RIO DE JANEIRO (2016 Rio Olympics) - Brazil have rolled back the years and put their former coach Antonio Carlos Barbosa back in charge of the women's national team for next year's Olympics.

The hosts of the 2016 Summer Games needed a play-caller following Luis Augusto Zanon's unexpected decision to step down for health reasons.

Zanon had been in charge of the national side since late March of 2013, leading the South American giants at the 2013 and 2015 FIBA Americas Women's Championships and at the 2014 FIBA Women's World Championship.

Zanon led Brazil to 11th at 2014 FIBA Women's World Championship  

The Brazilian Basketball Confederation have turned to Barbosa and put him in charge for the third time in his career.

The 70-year-old first held the reins of the Brazil women's team from 1976-84 and once again from 1996-2007.

In putting Barbosa back at the helm, Brazil have established a link to their successful past.

Barbosa was in charge when they last reached the podium at an Olympics.

He guided them to silver at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta and four years later to bronze in Sydney.

At the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Barbosa's Brazil made it to the Semi-Finals but lost tough games to Australia and Russia.

"With the Olympic Games coming up, just a little over seven months to the start of the competition, we understand that this is the ideal name," the technical director of the Brazilian Basketball Confederation, Vanderlei Mazzuchini, said. "We believe that he can put together a competitive team for the Rio Games."

Barbosa accepts that Brazil is in a period of renovation, with much expected of young players that have yet to excel at the elite level of international basketball.

He is nevertheless ambitious and optimistic.

"I see Brazil with many chances to compete for a medal," he said.

"I have the winning spirit and am not going into a tournament thinking I will not get a medal.

"I believe these players are capable of competing for a medal."

As for Zanon, he called it a "difficult decision" to step down.

He feared his concerns about his health would "not allow me to offer the dedication and intensity needed to lead the Brazilian team, the way I know how, in a competition of the importance of the basketball tournament of the Olympic Games."

Brazil are No. 7 in the FIBA World Ranking Women.

They have had several coaches since the departure of Barbosa, starting with his former assistant Paulo Bassul, a man that guided the Brazilians to a spot in the Beijing Games via the FIBA Olympic Women's Qualifying Tournament in Madrid.

Bassul then steered the women to the continental title in 2009 but he made way for Spaniard Carlos Colinas after.

Colinas coached the team at the 2010 FIBA Women's World Championship in the Czech Republic but they came up short of the Quarter-Finals and ended up ninth out of 16 teams.

He decided to vacate the post so Brazil put Enio Vecchi in charge.

The veteran play-caller steered the team back to the top of the podium at the 2011 FIBA Americas Championship in Neiva, Colombia, only to miss out on the opportunity to coach at the Olympics when the confederation replaced him that December with Luiz Claudio Tarallo.

Tarallo's stay in the job ended after Brazil, for the second straight Olympics, came up short of the Quarter-Finals and finished ninth.

Zanon took over several months later and coached at three big tournaments.

Brazil were third under him at the 2013 FIBA Americas Women's Championship, a disappointing 11th at the 2014 FIBA Women's World Championship in Turkey and fourth at this year's FIBA Americas Women's Championship in Edmonton.

They fell in the third-place game to Argentina at this year's event in Canada.

FIBA