The municipality is also a pioneer in Brazil with the 1st official nucleus of Walking Football Brasil outside São Paulo
Text: Amanda Amaral – Photo: Amanda Amaral/PMS
A group of people aged over 60 who are part of the Physical Exercise Guidance Program (Proef), of the Serra Health Department (Sesa), are participating in an unprecedented sports action in Espírito Santo: they form the first Walking Football do Estado and also the first official center of the sport outside of São Paulo.
The athletes assisted by Proef also become part of the Walking Football Brasil network, an organization responsible for regulating the sport in the country. Students also participate in an unprecedented survey in the country on the subject.
Walking Football is a version of football aimed at promoting active longevity and inclusion of people over 60 years old and played by walking and not running. Classes take place on Tuesdays and Thursdays at Arena Jacaraípe, starting at 10 am. There are 24 students in the class.
Professor Aline Souza is responsible for the Walking Football project at Proef and, according to her, the class consists of warm-up, stretching, basic fundamentals of the modality and a game.
“To avoid falls or other risks, in addition to carrying out a careful assessment and a battery of tests with the students, the rules are different. The practitioner cannot steal the ball or throw a cart, physical contact must be avoided and students stay an arm’s length away from each other. The field and the goal are also smaller, the ball has a different calibration, and we are the ones who teach the students how to handle it so they don’t get hurt”, he explains.
Walking Football’s goal is to act in line with the pillars of active longevity and offer less physical impact, regardless of the person’s conditioning and age, providing physical and emotional well-being for people over 60 years old.
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For those who, unfortunately, can no longer practice the sport, it is the chance to return to the fields. It’s also a chance for those who have never played football to get started. Among Walking Football practitioners, there are many women, for example.
“It’s not the physical performance itself, there is a greater purpose which is the inclusion and social interaction of people 60+, it’s another opportunity for them to feel useful and get out of social isolation. With this, there is an improvement in the quality of life and possibly emotional problems such as depression”, explains professor and researcher at the Federal University of Espírito Santo (Ufes) Rodrigo Luiz Vancini.
He, accompanied by master’s and doctoral students, are responsible for the research with Proef students who practice Walking Football, a partnership with the Espírito Santo branch of Walking Football Brasil (WFB). The objective of the study, which is being structured, is to evaluate the impact of this sport on the physical and mental health of practitioners.
“We know that practicing sports is good for health, but we want to study the benefits of practicing Walking Football. That is, to evaluate how much the practice of Walking Football can improve the functional capacity to carry out daily activities with autonomy and independence, as well as the physical and mental health and quality of life of the elderly”, explains the professor.
the pioneering spirit
Walking Football was born in England in 2011 and is present in over 16 countries. There, the goal was for athletes to continue to practice the sport as they age. In Brazil, it was established by Walking Football Brasil and is aimed at the 60+ audience, aiming at improving quality of life and longevity.
“We are the pilot in Espírito Santo. This is the beginning of something that will soon become great, and the WFB, the organization that regulates the sport in Brazil, is supporting us”, says Aline Souza.
The sport arrived in the country in 2019 through the WFB, which is a civil society organization (OSC). Ricardo Leme is the president and founder of WFB:
“Espírito Santo has a huge potential for the development of our methodology and Serra, in addition to being a beautiful place, is a milestone for us. It is the first state with the activity formalized outside of São Paulo”.
To act as Walking Football teachers, Proef professionals underwent training, in accordance with WFB criteria.
Walking Football
When: Tuesdays and Thursdays, from 10 am to 12 pm
Enrollment: takes place from Monday to Friday. Those interested must attend the Jacaraípe Arena, between 10 am and 12 noon, or at the Elderly Committee, in Jacaraípe, from 7 am to 10 am. Classes are currently full and those interested need to get on a waiting list
2023-08-01 15:00:00
#Municipality #Serra
