The first thing that strikes you in South America is the passion for sports. Locals watch games on TV, cheer for their national teams in stadiums or participate in various sporting events themselves, but always find ways to be connected with sports. Sport is deeply embedded in culture, especially in coastal cities like Rio de Janeiro where it is part of everyday life.
The year 2023 in South America promises to be full of big international competitions. Below, we look at some of these in more detail.
Rio Open tennis championships
The Rio Open will take place for the ninth time in 2023 at the Jockey Club Brasileiro (RJ) on clay courts and will feature the likes of Rafael Nadal, David Ferrer, Pablo Cuevas, Dominic Thiem, Diego Schwartzman, Laszlo Jere, and Christian Garin. The Rio Open is unique in that it is the only combined tennis tournament in South America, meaning both men and women can participate at the same time.
Bookmakers are expecting big excitement around the event and are advising bettors to get ready. For example, India horse racing tips help gamblers make the right predictions. Similar strategies can be found for tennis.
Ultra Brou Canastra cycling race
Ultra Brou Canastra 2023 is an ultra-marathon mountain bike race that is a mix of entertainment and competition. The race consists of 4 stages over several challenging trails and dangerous mountain terrain in the Serra da Canastra. Competitors have a total of 200 km to cover, with a climb of almost 6,000 meters. The base of the event is at the picturesque Pousada Vale do Céu hotel in Delfinopolis.
IRONMAN World Triathlon Championships, Florianópolis
IRONMAN is a one-day long-distance triathlon event that takes place in Florianopolis under the management of the World Triathlon Corporation. Ironman Triathlon is one of the toughest events in the world and is considered a true test of endurance. The triathlon competition in Brazil is one of 10 events taking place across the globe. The distances are 1.9 km of swimming, 90.1 km of cycling, and 21.1 km of running.
ISSF Shooting World Cup
The ISSF World Shooting Championships are organized by the International Shooting Sport Federation and were first held in 1897, following the success of the 1896 Summer Olympics. These championships, including all ISSF shooting events, have been held every four years since 1954. In 2023, the World Cup will be held in Rio de Janeiro.
Caminhos de Caravaggio ultramarathon
Since the early 2000s, cross-country running (trail running) has won many fans around the world. But over the years the sport has never been fully recognized. That’s why in 2012 more than 150 like-minded members of the international trail running community got together to create a solid foundation for this new sport and establish its core values.
For the third time, the Caminhos de Caravaggio ultramarathon will take place in Serra Gaucha. The route will go through rural and urban areas of five cities, starting in Canela, in Catedral de Pedra, then through Gramada, Nova Petropolis, Caxias do Sul, and finishes in Farrupilla.
The UMCC will run mainly on gravel roads on the Caminhos de Caravaggio. It is a mountain ultramarathon that will be run in singles, pairs, quartet, and 100-kilometer modes.
Tour de France cycling stage, Rio de Janeiro
The Tour de France is the most prestigious road cycling race in the world. The race was first organized in 1903 and nowadays the Tour de France gathers cycling stars, with only the best athletes able to compete for over 3,600 km. It is a 22-day event that traditionally takes place in the summer, with only 2 days for participants to rest. The tour consists of 20 stages on different routes. Every year more than 12 million people gather on the streets of cities to watch the competition.
World Youth Championships in goalball
This sport is designed specifically for visually impaired athletes. Teams of three players compete to field a so-called “chime ball”, which makes a sound every time the player moves the ball, thanks to special bells implanted inside. According to the rules, the ball may not be kicked, but only thrown by hand.
The International Blind Sports Federation (IBSA) was founded in 1981 and is responsible for all activities for the blind and visually impaired including being the official supervisory body for goalball.
The Rolex Ilhabela Sailing Week, Ilhabela
Ilhabela Island has established itself as the “sailing capital” of Brazil. The island hosts the popular annual International Sailing Week. In 2023, the sporting event will celebrate its 50th anniversary.
Rolex Ilhabela Sailing Week was first held in 1972. However, it was not until the 1980s that larger boats started to participate in the event and today these yachts dominate the competition. More than 200 yachts and over 1500 professional and amateur sailors from all over Latin America participate in the event each year.
IBERCUP International Children’s Football Tournament
IberCup Brazil will be the biggest and most visible tournament in South America. The host city is Rio de Janeiro. It is an opportunity for all participants to exchange experiences and compete against high-level teams. More than 300 international youth football teams and 5,000 participants will take part, as well as renowned international football clubs such as Gremio FBPA, Palmeiras, Corinthians, Fluminense, Flamengo, and many others.
Formula 1 São Paulo Grand Prix
The Brazilian Grand Prix, known as the Sao Paulo Grand Prix, is one of the stages of the Formula One Championship currently held at Interlagos Circuit, Sao Paulo. The Jose Carlos Pace circuit, better known as Interlagos, is one of the most popular Formula 1 circuits. The circuit is one of the shortest but also the most challenging, dubbed the “circuit of contrasts”.
Interlagos is hugely popular as the final event of the season, so every single point counts and could decide the champions.
Formula E race, Sao Paulo
Formula E is the world’s first international championship for single-seater, all-electric cars. Eleven teams with 22 drivers – many of them former Formula 1 drivers – initially compete against each other in twelve major cities around the world. Since its debut at the Olympic Park in Beijing in 2014, Formula E has evolved into a global entertainment brand, attracting top drivers and teams from around the world.
Eco-friendliness, economy, and sustainability are key points in the overall concept of this sporting event. The Formula E series needs to provide a competitive environment for the automotive industry to accelerate the development of electric cars mainly in big cities. Therefore, more and more car manufacturers are showing great interest in participating in the FIA Formula E Championship.
In 2023, the ninth season of Formula E will switch to new, more powerful third-generation electric cars. Therefore, the configurations of some tracks will be changed to higher speeds specifically for them.
Arnold Sports Festival
The Arnold Sports Festival, one of the most popular fitness shows of the year, returns to South America after a two-year hiatus. The event features more than 40 types of athletic strength competitions, including bodybuilding, strongman, powerlifting, arm-wrestling, and MMA bouts. The tournament’s program also includes the Arnold Classic bodybuilding competition, which is second only to the Mr. Olympia show in terms of spectacle and prestige.
The Arnold Sports Festival was first held in Columbus in 1989. The idea for the festival belongs to Arnold Schwarzenegger, who was one of the most famous bodybuilders in the world in the 1970s and 1980s, and he created the Arnold Classic to popularise bodybuilding then.
