Almeida was chosen by his peers in an election that took place at the Centro de Desportos e Congressos de Matosinhos, in Portugal during this year’s IBSA Goalball World Championships, which on Sunday (December 18) with Brazil winning the men's tournament and Turkey the women's.

It was an historic moment as it was the first time that the athlete’s representative had been elected and not appointed by the IBSA Sport Committee.

“Becoming the first-ever goalball athlete representative to be elected by my peers is something that I take very seriously and for which I am extremely grateful,” Almeida said.

“Not even 24 hours had passed since the results of the election were known, and I was already being contacted by athletes from around the world wishing to share their thoughts.

“If this is any indication of things to come, I expect the next four years to be extremely productive.

“Finally, a word of appreciation goes out to everyone who was involved in this process, either directly or indirectly.

“This could not have been done without you, and I hope you remain active and engaged throughout this new cycle.

“Like I have said from the beginning, it will be one for all and all for goalball."

A total of 80 out of the 188 athletes competing at the IBSA Goalball World Championships eligible to vote took part in the election - a figure of 43 per cent.

All the athletes registered in ISAS were able to vote, but the real universe was the number of players that participated in the 2022 IBSA Goalball World Championships: 188.

The election process was supervised and validated by the IBSA Goalball Sports Committee.