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 the1996 Summer Olympics inAtlanta and another bronze medal four years later inSydney with the Brazilian relay team in the 4×100-meter freestyle.[1]
Scherer won his first major title at the inaugural1993 FINA Short Course World Championships inPalma de Mallorca, where he won the 100-meter freestyle. He trained atThe Race Club, a swimming club founded by Olympic swimmersGary Hall, Jr. and his father,Gary Hall, Sr. as a training group for elite swimmers in preparation for the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games.[2]
Scherer is nicknamedXuxa in his native country, and he became Brazil's Sportsman of The Year in 1995 after winning one gold and one silver medal at the1995 FINA Short Course World Championships inRio de Janeiro. Scherer was involved in the organizationCansei. In 2009, he took part in the second season of a reality television program calledA Fazenda, where one of his fellow contestants was his future wife, the actress and dancerSheila Mello. Scherer and Mello married on June 24, 2010, inSão Paulo.[3][4]
Scherer began swimming when he was a child to help improve his respiratory problems. When he was 14, he participated in his first competitions and trained at theDoze de Agosto club. In 1992, he began to achieve national prominence, winning the 50-meter freestyle and 100-meter freestyle in the Brazil Trophy. That day, his friends created a nickname "Xuxa", by which Scherer became widely known because his blond hair resembled that ofa children's television presenter with the same name.[5]
At the Brazilian short course championship, theJose Finkel Trophy in Santos on July 7, 1993, the Brazilian team comprising Fernando Scherer,Teófilo Ferreira,José Carlos Souza andGustavo Borges, broke theworld record in the 4×100-meter freestyle with a time of 3:13.97—three centiseconds better than the Swedish team record of 3:14.00 from March 19, 1989. On December 5, Brazil again broke the world record, with the same team, with a time of 3:12.11.[6] This mark was achieved at the1993 FINA World Swimming Championships (25 m), inPalma de Mallorca, where Scherer won his first major titles: the gold in the 100-meter freestyle and in the 4×100-meter freestyle, at 19 years of age and after five years of competitive swimming experience. With this, Scherer was elected as the revelation athlete of Brazil.[5] He also finished eighth in the50-meter freestyle.
Scherer participated in the1994 World Aquatics Championships inRome, where he won the bronze in the 4×100-meter freestyle—along withTeófilo Ferreira,André Teixeira andGustavo Borges.[6][7] Scherer also finished 10th in the 50-meter freestyle and 14th in the 100-meter freestyle.[8]
In 1995, Scherer signed withFlamengo. He was the first swimmer with signed contract.[5] In March, he competed at the1995 Pan American Games inArgentina, where he became champion of the 50-meter freestyle, two silver medals in 4×100-meter freestyle and 4×200-meter freestyle, and bronze in the 100-meter freestyle.[9] He was named theBrazilian Athlete of the Year in 1995, after winning two gold medals in the 100-meter freestyle and 4×100-meter freestyle at the1995 FINA World Swimming Championships (25 m) inRio de Janeiro.[10] In the 4×100-meter freestyle, he opened with a time of 47.74 seconds in the heats and a time of 47.63 seconds in the final—a South American and Championship record. He also won a silver medal in the 50-meter freestyle.
At the1996 Summer Olympics, inAtlanta, Scherer earned a bronze medal in the 50-metre freestyle, came 5th in the 100-metre freestyle and 4th in the 4×100-metre freestyle.[11]
1997 was a bad year for Scherer. He could not swim competitively for six months after experiencing problems in his left shoulder and both knees caused after the Olympics.[5] He competed in the1997 FINA World Swimming Championships (25 m), where he finished 13th in the100-meter freestyle, and 20th in the50-meter freestyle.
In 1998, Scherer moved toCoral Springs,Florida.[5] He swam at the1998 World Aquatics Championships, inPerth, Australia, where he finished eighth in the 50-meter freestyle, 17th in the 100-meter freestyle and sixth in the 4×100-meter freestyle.[12] In August inNew York City, at theGoodwill Games, Scherer broke the South American record for the 50-meter freestyle with a time of 22.18 seconds, that would only be broken in 2007 byCésar Cielo. He also broke the 100-metre freestyle record with a time of 48.69 seconds, which was unbroken until 2006, also by Cielo.[13][14] With that, Scherer attained first place in the world rankings in both events; he was awarded the title of "World's Best" by Swimworld magazine, and for the second time the best Brazilian athlete, byCOB.[5] At this time, the world record for the50-meter freestyle was 21.81 seconds, set byTom Jager; the100-meter freestyle world record was 48.21 seconds, set byAlexander Popov.
