Jader José da Silva Souza (born March 13, 1982, in Macapá) is a Brazilian

swimmer Swimming is an individual or team racing sport that requires the use of one's entire body to move through water. The sport takes place in pools or open water (e.g., in a sea or lake). Competitive swimming is one of the most popular Olympic ...

. He started swimming at age 6, when he asked his mother to enter in a swimming school. Away from the major centers of the national sport, Jader has always struggled to participate in competitions and consequently improve their performance. In 2002, discouraged with the situation in his hometown, dropped everything to pursue a dream in Brasilia. But then he began to reap the rewards of their dedication. He was at the

2003 World Aquatics Championships The 10th FINA World Aquatics Championships were held July 12–27, 2003 in Barcelona, Spain. The championships featured competition in all 5 of FINA's disciplines: Swimming, Diving, Synchronised swimming, Water Polo, and Open Water Swimming. C ...

in Barcelona, where he finished 31st in the 50-metre freestyle, 30th in the 100-metre freestyle and 12th in the 4×100-metre freestyle. At the

2003 Pan American Games The 2003 Pan American Games were held in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, from August 1 to 17, 2003. The successful bid for the games was made in the mid-1990s, when Dominican Republic had one of the highest growth rates in Latin America. Al ...

, in Santo Domingo, Jader won the gold medal in the 4×100-metre freestyle, along with Gustavo Borges,

Fernando Scherer Fernando de Queiroz Scherer (born October 6, 1974) is a Brazilian former international swimmer. He won the bronze medal in the 50-meter freestyle at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta and another bronze medal four years later in Sydney with ...

and

Carlos Jayme Carlos Alberto Borges Jayme (born 13 June 1980) is a former competition swimmer from Brazil. Jayme was a freestyle specialist and an Olympic bronze medalist. Early years Jayme was born in Goiânia, Goiás, Brazil. International career T ...

. He also finished 6th in the 50-metre freestyle, and 5th in the 100-metre freestyle. Jader competed in the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...

, in Athens, where he finished 12th in the 4×100-metre freestyle, 15th in the 4×100-metre medley, and 33rd in the 100-metre freestyle. In the 4×100-metre freestyle, the Brazilian legend Gustavo Borges said goodbye to swimming at the age of 31. After the Olympics, he lost his sponsorship and stopped swimming. However, he returned in 2005. At the

2006 South American Games The VIII South American Games (Spanish: ''Juegos Sudamericanos''; Portuguese: ''Jogos Sul-Americanos'') were a multi-sport event held from 9 to 19 November 2006 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, with some events taking place in Mar del Plata (canoeing, ...

held in Buenos Aires, Souza won the gold medal in the 50-metre butterfly , the silver medal in the 4×100-metre freestyle, and the bronze medal in the 50-metre freestyle. In January 2009, he retired from professional swimming.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Souza, Jader 1982 births Living people Brazilian male butterfly swimmers Brazilian male freestyle swimmers Olympic swimmers for Brazil Swimmers at the 2003 Pan American Games Swimmers at the 2004 Summer Olympics Pan American Games gold medalists for Brazil Pan American Games medalists in swimming People from Macapá South American Games gold medalists for Brazil South American Games silver medalists for Brazil South American Games bronze medalists for Brazil South American Games medalists in swimming Competitors at the 2006 South American Games Medalists at the 2003 Pan American Games Sportspeople from Amapá 21st-century Brazilian people 20th-century Brazilian people