Isabel was a ‘woman’ who made volleyball become professional, says friend Jackie

The death of former volleyball player Isabel Salgado, aged 62, was a blow to Jaqueline Silva, Jackie. Childhood friends, partners on the courts and in the sand, the two have always had their personal and sports life associated. “I didn’t expect to wake up to such devastating news,” she said.

“I met Isabel when we were still children, at nine years old”, he said. “My great friend, a person I never thought I would lose, because she was always so present, with an absurd strength personified in her. We studied together, started together in volleyball, played in every category of the national team that you can imagine and we made the duo like the crowning of this friendship,” he said.

On the court, the two were together at the Olympic Games in Moscow (1980) and Beijing (1984), when the Brazilian team debuted in high-level competitions. The professionalization of volleyball in the country, according to Jackie, has a lot to do with Isabel’s image, considered a “muse” when the sport was still in its infancy.

“She is a woman. She played volleyball at the highest level and made the sport go from being an amateur to becoming a professional. She was a muse when the sport was nothing yet. An intense person, with a beautiful story inside and out. court. She did all this while still being a mother, with a beautiful family. There are many important moments in Isabel’s life”, she continued.

“What I can say is that I am very happy to have practically shared life with her. We never stopped talking, we were always close. Life brings ups and downs, but Isabel always knew how to overcome challenges with great determination. It’s good to talk because people need to understand who Isabel Salgado was and what she represented for Brazilian sport”, he added.

Isabel Salgado died at the Syrian-Lebanese hospital in São Paulo. The former athlete was stricken with pneumonia that worsened, leading to an acute respiratory syndrome. Last Monday (14), Isabel had been announced by the vice-president-elect, Geraldo Alckmin, as a member of the sports working group in the transition of Lula’s government.

She is the mother of athletes Maria Clara Salgado, Carolina Solberg and Pedro Solberg, as well as Pilar and Alisson, who she adopted in 2015. Isabel formed a duo with Maria Clara and Carolina. Afterwards, she dedicated herself to managing the careers of her athlete children.

According to the family, the funeral is scheduled for 11 am this Thursday (17), at the Caju Crematorium and Cemetery, in Rio de Janeiro.