Time to brush up on your Portuguese!

The Brazilian yoyo scene was “the little scene that could” in the early 2000s. They were relatively far removed from the rest of the countries with major scenes, handicapped by huge import duties that made it really hard for them to get the yoyos everyone else was using, and with a lower-value currency that made it stupidly expensive to get to the US or Japan for major contests. So they did what any resourceful, creative, dedicated, amazing group of talented people would do: they figured out how to make it work all on their own. They built their own local brand, they built their own scene, and they made so much noise that the rest of the world couldn’t miss them if they tried, culminating in Brazilian player Rafael Matsunaga becoming the first modern World YoYo Champion not from the US or Japan.

I had the good fortune to visit Brazil once for Brazilian Nationals, and it was amazing. Every player in the country piled into a room that was so thick with bodies there was condensation on the ceiling, cheering each other on with deafening whoops and hollers as they started their routines. It was the very model of a scene built out of love and necessity, and I’m so glad that it’s been documented, and that someone is putting these time capsule together so that everyone can see what an amazing contribution to the art and sport of yoyo play Brazil has made.