On May 29th, the Challenge Day 2024 takes place. The campaign, which this year reaches its 30th edition milestone, is led by TAFISA (The Association For International Sport for All), with institutional support from ISCA (International Sport and Culture Association), UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization), and coordinated by Sesc São Paulo in the Americas. 

Implemented by public and private institutions in 14 Latin American countries, the campaign will feature hundreds of activities held on a single day, drawing attention to the importance of regular physical and sports activities. 

But before we can engage in Challenge Day, Sesc São Paulo will hold three meetings for the official launch of the campaign: on April 23rd at Sesc Rio Preto, 25th at Sesc Sorocaba, and 30th at Sesc Belenzinho in São Paulo. 

With the participation of Gabriela Callejas, co-founder and director of Cidade Ativa, Professor Ligia Vizeu (University of São Paulo), and researcher Beatriz Oliveira (Fiocruz/Piauí), the idea is to present the concept of Challenge Day 2024, create a space for knowledge transfer, stimulate and motivate key project stakeholders, and ensure a space for relationships between public and private organizations. 

In addition to the in-person meetings, on May 7th at 11:30 am, Sesc will hold an online meeting (access at us02web.zoom.us/u/kO32ruCH7 – Meeting ID: 847 5093 7488), focusing on national and international partners but open to interested public, to present the concepts and proposals created for the 2024 edition of the campaign. 

Get ready, participate, and  

Jump into this Challenge! 

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Come join us and jump into the challenge! 

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Certificate of Participation – DDD2023

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Our neighbors Colombians are also engaged. In 2015, 131 cities participated, with nearly 4.2 million people. Last year, the number of cities included practically doubled (245) and about 2 million citizens engaged in this cause. Over there, the practice of physical activity is not restricted only to the last Wednesday of May. Cycling, for example, is a common habit in Colombian cities, either in the countryside or in the capital, Bogota, children and adults are always biking.

Since the year 2013, the Recreation District y Deporte Institute (IDRD) started a partnership with the Department of Education of Bogotá to launch a project to encourage the use of bike as means of transport for the children go to school. The program is Al Colegio en Bici -School by bike, in English. The idea arose from the Subdirección Técnica de Recreación y Deporte do IDRD, and aims to bring the culture of bike to the school environment, empowering teachers and educators to give support to children.

Students living at distances between one to three kilometers are selected to win a bike, making safe routes and accompanied by caravans. “It’s a project of life,” says Oscar Ruiz Brochero, head of the IDRD Recreation Area. Another proof that the bike is part of their routine was the creation of a bicycle path on Sunday, in the capital, with 121 kilometers, attending over one and half million people. In addition to this space, the city still has more than 5.000 parks available to ride.

Actions such as Al Colegio in Bici make the challenge happens every day in an enjoyable way.

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In view of the current health crisis marked by profound changes in the social dynamics, with particular attention to sensitive issues such as respect for diversity, equality, and solidarity, Challenge Day reaches its 27th edition with the responsibility of contributing to the process of human development for the good living of everyone.   

Based, above all, on the humanitarian principle of the Common Good, Challenge Day in 2021 proposes the concept “Physical activity: Good for me! Good for everyone!”, highlighting the importance of regular physical activity, primarily, as an essential lifestyle for health and harmony in social life. The campaign will be carried out on May 26, under the worldwide coordination of TAFISA – The Association For International Sport for All. In the American Continent, Sesc SP coordinates the event with the institutional support of ISCA – International Sport and Culture Association – and UNESCO. 

In 2020, in a context of the pandemic, the event counted with 12 participating countries in the American Continent, with an emphasis on actions in the digital environment, resulting in thousands of interactions through social networks and consolidating the physical and sports manifestations as an important platform for dialogue and community action among territories. 

Thus, considering the good practices highlighted in this format, we emphasize that there won’t be the traditional friendly competition between cities in 2021, not being necessary to formalize the registration in the official Challenge Day system. 

In this way, we invite the network of partners to join efforts to promote online actions, and/or in person, when possible, and encouraging the public to register their participation on the campaign’s official website and social networks. 

Finally, we would like to invite you to join another edition of Challenge Day to be held on May 26, 2021, to disseminate and put into practice the purposes of the campaign. 

