Cariocas’ passion for sport is evident in Rio’s open spaces. The city’s beaches, with their wide expenses of sand, broad sidewalks and cycle lanes, attract many thousands of people to exercise on weekends. Their sands have given rise to sports that are now played in many parts of the world.

One of the most popular sports at the moment in Rio is “altinha,” or “keep up.” Typically, four or five friends get together in a circle, or roda, and try to keep a football in the air without letting it hit the sand, without using their arms or hands. At Posto 9, a fashionable part of Ipanema Beach, various rodas can be seen every day.

Beach volleyball, an Olympic sport since 1996, is played by many cariocas. All along Rio’s beachfront, volleyball nets fill up with players, in the summer normally in the  late afternoon when the sun is less strong. Rio de Janeiro’s beaches have held various domestic and international championships, attracting large crowds of spectators.

The sands of Copacabana were the birthplace of frescobol. Created in the 1940s, this game rapidly won over many fans. Played with wooden rackets and a hollow rubber ball, the sport is played all along the carioca beachfront.

A mixture of volleyball and football, footvolley rivals beach volleyball for domination of the nets. The principle is the same as for altinha: to use one’s feet, torso and head in order not to let the ball touch the sand. Originating on Copacabana Beach, the sport is played by many people in Brazil, including Romário, an ex-member of Brazil’s national football team, who likes to play in Barra da Tijuca.