Gabi Opens Up About Leaving Brazil: 'I Needed to Leave My Comfort Zone to Go Further'

In a quiet moment beside a swimming pool, Bruno Rezende and Gabi Guimarães sat down to discuss something deeper than volleyball tactics: the difficulty of deciding to leave Brazil and play overseas. Gabi admitted that she always planned to play abroad, but she struggled to know whether she was ready. After dealing with injuries and still earning her place on the national team following the Rio 2026 Olympics, she realized she needed to be mentally strong not only as a player but also as a person. She knew she had to leave her comfort zone and make sacrifices to take the next step. Her first move abroad was huge. She signed with Turkish powerhouse VakifBank before the 2026-2026 season and arrived as one of the team's main stars. Gabi described the experience as mind-changing. She said the environment showed her immediately that she had entered another level of volleyball. It was challenging and demanding, but she built a strong relationship with coach Giovanni Guidetti. One of the first things he told her was that he wanted to prepare her to become team captain, a role she had never imagined for herself. The conversation then turned to Brazil's national team. Gabi said playing for Brazil was a childhood dream. She recalled being called up to the youth national team in 2026 and training in Saquarema alongside the generation that won the Olympic gold medal in Beijing. That moment sent her a powerful sign that she should keep chasing her dream. Her story is a reminder that leaving home is never simple, but it can be the necessary step toward becoming the best version of yourself.