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Over 25 years, Challenge Day has consolidated itself as one of the most important community movements to encourage the practice of physical activity and sport, individual or collective and in different contexts and spaces of manifestation, such as streets, parks, schools, companies, clubs, among others.

With the changes that we have all experienced in this moment, marked by social distance and restricted circulation, new habits and routines are essential and takes us to a new way of being even with the relationship between sports and physical activity.

Even more important is the connection created by this great network of partners, made up of cities, institutions and people around the same purpose – to encourage and enable the regular practice of physical activities in all stages of life and for all the audiences. And in this new routine, is it possible to maintain an active lifestyle safely? For this answer, we join forces to show how to be healthier by workout at home.

The digital environment is a reality in our lives. We can watch movies and talk with family and friends by video. But do you, in this environment, also find a motivation to maintain an exercise routine that matches your day? So we invite you to participate in the Challenge Day next Wednesday, May 27, to discover how to improve your well-being and quality of life with small changes in your routine.

This year, Challenge Day will bring together challenges, classes, tips and informations shared through social networks on the Challenge Day profile on Facebook, instagram @esportesescsp and on Sesc’s partners and network channels, throughout Brazil and across countries in the American continent. Check it out!

About Challenge Day

Coordinated worldwide by TAFISA – The Association For International Sport for All and, on the American Continent, by Sesc São Paulo with institutional support from ISCA – International Sport and Culture Association and UNESCO, it has consolidated itself as one of the most important community movements to fight against sedentary lifestyle.

Until 2019, Brazil and 13 more countries in the American continent, such as Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Guatemala, Mexico, Honduras, Nicaragua, Peru, Dominican Republic, Uruguay and Venezuela participated in the Triennial Challenge, started in 2018 , in which the pair of cities (that was drawn in 2018) besides competing with each other would join efforts to increase the number of practitioners of physical activities and sports, in a competition that would continue until 2020.

How to participate

Follow the content here on the website and follow the official social networks of Challenge Day (don’t forget to activate the notifications) to get inspired, participate in one of these actions, resume a physical activity you already practiced or create your own training / challenge and share with the hashtags #ChallengeDay and #ChallengeDayTogether. If your profile on the social network is private, we will not be able to view your publication, but you can send your registration by message through our Facebook profile so that we can have access.

Stay active and come with us! All #ChallengeDayTogether!

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The Jaraguá indigenous land is made up of 6 villages where the team’s players live. It is located around the Jaraguá Peak, in the Northeast region of the city of São Paulo

The 32-year-old goalkeeper, Jacileide Martins, known as Jaci, is aware that due to her age it will be difficult to have a professional football career. However, she recognizes the importance of Xondarias Guarani for the future, an indigenous female football team from Jaraguá, Northeast region of São Paulo.

“I am [in the team] to encourage the girls. Women with a totally different culture, with kids and jobs, are overcoming difficulties by taking their children to training, to the pitch and football matches. That is what makes us different, we are true warriors by still being able to keep the Xondarias Guarani team going”, Jaci says proudly, from the Tekoa Ytu Indian village.

No wonder Xondarias means warriors in Guarani. You only have to watch a few minutes of the training of the 15 indigenous Guarani women of various ages, to realize that the chosen name could not be any other.

Officially, Xondarias Guarani has existed since January 2019. Resulting from the merging of two old female teams from the community, the Real Guarani and the Soberanas. The indigenous women with a passion for football have been fighting since 2001 to be able to play and show their football skills, including within the Jaraguá indigenous land, made up of these villages: Tekoa Pyau, Tekoa Itakupe, Tekoa Ytu, Tekoa Ita Vera, Tekoa Ita Endy e Tekoa Yvy Porã.

During the training sessions, which take place every Wednesday and Friday, from 12 noon to 2pm, on the Parque Estadual do Jaraguá football pitch, as well as focusing on the trainer’s instructions, the players take turns to look after the children, as some are still in the breastfeeding stage.

“The majority of them have children and few know someone who can look after them. So, they bring them to the games”, explains the team’s trainer, Rodrigo Benevenuto, 31 years old, who also helps out by taking care of the children.

