By Ben Tavener, Senior Contributing Reporter
LONDON, ENGLAND – Time Brasil, the Brazilian Olympic team, has its sights set on a number of gold medals on Saturday as Finals are held in various disciplines – including volleyball and boxing – in the penultimate day of the main 2012 Olympic Games in London. Brazil has won twelve medals so far, and will be hoping to boost that tally in the final two days of the competition.
On Friday, Brazil’s men’s volleyball team thrashed Italy three sets to nil to set up a morning Final against Russia, starting at 9AM Rio time.
They are looking for a hat-trick of Olympic gold after winning in Barcelona in 1992 and Athens in 2004. The team will be trying to better their performance in the last Games in Beijing in 2008, where they took silver.
The women’s volleyball team have also reached their final; they take on the United States at 2PM.
The men’s football (soccer) team, the Seleção will be playing a Finals match against Mexico in London’s Wembley Stadium at 11AM. The five-time FIFA World Cup champions will be looking for Brazil’s first ever Olympic gold.
Brazil could pick up another unprecedented gold in the boxing today, as 22-year-old Esquiva Falcão goes into the men’s middleweight (75kg) Final after beating British rival Anthony Ogogo on Friday.
Looking into the cameras, Falcão thanked the crowds by raising his hands into a heart symbol. He now faces Japan’s Ryota Murata in the middleweight final in London’s ExCeL Arena at 5:45 PM Rio time on Saturday.
His brother, Yamaguchi Falcão, not making it through to his group’s final, earned a bronze in the heavyweight (81kg) boxing semifinal on Friday – taking Brazil’s medal haul to twelve.
As of Friday night, Brazil is in 28th position, having taken medals in a handful of sports, including a historic gold in gymnastics, a gold and three bronzes in judo, a silver and a bronze in beach volleyball, and two bronzes in boxing.
The United States, China and Great Britain remain in the top three spots in the Olympic leaderboard.
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