Benjamin Lo-Pinto (born March 11, 1976) is a Seychellois former swimmer, who specialized in backstroke events. Lo-Pinto has collected two medals from the

All-Africa Games The African Games, formally known as the All-Africa Games or the Pan African Games, are a continental multi-sport event held every four years, organized by the African Union (AU) with the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa (AN ...

, and later represented Seychelles at the

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from 1 ...

, where he became the nation's flag bearer in the

opening ceremony An opening ceremony, grand opening, or ribbon-cutting ceremony marks the official opening of a newly-constructed location or the start of an event.

. Lo-Pinto established his swimming history for Seychelles at the

1999 All-Africa Games The 7th All-Africa Games were held from September 10, 1999, to September 19, 1999, in Greater Johannesburg, South Africa. 53 countries participated in eighteen sports. Netball was included as a demonstration sport. The South Africans hosted abou ...

in Johannesburg, South Africa, where he earned a silver medal in the 100 m backstroke (59.64), and bronze in the 200 m backstroke (2:11.21). Because of his stellar performance during the Games, he was named the Sportsman of the Year by the Seychelles Olympic and Commonwealth Games Association. At the

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

, Lo-Pinto competed only in the men's 100 m backstroke. He achieved a FINA B-cut of 58.66 from the All-Africa Games. Swimming from start to finish in heat one, he raced to the second seed in 58.66, nearly a full second behind leader Alexandru Ivlev of Moldova. Lo-Pinto failed to advance into the semifinals, as he placed forty-seventh overall in the prelims.

References

1976 births Living people Seychellois male swimmers Olympic swimmers for Seychelles Swimmers at the 2000 Summer Olympics Male backstroke swimmers People from Greater Victoria, Seychelles African Games silver medalists for Seychelles African Games medalists in swimming African Games bronze medalists for Seychelles Competitors at the 1999 All-Africa Games 20th-century Seychellois people 21st-century Seychellois people {{Seychelles-swimming-bio-stub