Benevenuto is part of the Salve Quebrada Collective, which is based in the Jaraguá neighborhood, and is currently making a documentary about amateur football in the region. This is how the collective, in partnership with the Ginga.FC movement, got involved with the female indigenous teams. Upon seeing the individual talents and the sheer potential of the group, they proposed to bring the teams together.

The idea was to strengthen female indigenous football, help to look for sponsors and getting hold of footballs and kits, as well as creating a games schedule for the new team for friendly games, festivals and championships beyond the villages. However, Benevenuto soon became responsible for the players’ technical, emotional and physical preparation.

The initial idea was to bring all football teams together to play on the pitch. But female football is already difficult. It is even more difficult with the indigenous women as they have less support and face more discrimination. So, futsal, by using smaller groups, having more pitches, became the most feasible option”, explains the trainer.

From the end of the year until now, the Xondarias have taken part in more than 10 friendly games, three festivals and one championship. For Jaci, taking part in friendly games and futsal championships outside of the indigenous community, as well as offering improvements in technique and individual skills, brought joy and maturity to the team.

“It is hope for all of us. Some people think of giving up, but when they see that we are taking part and improving, they hang in there. It is a certain way of looking, we are in a team and it’s not me that is playing. We all are. We are the Xondarias.”

Vanessa Fernandes dos Santos, 18 years old, from the Tekoa Ytu village, better known as Nega, is a right winger and stands out as one of the best in the team. She, as many of the players, is reserved, but when she is playing and scores a goal, she represents the Guarani women’s passion for football.

“I feel important. Both by scoring a goal and helping the team. So, for me, taking part and helping the girls leaves me very happy”, shares Nega.

For the team’s development, getting more supporters and fans is really important for Xondarias Guarani to achieve its dreams and attract new talents in the indigenous community, as well as continuing the Jaraguá indigenous female team.

The opportunity to have experiences such as this one could be a lot closer than you think! Have a go taking part in Challenge Day. The campaign takes place every year on the last Wednesday of May. There are over 3 thousand cities that get involved, both in Brazil and in 13 countries of the American continent such as Argentina, Chile, Cuba, Mexico, Dominican Republic, Uruguay and Venezuela. Find out more!

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Bike Zona Sul encourages the use of bicycles for leisure, tourism and alternative transport

In 2013, the 34-year-old analysist, Paulo Alves, began to share his bike rides from Grajaú to Ibirapuera on social media, in the South of São Paulo. This is how the page Bike Zona Sul emerged, with posts about routes, landscapes, diversions and new cycle paths in the region. The idea received a lot of attention and people were very interested. “People got together, because in the South there aren’t any cycling platforms”, comments Paulo.

The initiative became a collective of cyclists who encourage the use of bicycles as a means of transport, leisure and tourism in the city. The Facebook page, currently with 24,000 followers, is the main channel for organizing the meetings and actions, which brought about new perspectives. “I fell in love with São Paulo after I started to ride my bike”, says the 42-year-old administrative assistant Francineide Veloso, who has been riding with the collective for the past 3 years. For her, the bicycle promotes connections with the city. “You are able to fall in love with a city that, suddenly, changes and is no longer a concrete jungle. It is a city that deserves to be loved”, she explains.

Paulo forms part of the Cycling Committee (CTB)  –  a space for discussion about public law along with the community to address the demands of the cyclists. Created in 2015, it serves as a consulting space for the City Council Transport (CMTT) and it played an important role in the implementation of more than 450km of cycle paths in the city of São Paulo.

As well as participation in dialogue with the management authority, the BZS also promotes actions for the community. The night bike ride Bike Zona Sul is an event which forms local cycling groups in different neighborhoods of the region, the collective holds the first meeting and then the cyclists continue with their group.

In Bike Zona Sul Cicloturismo, the members organize touristic routes through the Polo de Ecoturismo in São Paulo. The outings generally go from Grajaú or from the Rio Pinheiros cycle path; some of the bike rides go towards Templo Quan-Inn, near the Varginha Terminal; to Cachoeira do Marsilac, on the Estrada do Capivari; and to the Vale dos Templos, in Itapecerica da Serra.

