While Brazil’s goalkeeper Gabriela Moreschi became the star of the women’s handball competition at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games on social media, gaining over 300,000 followers, on the court, Brazil had some more help from the team captain, Bruna de Paula Almeida, who has been the driving force of the South American powerhouse.

The diminutive centre back is both Brazil’s top scorer, with 21 goals, but also the top assists provider, with 20 dimes, having a direct hand in 41 of her team’s 127 goals, or roughly 33%. And, once again, de Paula was instrumental in both of Brazil’s wins at Paris 2024, 29:18 against Spain and 30:19 against Angola.

Those two wins were enough for the Pan American champions to clinch the precious quarter-finals berth they set for when the Paris 2024 Olympic Games threw off, returning between the best eight teams in the world for the first time since Rio 2016, after Brazil missed out on the knockout phase dramatically three years ago at Tokyo 2020.

“For us, this qualification is something so important that it can hardly be described, because we came here with this goal and today we made it, therefore we are so happy for it and I'm so proud of my team. Now we did it and it's another competition because now if you lose you are out in the quarter-finals. But I'm so happy to qualify,” says de Paula.

Since 2013, when they won their maiden title at the IHF Women’s World Championship, Brazil have somewhat taken a step back, as only one player from the ones that secured that title is still in the team – goalkeeper Barbara Arenhart, who is currently on the reserve list at Paris 2024.

But Bruna de Paula has emerged as the new Brazil star, and is now the team’s captain, nine years after making her first start and being one of the youngest players at the 2015 IHF Women’s World Championship.

First, she started to play football, but handball’s call was too strong and she was clearly a natural talent. And after she showed flashes of brilliance in the world handball flagship competition, a French team, Fleury Loiret HB, came calling. 

For any Brazilian player, a move to Europe is difficult. Ask any of the former greats, like Eduarda Amorim or Ana Paula Rodrigues Belo. The environment is different, the sport is different, the language barrier is big. 

De Paula was only 19-year-old when she moved to France without speaking any word in the language. Nor did she speak English. Therefore, the adaptation period was somewhat difficult. But the language of handball is universal. And with her qualities, skill and handball IQ, everything started to click.

The centre back ended staying up seven years in France, taking it step by step, first at Fleury, then at Neptunes de Nantes, where she won the EHF European League Women, and then at powerhouse Metz Handball.

With the Paris 2024 Olympic Games played in Paris, the French capital, the environment is also special for De Paula, helping her thrive.

“For me it's so special because I played here seven years. It's my second country. So to feel this atmosphere again, to see the French people and also the Brazilian fans for me it's just amazing,” says de Paula.

With Brazil getting its fantastic support from fans, it also helped the team to thrive in crucial moments, such as the matches against Angola and Spain, where fantastic starts lifted the South American powerhouse to two crucial wins, which lifted Brazil to their third quarter-finals at the Olympics in the last four editions.

“I believe that we can be again one of the best teams in the world. We had some changes in the past years, with many new players coming in, of course. But we need to build again this team, we need some time and everything will be fine. This is a first step, of course, but we need to trust the process,” concludes the centre back.

Of course, Brazil are no pushovers and will always create issues for the best teams in the world. And with De Paula, who just won the EHF Champions League Women with club team Gyori Audi ETO KC, they have just the perfect leader, who is entering her prime, being only 27 years old, and at her second edition of the Olympic Games.