Erica dos Santos Matos (born May 24, 1983) in is an amateur

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

ian

boxer Boxer most commonly refers to: * Boxer (boxing), a competitor in the sport of boxing *Boxer (dog), a breed of dog Boxer or boxers may also refer to: Animal kingdom * Boxer crab * Boxer shrimp, a small group of decapod crustaceans * Boxer snipe ee ...

. Hailing from Salvador, capital of the state of

Bahia Bahia ( , , ; meaning "bay") is one of the 26 states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo, Minas Gerais, and Rio de Janeiro) and the 5th-largest b ...

, Matos first practiced

futsal Futsal is a football-based game played on a hard court smaller than a football pitch, and mainly indoors. It has similarities to five-a-side football and indoor football. Futsal is played between two teams of five players each, one of whom is ...

before a classmate invited her to attend boxing classes with him in 2005. Liking the sport, Matos would decide further dedication to it after winning a national championship in Salvador. She was guided by Luiz Dórea, best known for coaching Brazil's world champion boxer Acelino Freitas.Érica Matos (Boxe)
/ref> While Matos fell in the round of 16 at the 2012 AIBA Women's World Boxing Championships, her consistent results in the 2011-12 cycle earned her an International Boxing Association invitational spot to represent

in the 2012 Summer Olympics in the

Flyweight Flyweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Flyweight is a class in boxing which includes fighters weighing above 49 kg (108 lb) and up to 51 kg (112 lb). Professional boxing The flyweight division was the last of b ...

Division. In the Round of 16 she lost to Karlha Magliocco of Venezuela 14-15. Matos is married to fellow Salvador boxer

Robson Conceição Robson Donato Conceição (born 25 October 1988) is a Brazilian professional boxer. He is a two-time super featherweight world title challenger, having challenged for the WBC title in 2021, and the unified WBC, WBO and '' The Ring'' titles in ...

, who also competed in the 2012 Summer Olympics and would later become the first Brazilian Olympic boxing champion in 2016. The couple have a daughter, Sophia. Following the Games, Matos declared she would take a sabbatical from boxing to take care of her family, while not discarding a return to the sport to fight in the

2020 Summer Olympics The , officially the and also known as , was an international multi-sport event held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some preliminary events that began on 21 July. Tokyo was selected as the host city during the 1 ...

.Dos ringues ao lar: Érica Matos larga boxe para se dedicar à família
/ref>

Achievements

* 2013 – Brazilian Women's National Championships 1st place – 51 kg * 2012 – Panamerican Women's Championships (Cornwall, CAN) 2nd place – 51 kg * 2010 – Panamerican Women's Championships (Brasília, BRA) 1st place – 46 kg * 2009 – Panamerican Women's Championships (Guayaquil, ECU) 1st place – 46 kg * 2007 – Panamerican Women's Championships (Duran, ECU) 1st place – 46 kg * 2012 – Three Nations Women's Meeting (Santo Amaro, BRA) 3rd place – 51 kg * 2011 – Stars Tournament (Sao Vicente, BRA) 2nd place – 51 kg * 2011 – 2nd Panamerican Games Qualification Tournament (Quito, ECU) 3rd place – 51 kg * 2010 – Stars Tournament (Moggi das Cruzes, BRA) 2nd place – 51 kg * 2010 – Brazilian Women's National Championships 1st place – 48 kg * 2007 – Brazilian Women's National Championships 1st place – 46 kg * 2010 – South American Games (Medellin, COL) 1st place – 51 kg * 2009 – Brazilian Women's National Championships 1st place – 48 kg * 2005 – Brazilian Women's National Championships 1st place – 46 kg

References

Brazilian women boxers Olympic boxers for Brazil Boxers at the 2012 Summer Olympics Sportspeople from Salvador, Bahia 1983 births Living people Flyweight boxers South American Games gold medalists for Brazil South American Games medalists in boxing Competitors at the 2010 South American Games {{Brazil-boxing-bio-stub