CALDERANO Hugo

Grip
Shakehand (ITTF, 02 Aug 2016)

Style of play
Attack (ITTF, 02 Aug 2016)

General
FROM BRAZIL TO GERMANY
Born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, he first moved to Sao Bernardo do Campo at age 14 to join the national training centre. At age 16 he then moved to Paris, France, before relocating to join the Liebherr Masters College in Ochsenhausen, Germany, at age 18. "My coach Jean-Rene [Mounie] works really close with [TTF Liebherr] Ochsenhausen head coach Michel Blondel. It all happened naturally. They saw me practising and had the idea of bringing me here to practise and play for Ochsenhausen. Everything happened really fast. Living in Ochsenhausen helps you to become mentally stronger. I don't think if I lived in Rio I would be as mentally strong as I am today, just because the city's atmosphere is much more relaxed. In Ochsenhausen you know why you are here. You have a very strong goal." (Official ITTF Channel YouTube channel, 22 Nov 2019; swr.de, 24 May 2019)

VEGETARIAN
In 2017 he changed his dietary habits and became a vegetarian. "I watched a documentary about the benefits of being vegetarian, and after that I never ate meat any more. The main reasons are the animals, helping the planet, sustainability and a healthier diet which can help me with table tennis." (qg.globo.com, 25 Oct 2019)

OTHER ACTIVITIES
He is able to solve a Rubik's cube in less than 10 seconds. "My dad taught me how to solve the cube when I was 10 years old, but I did not practise for a long time. Then I underwent surgery in 2013 and I couldn't train, so I had a lot of down time. So I started solving it and never stopped." (pan.uol.com.br, 21 Jul 2015)