Benin Benin ( , ; french: Bénin , ff, Benen), officially the Republic of Benin (french: République du Bénin), and formerly Dahomey, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the north ...

competed at the

2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

, Brazil, from 5 to 21 August 2016. This was the nation's eleventh appearance at the Summer Olympics, with the exception of the

1976 Summer Olympics Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phi ...

in Montreal because of the African boycott.

Benin National Olympic and Sports Committee Benin National Olympic and Sports Committee (french: Comité National Olympique et Sportif Béninois) (IOC code: BEN) is the National Olympic Committee representing Benin. It was created on 5 May 1962 and recognized by the International Olympic C ...

selected a team of six athletes, four men and two women, for the Games, competing in athletics, fencing, judo, and swimming. All of them made their maiden Olympic appearance, with sabre fencer

Yémi Apithy Yémi Geoffrey Apithy (born 5 April 1989) is a French-Beninese sabre fencer representing Benin in international competitions, silver medalist at the 2014 and 2015 African Championships. He bore the flag for Benin at the 2016 Summer Olympics. C ...

leading the Benin team as the nation's flag bearer in the opening ceremony. Benin, however, has yet to win its first Olympic medal.

Athletics (track and field)

Benin athletes achieved qualifying standards in the following athletics events (up to a maximum of 3 athletes in each event): ;Track & road events

Fencing

Benin at the 2016 Summer Olympics opening ceremony

Following the completion of the Grand Prix finals, Benin has entered one fencer into the Olympic competition. Yémi Apithy claimed an Olympic spot in the men's sabre as one of the two highest-ranked fencers from Africa outside the world's top 14 in the FIE Adjusted Official Rankings, signifying the country's debut in the sport.

Judo

Benin qualified one judoka for the men's middleweight category (90 kg) at the Games. Celtus Dossou Yovo earned a continental quota spot from the African region as Benin's top-ranked judoka outside of direct qualifying position in the IJF World Ranking List of 30 May 2016.

Swimming

Benin received universality invitations from

FINA FINA (french: Fédération internationale de natation, en, International Swimming Federation, link=yes) (to be renamed as World Aquatics by ) is the international federation recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for administer ...

to send two swimmers (one male and one female).

References

External links

* * {{Country at games navbox, Benin, Summer Olympics Nations at the 2016 Summer Olympics

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

Olympics The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...