[ti:Brazilian Dog Excels at Footvolley]
[al:Arts and Culture]
[ar:VOA]
[dt:2024-09-16]
[by:www.voase.cn]
[00:00.00]The Brazilian sport of footvolley is a popular activity on sunny days along Rio de Janeiro's coast. 
[00:10.25]But, recently, people stopped to watch one especially exceptional player: a three-year-old named Floki.
[00:21.16]But the young player is not a child. Floki is a dog.
[00:27.51]He is also very good at footvolley.
[00:32.44]The rules of footvolley are almost the same as beach volleyball. 
[00:38.40]However, the game requires a lower net and a soccer ball replaces the volleyball.
[00:45.86]Similar to soccer, the rules bar players from using their hands on the ball.
[00:53.35]Not a problem for the four-legged Floki. 
[00:57.03]He jumps up and hits the ball with his mouth.
[01:00.77]Floki has become popular on social media in Brazil, with hundreds of thousands of followers on services such as Instagram and TikTok.
[01:13.49]Floki's owner, Gustavo Rodrigues, is a footvolley trainer, or coach.
[01:20.81]Floki entered Rodrigues' life as a puppy and demonstrated his sporty qualities early on.
[01:29.27]At just 2 months old, he started playing with small balloons.
[01:35.07]He would jump in the air to reach them.
[01:38.49]Rodrigues started Floki out on an exercise called "altinha." 
[01:44.35]It involves a group standing in a circle and passing a soccer ball through the air for as long as possible.
[01:53.18]In 2023, Floki started playing the complex, competitive game of footvolley.
[02:00.87]Footvolley players need skills such as agility and timing. Just two people must cover an entire half court. 
[02:12.31]This requires quick and surefooted moves on soft sand under the hot sun.
[02:20.06]Floki was a natural. A star was born.
[02:23.80]Rodrigues, age 26, said about Floki, "He does things that even some professionals don't - like positioning on the court."
[02:36.09]Rodrigues added that, during play, Floki always "turns toward the ball to always hit it straight on."
[02:45.67]It is clear this high-energy dog lives for this game.
[02:50.18]Even when resting on the beach, Floki was paying careful attention to a nearby footvolley competition.
[02:59.69]When playing, he makes dog sounds to communicate with Rodrigues.
[03:05.24]Floki barks to let his human teammate know he is open for a pass.
[03:11.63]The dog appears to understand the basic rules of the game.
[03:17.28]Sometimes, he surprises the other team with an unexpected drive of the ball over the net.
[03:24.52]He scores a point and then he jumps into Rodrigues' arms to celebrate.
[03:30.25]One of the watchers on a recent Sunday was Luiza Chioli, who had traveled to Rio from Sao Paulo. 
[03:39.13]She already knew the famous Floki from TikTok.
[03:43.26]She said she was surprised that the real dog was as good at footvolley as the videos had suggested.
[03:52.51]"Seeing social media, we had thought it was just cuts, that they used the best takes," said Chioli, 21.
[04:01.46]"But we saw he played, performed the whole time, did really well. It's really cool."
[04:08.95]Proposals for partnerships and business deals with Rodrigues and Floki followed the dog's growing stardom.
[04:16.84]The two live in the capital Brasilia. 
[04:19.58]However, they often travel to Rio and other Brazilian states for games, marketing appearances and social media work.
[04:29.87]I'm Ashely Thompson.