At the end of 1998, Scherer broke the third consecutiveworld record by a Brazilian relay team in the 4×100-meter freestyle on short course. On December 20, shortly after the end of Jose Finkel Trophy, the team of Scherer,Carlos Jayme,Alexandre Massura andGustavo Borges, in order, fell the pool atClub de Regatas Vasco da Gama and recorded a time of 3:10.45; a record which would be broken in 2000 by the Swedish team.[6][15]
In this competition, Scherer had also broken the short-course South American records in the 50-meter freestyle with a time of 21.44 seconds, the 100-meter freestyle with a time of 47.17 seconds, and the Brazilian record in the 100-meter butterfly with a time of 53.13 seconds.[16] In the 50-meter freestyle, Scherer was 0.13 seconds slower thanMark Foster'sworld record of 21.31 seconds, obtained on December 13. He also came close to theworld record in the 100-meter freestyle of 46.74 seconds set by Popov in 1994.
Scherer was also elected Best Swimmer in the World, in 1998, byFINA.
In March 1999, Scherer broke the South American record for the 50-meter butterfly twice in one week.[5] Also this year, Scherer participated in the1999 Pan American Games inWinnipeg, in which Brazil achieved its best swimming results of all time. The Brazilian 4×100-meter medley relay team ofAlexandre Massura,Marcelo Tomazini,Gustavo Borges and Scherer won the race for the first time in the Pan's history, with a time of 3:40.27, breaking the Pan American and South American records and securing a place in the2000 Summer Olympics. Scherer also won the gold in the 50-meter freestyle, 100-meter freestyle, and 4×100-meter freestyle and broke the South American record for the latter race, becoming the first Brazilian to win four gold medals in the same Pan American Games.[5][17]
This year, Scherer forwent all competitions to prepare for the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. However, after an accident on the stairs of his house he sprained an ankle and partially tore the ligament, almost costing him the Games. Although his injury affected his performance—he hardly used his legs—, Scherer won the bronze in the 4×100-meter freestyle and participated in two other heats, ranking 12th in the 4×100-meter medley and 20th in the 50-meter freestyle.[5][11]
In 2002, Scherer returned to Brazil and moved to São Paulo.[5]
At the2003 World Aquatics Championships inBarcelona, Scherer broke his own South American record in the 50-meters butterfly with a time of 23.86 seconds.[18] He went to the final, finishing in 8th.[19] He also finished 23rd in the 50-meter freestyle,[20] and 12th in the 4×100-meter freestyle.[21]
At the age of 29, Scherer competed inhis third Pan American Games inSanto Domingo, where he helped Brazil win 21 medals in swimming—Brazil's all-time record. Scherer won the gold in the 50-meter freestyle, beating the Olympic championGary Hall Jr. and world championJosé Meolans, and gold in the 4×100-meter freestyle.[22]
In May, Scherer equaled his South American record of 23.86 seconds in the 50-meter butterfly.[23] At the2004 Summer Olympics inAthens, he swam just one race, ranking 11th in the 50-meter freestyle.[11]
Now 30 years old, Scherer competed in the2005 World Aquatics Championships inMontreal, where on June 24, he broke the South American record in the 50-meter butterfly in the semifinals with a time of 23.55 seconds,[24] a record that was beaten in 2009 byCésar Cielo.[25][26] Scherer finished fifth in the final.[27] He also finished in 24th place in the 50-meter freestyle.[28]
In 2007, Scherer retired from competitive swimming.[5]
Fernando Scherer is the former holder of the following records:[29]
| Race | Time | Date | Record | Pool | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50m freestyle[13] | 22.18 | August 1998 | South American | Long Course | ||
| 100m freestyle[14] | 48.69 | August 2, 1998 | South American | Long Course | ||
| 50m butterfly[25] | 23.55 | July 24, 2005 | South American | Long Course | ||
| 4 × 100 m freestyle[30] | 3:17.18 | August 1999 | South American | Long Course | ||
| 4 × 100 m medley[31] | 3:40.27 | August 1999 | South American | Long Course | ||
| 50m freestyle[32] | 21.44 | December 17, 1998 | South American | Short Course | ||
| 100m freestyle[16] | 47.17 | December 19, 1998 | South American | Short Course | ||
| 100m butterfly[16] | 53.13 | December 19, 1998 | Brazilian | Short Course | ||
| 4 × 100 m freestyle[33] | 3:10.45 | December 20, 1998 | World | Short Course | ||
Full name: Fernando "Xuxa" de Queiroz Scherer
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