José Aldo poses for photos with children from Instituto Reação. Photo: Ismar Ingber/UFC
The UFC took an important step towards solidifying the organization in the country. This Tuesday (12) Ultimate signed a partnership with Instituto Reação, which is located at Complexo Esportivo da Rocinha, in Rio de Janeiro. This is the first support for a social project in Brazil by the organization.
The launch ceremony was attended by former judoka Flávio Canto, creator and CEO of the project; UFC International Development Director Marshall Zelaznik; the state secretary of Sports and Leisure, Márcia Lins; Edwin Moses, two-time Olympic champion in athletics and president of the Laureus World Sports Academy; besides the fighters José Aldo, featherweight champion; Rousimar Toquinho, representative of the middleweight category, and Renan Barao, one of the Brazilians among the roosters.
The organization's encouragement extends to both sporting activities – through the complete renovation of the dojo and gym – and educational and artistic activities – with support for classrooms and video, photography and graffiti workshops.
“We are very excited about this partnership. Dana (White) and Lorenzo (Fertitta) are people committed to communities. If there is one thing that is unanimous and universal, it is ensuring a good future for our children. And the values that Flávio Canto brings to the communities he works with are very similar to the values worked by UFC around the world. This is the perfect partnership”, said Marshall and then explained the partnership model:
“Our role here at the Institute is to provide improvements and new facilities for everyone involved in the project, always making education and sport go hand in hand”.
For the founder and CEO of the Institute, Flávio Canto, the partnership is a milestone and aims to train individuals through sport and education.
“Anyone who has followed Instituto Reação since its inception knows that we have had to teach on the beach, in schools, on construction sites and even on sidewalks. We started very small and today is the beginning of a new era for Reação. The UFC was also small and today it has already transformed the lives of many people around the world. Here we have three great examples of athletes (Jose aldo, Toquinho and Renan Barao) successful. I know their stories well and I know how they took long paths to get here. Our intention is to direct this partnership towards education, showing UFC and Reação’s concern with the educational side”, he concluded.
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