My objective is to win my medal.
I am Alison Cerutti, I am 26 years old, and I was born in Cachoeiro de Itapemirim, Espirito Santo.
Rio de Janeiro has been my home for the last six years, and it's where I practice my favorite sport, the sport I love: beach volleyball.
I used to live behind a school and my mother signed me up for volleyball lessons.
Actually, I spent a week without talking to my mother, because I thought volleyball was a women's sport.
Then one day, I decided to show up for class. I loved it! 11 women and 2 men, and I said "This is it, I've found my home!"
My family is my haven, I can't go longer than a month without visiting them. Even with my entire schedule and everything,
whenever I have like a day free or half day free, I go to Victoria, I don't even think twice about it.
They have always been by my side through difficult moments. When I moved to Rio de Janeiro, it was not easy to be away from my family,
friends, and to start paying bills, and exchanging money, investing in my career, so my family is… my entire foundation.
There are many tournaments that stay with you. For me, it was the World Cup last year in Rome that I won, the Pan-American Games and the Latitude,
which is a completely different tournament that I participated in 2010. It started with the girls, then came to boys, and then it became quartet.
The other players from around the world say "Wow, what an unusual tournament, how cool!" I believe it will only grow and that is the most important thing.
Now we're carrying this responsibility of representing the south, well, the southern hemisphere, and to continue to win, which is a lot of pressure.
I enjoy staying home the most. I bought an enormous sofa, so it feels like a cinema. The computer stays by my side and there is always a film on the TV.
I have someone that cooks for me, so… she knows my needs, my likes and dislikes and without a doubt we have sort of an agreement too.
When I win a tournament, get through to the finals or make it to the podium, she makes me a delicious dessert.
So now that I came in second, I got back and there was a chocolate mousse that I adore. If I win, I get presents; if I lose, there's nothing.
There's some lasagna, I told you that if I made it to the podium, I told you what the lady does, look… I'm telling you…
She will come again tomorrow, but tomorrow I won't be here, and that's it… you guys got me busted.
An athlete that doesn't feel pain is an athlete that doesn't train, he doesn't train enough. A top athlete feels pain everyday. When he wakes up,
when it is cold, when it is hot, when he plays two consecutive matches. I feel pain everyday… but there's no escaping it, I love what I do!
It is the key to this business, when you are winning sometimes you get comfortable, that is normal in an athlete. When you are at the top,
everybody wants to beat you, everybody sees what you do, films what you do, your games, your training. So yes, it is a necessary evil.
I think that everything that I have done, right or wrong, has lead me to where I am today. Actually, the important thing for me is to always evolve,
always learn more, not to change what I think is right or wrong. Learn, learn about other cultures, learn to listen,
learn to experience difficulties, learn to overcome difficulties. That's what's most essential to me.