A group of Brazilian women battling cancer find new hope thanks to Va'a canoeing

Washington Post

26-06-2025

RIO DE JANEIRO — When breast cancer turned her life upside down, Anna Lucia Amorim, a 63-year-old Brazilian from Rio de Janeiro state, fell into a deep depression sometimes struggling to get out of bed.
But everything changed, she said, after she started practicing Va'a canoeing in Niteroi, a city facing Rio across Guanabara Bay, with other women who have battled cancer or were undergoing treatment.
'Every time you put the paddle in the water, it's like a new life,' she told The Associated Press on Thursday. 'When you are there, you forget everything. You only see the sea and the sky.'
Amorim is part of Va'a Roses, a group of cancer patients and survivors between the ages of 52 and 70 who partake in local and national competitions of Va'a canoeing.
Originating in the Pacific region, Va'a canoes — which traditionally have outriggers and can be single or double-hull — are now popular worldwide.
In Niteroi, the Va'a Roses train twice weekly just after 7 a.m., departing from the sheltered Charitas Beach surrounded by harbors and sloping mountains, from which one can spot the famed Christ the Redeemer statue .
Guanabara Bay has a reputation for being polluted by garbage and sewage, but members of the Va'a Roses say they regularly see turtles, rays and other fish — even dolphins.
'You wouldn't think that Guanabara Bay has so much life,' said Flavia Bichara, a 52-year-old lawyer who is currently undergoing chemotherapy for lung cancer.
She said the hope of spotting a turtle and watching the sun rise gives her ample motivation to get out of bed early. 'The sunrise, for us, symbolizes coming back to life,' she said.
Polynesian canoeing and water sports in general have become increasingly popular in Niteroi over the last few years, said Isabel Swan, the municipality's deputy mayor who has an Olympic bronze medal in sailing. The number of Polynesian canoeing clubs in the area has jumped from five to around 40 in the last decade.
'This boom occurred during the Covid-19 pandemic , because people can practice water sports while complying with social distancing rules,' she said.
In August, Niteroi will host the Va'a long distance world championship in which around a thousand athletes from 30 countries will compete. And alongside Rio, the city is a candidate to host the 2031 Pan American Games .
Estella Tourl, 68, was diagnosed with breast cancer four years ago. As well as the stunning setting, she says she loves the social aspect of the activity.
'We're in nature, we exercise and we talk. Afterward everyone sits together, we have coffee and laugh. It's stimulating – we want to live,' Tourl said.