Naringal's Brenton Andreoli opens up about his journey in aerobics

Seventeen years of competition later and the now 27-year-old is a seven-time FISAF (Federation of International Sports, Aerobics and Fitness) aerobics world champion.

The Naringal export's first title came in 2009 as a junior before he made history as the youngest FISAF world champion in history when he won the men's solo title as a 17-year-old in 2010.

He won six more titles, a mix of pairs, trios and individual, in 2013, 2014 and 2019.

That fire to be the best still burns but has now spread to passing his knowledge onto the next generation of stars in the south-west Victoria and with the Czech Republic's top club.

"I've been coaching here since 2013, and I absolutely love it," he told The Standard. "Being able to teach and then to see athletes put what you taught them into action makes me feel like a proud dad.

"Our club, Fitness Center Bry a Hanky ulcové, has been the best in the Czech Republic for over 10 years now and it feels great to be part of that legacy even though it's been a lot of hard work."

Andreoli's world title wins were "much further than my original goals as a kid to just qualify for nationals".

"But in saying that there was always some part of me that knew I was going to be the best one day, some might call it arrogant but it's what kept pushing myself to always be better than the day before," he said.

"I'm always proud of world titles but like most other athletes I'm super critical of myself and always looking for somewhere I can improve.

"I was never a kid to set specific goals but when I saw something or an idea came to my mind I just went for it and never held back.

"As a coach now I see the importance of setting achievable goals and always try to motivate my athletes to be their best."

Andreoli has one bit of advice for any future aerobics stars.

"I would suggest to always enjoy each moment as much as you can," he said.

"When you're having fun and putting the hard work in, amazing things can happen."

Andreoli has been based in the Czech Republic's capital, Prague, since 2013.

Like most of the world, Prague is dealing with the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic.

The Czech Republic has 1,168,491 active cases and 19,537 of its citizens have died because of the virus.

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The country has begun its vaccine roll-out with 220,924 (more than two per cent) people fully vaccinated.

"We have now had two separate lockdowns, one back in March and then the current lockdown, which has been enforced since very early in October," Andreoli said of the current situation in the capital.

"Restrictions include a curfew from 5am to 9pm, max number of people meeting outside is two, masks must be worn at all times indoors or on public transport and only essential services are open with limited numbers allowed in the stores.

The former Emmanuel College student has had to adapt in a number of ways while in lockdown, which has also impacted his recovery from a significant injury

"Isolation the second time around has been a lot more difficult due to the sheer length of time we've all been locked up," he said.

"I have been doing online Zoom trainings with my athletes, sharing around different sessions with our coaching team and mostly focusing on getting back to basics so when we can return to the gym everyone has a firm foundation to start with.

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"Sadly I haven't been able to train too much myself as I tore my ACL back in 2019 just before the world championships.

"Also the pandemic has restricted my access to get the healthcare and surgery I need to repair my knee.

"I tore my ACL getting back into training after the European summer in 2019, as we take a few months off.

"On our training camp I pulled out half way from a jump to a split landing and landed badly which didn't end well for my ACL."

Andreoli was fortunately able to sneak in his last family visit before heading back home to Prague.

"I was lucky, I guess, that I came home to the south-west to spend Christmas 2019 with my parents John and Janelle and the rest of my family, I then stayed in Australia for six weeks," he said.

"I returned to Prague to get back into training and work but was then met with the pandemic."

Andreoli's last competition was also in 2019 and it capped off an impressive season, which ended in his seventh world title.

"The last competition I personally competed in was the 2019 world championships as part of a trio (with Viktorie Prokopov and Andrea Svihalkova) where we were undefeated all season," he said.

"Winning all three of our major titles that year - Czech Republic, European and the world championships.

"I've never had a perfect undefeated season like in 2019 and doing it after taking six years off certainly added to the feeling of achievement.

"I don't have any plans to take to the stage anytime soon due to my injury but once that is fixed perhaps I'll get back out there. Who knows?"

With no competitions in the near future Andreoli has had time to reflect.

"The time off has allowed me to look back on past competitions and training and nit pick at absolutely everything," he said.

"I'm extremely self critical, and I'll never stop being this way, but the lockdown has also allowed me to look back at past competitions and recognise what really worked and has motivated me on how I can build on it more."

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