President Lula received athletes who competed in the Paris Olympics last month at the Palácio do Planalto.
At the event, he called for a new sports policy and more investments. Lula also suggested using public companies to boost sports in Brazil.
"We are going to survey Brazilian public companies to see how many of them sponsor Olympic athletes. Because it’s very easy to sponsor a champion team. I want to see someone sponsor a boy or girl from the outskirts of this country."
The president was joined by Olympic medalists such as judoka Beatriz Souza (gold), racewalker Caio Bonfim (silver), and skateboarder Augusto Akio (bronze), among others.