty".

Captain Marina Erse said that the emotion took hold even before the final whistle: "I was already crying a minute before the game ended. To bring this title to Porto Velho and Rondônia, representing our institution, was incredible".

Vacancy in the 2nd division and planning to retain or cast

With gold assured, the focus of the project changed: to keep the group united and structure preparation for the 2nd division of JUBS, a competition considered, in evaluating time, as equivalent to the 1st division by the strength of clubs and the presence of professional players.

"We've made a very big step. It will be a gigantic challenge, but it is really good to know that the basketball of our state is evolving. Our intention is to continue working to bring more gold and remain on the podium", projected Kerllyn.

The current moment, therefore, is one of transition: as comemorações passaram, a rotina pesada de classes e treinos seguiu a mesma, and o basquete feminino de Rondônia was preparing for the major test of its historia no cenário universitário nacional.