What caught my attention was
the fact that it was different,
they don't have very much in Brazil.
Some people have prejudice...
..and sometimes they tell us to go to school, to go to work.
They don't accept a different sport.
So I feel a bit strange to ski here in Brazil.
(FAR FROM HOME PRESENTED BY BRIDGESTONE)
(6 UNLIKELY STORIES OF OLYMPIC HOPE)
(SÃO REMO, BRAZIL)
My name is Victor de Lima Santos,
I'm 20 years old and I'm a cross-country skier.
(VICTOR SANTOS CROSS-COUNTRY SKIER, BRAZIL)
São Remo means a lot to me.
It's where I was born, where I grew up.
I have all my friends here,
My entire family.
It's a place where I feel good, so I really like to stay here.
My father is a bricklayer...
..and my mother is a housewife.
I have... Oh, my, I forgot.
It's because I have so many siblings, I lost count.
Gabi, Joao, Gabriel, Victoria, Matheus, Paulinho and Paulo.
He's a good boy, always has been.
He never gave too much trouble.
We live in a different place,
but here also has different people,
and he's one of them. I believe he will go very far.
Victor is a shy guy
but he has a lot of thoughts
inside that he doesn't say.
Children in São Remo don't have the same opportunities
as kids in other neighbourhoods of São Paulo.
They get involved with drugs, stealing.
There are many kids who get lost, go the wrong way,
and the project helps them.
The project Ski In The Streets is a social project
aimed to help the low income youth of São Remo community.
And it was created by Leandro,
an Olympic cross-country ski athlete.
We began the programme with only four kids in 2012,
and the following year, we already had 15, then 25,
then we got to 40 kids.
Now we have 95 kids taking part in the programme.
It was a very fast growth.
For the kids, it's very good to have access to the sport
to build their character.
We wanted to do something bigger and better
than only providing sports activities.
The older boys, they help us to instruct the kids.
They act as a role model,
trying to pass along and to teach
the values of their work and the technique they learned
to the other kids.
For Victor, the possibility of achieving Olympic qualification
is changing the way the boys see them.
From the moment I started practising the rollerski,
I changed a lot.
I started being disciplined,
committed, having an athlete's posture,
I started being responsible and started passing the values
of the project and the Olympic values forward.
- Good morning, guys. - Good morning.
Well, today's training is 1 hour and 45 minutes,
so let's do 40 minutes warm up,
then 30 minutes of 70% heart rate.
Victor's pursuit to the Olympics happened naturally.
Since the beginning, Victor showed a very good
potential in the sport, in the technical way
he was much better than the other guys.
He played soccer seriously until he started the project.
He was a fast guy. Explosive.
I always wanted to represent Brazil in the Olympics...
..in football or another sport.
We are known worldwide for football,
but it was ski that appeared for me to represent
so I'm going to try to do it in ski.
It would mean so much for the community
to have a young man in the Olympics.
I'd be the first one from the community to represent Brazil.
So, on the path to qualify for Pyeongchang Olympics,
Victor is already eligible for the spot.
Brazil will probably have one male quota
and to fulfil this quota, he has to be the best Brazilian
in our national ranking.
We have five athletes
that have eligibility criteria in Brazil...
..and the closest one is Lucas Lima,
that also comes from the Ski Na Rua project.
Lucas Lima lives about 300 metres from my house,
so we have a lot of contact.
Lucas is an interesting character.
When he started the project he was 12.
He was this big, fat kid.
He lost 18 kilos in maybe 6 months.
Lucas knows what he wants and he knows what he needs.
And now he's a little bit less than
ten points of difference from Victor.
So they are the ones that are in the fight for the spot.
My goal is to be an Olympic athlete
and to represent Brazil well.
I'm always motivating him in training
and he's motivating me too.
and that's raising the level in Brazil.
If I don't make it then I will be rooting for him.
My chance depends on the upcoming competition in Europe.
(STEG, LIECHTENSTEIN)
Victor, because of the importance of this competition,
is a little bit more nervous, anxious,
so we'll see how he endures with this.
Lucas has been able to improve his average during the season,
and now they are very, very close. Just 0.6.
That means less than ten seconds in a race.
This race here is the last opportunity
to get the points that will decide who is
the Brazilian athlete taking part in Pyeongchang.
I feel confident that I will be able to achieve my goals,
because I am well trained.
This is the most important contest of my career.
I'm a little worried that I won't be
the Brazilian representative in Pyeongchang.
Lucas has been presenting himself well as a competitor.
Ladies and gentlemen! Now on the start,
please welcome, with a big hand of applause,
From Brazil, Victor Santos!
When I'm in the snow,
I need to think more than how to be an athlete,
but how to be a European athlete.
Stay focused 100%.
When I'm there I always think I'm like one of them.
A world champion.
Crossing the finish line, from Brazil as well,
Victor Santos!
Lucas Lima, well done, come on!
Well done, Lucas Lima.
I saw what they change in their lives
to be here pursuing this goal.
When they come back to Brazil
and show the rest of the community
how far they got,
a lot of people will be amazed
and will give them self-confidence
to try to achieve whatever it is that they want.
242, 242 points.
You'll be in the Olympic Games, dammit!
This time I wasn't able to qualify for the Olympic Games,
but I'm really happy for Victor,
because he is not only representing Brazil,
but our community too.
(PYEONGCHANG, SOUTH KOREA)
When I walked out in the opening ceremony,
my mind went blank.
I was so amazed, looking at all the people,
the screens and everything that's happening.
I was a little surprised at the number of people,
from TV you can't tell that it's so full.
Maybe I imagined this four years ago,
when I decide to quit competing
and help with the development of this sport,
but it wasn't real, it wasn't true that maybe the athletes
who were starting at that time and had a long way to go
would be the guys going to Pyeongchang.
I started with him since the beginning,
now he's achieved Olympic goal,
and I will be there with him as his coach.
I'm a little anxious, but not nervous.
I have a few things left to do, like test skis,
get to know the trail, and recover from training.
I'm focused on the work I have to do,
and when I get to the race I'll be ready.
It's a little different, outside of Brazil.
The education of people on the street,
they don't throw garbage everywhere,
they respect pedestrians crossing the street.
It's different here.
If I had never met the ski,
I wouldn't have seen the things I've seen
or had the opportunities I've had.
This is different from the other contests I've done.
You see the logo for the Olympics everywhere,
so you don't forget that you're at the
biggest event in the world.
It's a very big achievement to be at the Olympics.
It's the highest level of competition in the world.
It's a big responsibility to be the
Brazilian representative in the Olympics.
You need to set an example.
I always try to see the performance
not comparing with the field,
but with comparing with himself,
and the skills that we worked on.
From São Remo community to Pyeongchang,
of course I'm proud of it, and especially
I'm proud of them, because they worked hard for it.
I've travelled a lot, been to many places,
and when I return to Brazil, I'll bring everything
I've learned here and bring it there.
(VICTOR FINISHED HIS FIRST OLYMPIC WINTER GAMES
(IN 110th PLACE OUT OF 116)
(FAR FROM HOME, PRESENTED BY BRIDGESTONE)
(6 UNLIKELY STORIES OF OLYMPIC HOPE)