Diego and Daniele Hypólito Made History in Brazilian Olympic Gymnastics

Brazil was a country with little tradition in Olympic gymnastics. Several reasons contributed to this: the lack of infrastructure, encouragement, and ideal conditions for practicing the exercises.

This scenario has gradually been changing and despite many adversities, some athletes have stood out, becoming icons in the process. Such is the case with siblings Diego and Daniele Hypólito.

The Hypólito siblings were born in Santo André, in the ABC region of São Paulo. Daniele was born in 1984 and Diego two years later. The children of a bus driver and a seamstress, the siblings discovered their vocation for sports very early on. 

Daniele joined Flamengo at ten years old and soon impressed all the members of the Rio club’s technical committee. So much so that she received a salary, housing assistance, and school support, prompting the arrival of Diego, who was encouraged to train as well.

By the age of 13, Daniele was already winning national and international competitions. At 16, she won a gold medal at the Pan American Games in Winnipeg, Canada. Diego began at 15, and in his first year competing, won three gold medals at the Brazilian Championship.

With a long career and significant attention from the national media due to their achievements in a challenging environment, the Hypólito siblings gradually became sports celebrities.

As they kept winning medals, titles, and solidifying their place on the international scene, Daniele and Diego became something like pop stars. 

She accumulated Pan American and national medals, while he managed to transcend the regional sphere, and went on to win medals several times at world championships.

Not to mention the Olympic Games, where Diego won a silver medal at Rio-2016.

Diego and Daniele are now retired from the sport. As personalities who surpassed the sports scene, they participated in several dance and dating reality shows, such as Dança dos Famosos, Dancing Brasil, Exathlon, and Power Couple Brasil. 

He was honored with the Order of Rio Branco in 2006 by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. She became a sports commentator on the channel SporTV.