During these bike rides people’s lives have changed. The lawyer Amelia Farias, 51 years old, began to ride over 4 years ago in order to recover from depression after her son died. “The bike was something that gave me life. My work colleagues began to use bikes and I found it really interesting”. Today, she cycles 20 kilometres to work 3 days during the week and she has lost 24 kilos. Soon after starting to cycle alone; she came across the collective on social media and started to get involved. “The importance of riding in a group is the friendship which you form with the people, they motivate you even more”, she affirms with enthusiasm.

All the bike rides are organised through the Facebook group Bike Zona Sul and anyone is welcome. The only requirement is that you must read the safety recommendations on the website beforehand.

The opportunity to have experiences such as this one could be a lot closer than you think! Have a go taking part in Challenge Day. The campaign takes place every year on the last Wednesday of May. There are over 3 thousand cities that get involved, both in Brazil and in 13 countries of the American continent such as Argentina, Chile, Cuba, Mexico, Dominican Republic, Uruguay and Venezuela. Find out more!

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On Challenge Day, the general public that passed through the station experienced dance and cycling in an unusual way

Victor Santos, a 20-year-old student, was returning from his English course when he saw a circle of people inside Luz station, in the center of São Paulo. Without knowing what was happening, he came up with a way to fit in with his wheelchair and get involved in the activity “Game, body and sound”, proposed by the urban dance group Zumb.boys. 

Victor Santos besides the dancer Danilo Nonato trying out different ways to move the body with the dance. Credits: Ira Romão/Agência Mural 

This was one of two activities that took place during Challenge Day, held on 29th May, with activities in more than 3600 cities across the American continent. Santos, one of the first people to arrive, danced, entertained the crowd and was applauded afterwards. “I really loved it, I enjoy dancing and I think they should do this every day”, he says jokingly.  

In a circle the activity invited everyone to relax and be at ease to get involved. Credits: Ira Romão/Agência Mural 

For the 26-year-old dancer of the group, Danilo Novato, physical activity enables non-athletes to experience something new, regardless of their physical or psychological condition. “The challenge here was to create a story with other people. The curiosity is always the first step to start an exercise routine”, he reflects. 

The 16-year-old student, Sarah Vianna, who also joined the circle, shared her thoughts. “It was really interesting because an activity, such as this one, can even change the minds of the people, bringing and discovering new things”.

Pedaling for a juice

In another part of the station, you had to pedal on a bicycle for 30 seconds, to complete the challenge and drink a natural juice. As the people pedaled, the juice was beaten with the energy generated by the bike on the cup of an attached blender. 

400 people made the most of their fare to try out pedaling. Credits: Ira Romão/Agência Mural

After making the juice, the 24-year-old nursery schoolteacher, Beatriz Varjão, recalled that her bronchitis flare-ups could be avoided with more physical activities. “I should do it more often in order to improve my health. At the moment it isn’t part of my day-to-day life”, she ponders. “But you have to practice, that is the advice I’ll give. Also, the actions during Challenge Day are an important reminder”, she concludes. 

The unusual and fun experience transformed the energy created from pedaling into a beaten juice instantly. Credits: Ira Romão/Agência Mural 

Overall, 400 juices were made throughout the day. The fruit options were mango, banana, orange and strawberry, which could also be mixed. Two types of sugar and honey were used to sweeten the drinks, as well as coconut shavings and ginger. 

The 23-year-old teacher, Gisele Rodrigues, was returning from work and decided to take a peek. She got into the queue, pedaled and won her juice. “What I did here was a motivation. I got tired of pedaling”, she comments whilst laughing. “Our health is the greatest treasure, so we must look after it, otherwise it could be too late”, she advises. 

The opportunity to have experiences such as this one could be a lot closer than you think! Have a go taking part in Challenge Day. The campaign takes place every year on the last Wednesday of May. There are over 3 thousand cities that get involved, both in Brazil and in 13 countries of the American continent such as Argentina, Chile, Cuba, Mexico, Dominican Republic, Uruguay and Venezuela. Find out more!

*Series of reports produced by Agência Mural de Jornal das Periferias, whose mission is to minimize the existing gap of information and contribute to the deconstruction of stereotypes about the peripheries of Greater São Paulo. 

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