Leaving one of the poorest cities in Brazil at 5am, 20-year-old student Luciane Lima traveled from Sao Goncalo to a Copacabana hotel two hours away to join 300 women at an unusual audition in the land of soccer: cheerleader for the NFL’s Miami Dolphins.
The Dolphins started auditions last week and are targeting soccer-crazy nations, such as Brazil, Argentina, Colombia and Mexico. Although few of the Brazilian candidates know much about the sport, they found out about the trials via social media and flocked to the tryouts.
In exchange for injecting a touch of samba into the Dolphins’ cheerleading team, they hope to start new lives in the US.
Photo: AP
Lima was raised without her parents and said dancing saved her life. She is among many coming from poor regions where they could never work as dancers.
“I haven not slept, because I was so anxious, but all this hard work is worth it because just being here is a huge emotion,” said Lima, who did not make the final selection.
While American football is a growing sport in Brazil, it is still nowhere near as popular as soccer and volleyball.
Ballerina Nadine Santos, 22, stood out as a genuine Dolphins fan.
“Soccer and football are totally different. You can see that when teams come out to play,” said Santos, who started watching NFL games three years ago.
Santos did not make the final six picked from Rio to go to the finals in Miami on May 1. All of them had to be at least 18 years old, enrolled in high school until June and with a valid passport.
Miami Dolphins cheerleaders have traveled to more than 30 nations on five continents over the past decade.
Dolphins senior director of entertainment Dorie Grogan said that she wants to create a true international cheerleading squad.
“We selected locations where we have already had cheerleaders in the past,” Grogan said. “We hope to expand it if it works out.”
Grogan said those chosen would have to commit to living in Miami for a minimum of nine months.
“We have a full process to get them settled in Miami,” she said. “We will assist them in housing and transportation.”
MOTHER KNOWS BEST: Warriors’ coach Kerr said his 91-year-old mother criticized him for his attitude toward officials that led to his ejection from Monday’s game Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on Wednesday rescued the Oklahoma City Thunder with a game-tying buzzer-beater before finishing with 46 points in a 129-125 overtime victory against the Utah Jazz. The reigning NBA champions looked to be heading for a third straight loss after the Jazz inched into a 114-112 lead following Lauri Markkanen’s layup with just three seconds remaining in the fourth quarter. However, NBA Most Valuable Player Gilgeous-Alexander drained a superb 13-foot jump shot to tie it up at 114-114 as the buzzer sounded to send the game into overtime. Gilgeous-Alexander then took over in the extra period with nine points as the Western
Mohamed Salah’s Egypt knocked reigning champions Ivory Coast out of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) with a 3-2 win in the quarter-finals on Saturday, while Victor Osimhen starred as Nigeria beat Algeria 2-0 to set up a clash with hosts Morocco. In Agadir, Morocco, a thrilling last-eight tie saw Omar Marmoush and Ramy Rabia net in the first half for the Pharaohs before an own goal by Ahmed Aboul-Fetouh brought the Ivorians back into it. Salah then got Egypt’s third early in the second half and they held on after Guela Doue again reduced the deficit. Egypt is to face Senegal
AUSTRALIAN ADVENTURE: Sabalenka aims to follow up with a third Australian Open win, while Taiwanese Joanna Garland claimed a WTA 125 title in Canberra Aryna Sabalenka beat Karolina Muchova in straight sets to reach her third Brisbane International final in a row yesterday, a week ahead of the Australian Open. Sabalenka looked in great touch against the tricky Czech, who had won their last three meetings and went into the match as one of the few players with a winning record over the world No. 1. However, Sabalenka showed her class and power as she broke Muchova once in each set to take the semi-final 6-3, 6-4 in 89 minutes to face Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk in the final. “I struggled against her a couple of times [in
His team were knocked out of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in agonizing fashion on Tuesday, but the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s (DR Congo) human statue Michel Kuka Mboladinga would be remembered as the tournament’s most remarkable supporter. The colorfully dressed Kuka has earned fame as the fan who stands completely immobile throughout his team’s games, looking toward the sky with his right arm raised and palm open. He has become a media star and on Tuesday was accompanied by a delegation of several hundred Congolese supporters whose trip to Morocco was paid for by the country’s government. They took their
RSS