Mariano was born in 1993, in Campinas, to a Brazilian father and a Japanese Brazilian mother.[8] He practiced judo in a club as a child, following his father's footsteps. Mariano changed his mind after watching a gymnastics class.[9]
After his parents' divorce, Mariano moved with his mother to São Paulo, where he entered in a gymnastics team in another club. When he was eleven, Mariano joined Esporte Clube Pinheiros. Mariano won the Brazilian Child Gymnastics Championship when he was fourteen.[9]
Controversy
In 2015, Mariano and fellow gymnasts Felipe Arakawa and Henrique Flores were suspended from the Brazilian national team for a month, after publishing a Snapchat video in which they made racist jokes addressed at another teammate, Afro-Brazilian gymnast Ângelo Assumpção.[10]
Mariano published another video apologizing for the incident. After his teammate had won the bronze medal at 2016 Olympics, Assumpção said: "I don't keep a grudge on him. We are close friends. I am very proud of Nory. I just hope he behaves like a medal winner outside the arena too."[citation needed]
Modeling career
Besides being a professional gymnast, Mariano is also an internationally signed model.[11] In 2019, Mariano is the face of Philippine-based international clothing brand BENCH's men's wear campaign in Brazil and Latin America.[11][12][13]
Personal life
On 28 October 2021, Mariano revealed in an Instagram post that he is in a relationship with broadcast media marketing analyst João Otávio Tasso.[14][15][16]
