Christ the Redeemer statue lit green and yellow in honor of Joao Fonseca

Joao Fonseca's Rio de Janeiro homecoming may have been short-lived this week on the court, but off the court, the Brazilian's first days after taking home his first ATP singles title left a lasting impression.

After Fonseca stormed to the title at the ATP 250 in Buenos Aires last week, becoming the youngest Brazilian man and fourth-youngest man of any national original to win an ATP title this century, Rio's iconic "Christ the Redeemer" statue was reportedly lit up in his honor.

Read more: 'My real dream is just to play tennis,' Joao Fonseca says after winning his first ATP title in Buenos Aires

The Art Deco statue of Jesus, located on the Corcovado mountain, is routinely lit up with colored lights to reference significant international events, but according to Brazilian newspaper *Otempo*, it glowed in yellow and green, Brazil's national colors, in tribute to one of Rio's now-favorite sons.

It shouldn't come as a surprise that Fonseca was honored in such a way in his hometown, after his triumph in Argentina injected revitalized tennis passion into his compatriots

Hundreds of people packed the Jockey Club Brasileiro to watch Fonseca's first practice in Rio, and the 18-year-old told reporters that it was surreal to receive congratulatory messages from global superstars like Neymar and Ronaldo.

“I feel very honored by the messages I got from local and international idols, to know that they know who I am," Fonseca said in Portuguese according to the official tournament website. “They are idols, people that I consider untouchable. And also to see kids saying that I’m their idol is just crazy. I’m very happy with everything that’s happening."

When Fonseca arrived at the Rio Open, he also had a meet and greet with one of his country's most decorated Olympians, gymnast Rebeca Andrade. The gymnast was present at the Rio Open to participate in the tournament's opening ceremony, and met other players including Paris Olympic bronze medallist Lorenzo Musetti and top seed Alexander Zverev.

The two Brazilians bonded by posing for a photo together, and Fonseca even signed an oversized tennis ball for Paris 2024's gold medalist on floor exercise.

“I know that things happened really fast in my career but I think last year’s Joao would never believe that he could go so far so fast," Fonseca added. "Obviously I always believed I could get to where I am today, but never this soon.”