São Tomé and Príncipe São Tomé and Príncipe (; pt, São Tomé e Príncipe (); English: " Saint Thomas and Prince"), officially the Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe ( pt, República Democrática de São Tomé e Príncipe), is a Portuguese-speaking i ...

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. The country's participation at Rio de Janeiro marked its sixth consecutive appearance at the Summer Olympics. Three athletes from São Tomé and Princípe were selected for the Games. Romário Leitão and Celma Bonfim da Graça participated in athletics and Buly Triste in flatwater canoeing. Bonfim was the only female on the roster and the only member with prior Olympic experience (from

Beijing 2008 The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nat ...

). Triste was the first male athlete to carry the São Tomé and Princípe flag at the opening ceremony. São Tomé and Princípe has yet to win its first Olympic medal.

Background

São Tomé and Príncipe participated in six

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inau ...

between its debut in the

1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

, United States and the

, Brazil. The highest number of São Toméans to participate at any single Summer Games was three in the

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Na ...

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

, China, later equalled in 2016. No São Toméan has ever won a medal at the Summer Olympics. São Tomé and Principe has also never participated at any

Winter Olympics The Winter Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'hiver) is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were h ...

. Both São Toméan participants in athletics qualified for the Games through universality slots while Buly Triste qualified via the 2016 African Sprint Qualifier in

Pretoria Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends ...

, South Africa. Triste was chosen to be São Tomé and Princípe's flag bearer during the

Parade of Nations The Olympic Games ceremonies of the Ancient Olympic Games were an integral part of these Games; the modern Olympic games have opening, closing, and medal ceremonies. Some of the elements of the modern ceremonies date back to the Ancient Games from ...

of the opening ceremony.

Athletics

São Tomé and Príncipe received universality slots from

IAAF World Athletics, formerly known as the International Amateur Athletic Federation (from 1912 to 2001) and International Association of Athletics Federations (from 2001 to 2019, both abbreviated as the IAAF) is the international governing body for ...

to send two athletes (one male and one female) to the Olympics. Romário Leitão made his Olympic debut by competing in the Men's 5000 m event while Celma Bonfim da Graça made her second Olympic appearance, with the first being in Beijing 2008. At the 2008 Olympics, she was one of three athletes to compete for São Tomé and Príncipe. She ran the

5000 metres The 5000 metres or 5000-metre run is a common long-distance running event in track and field, approximately equivalent to or . It is one of the track events in the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics, run over laps of a stan ...

, finishing 16th (and last) in her heat, still achieving a national record with the time of 17:25.99 minutes with a split time of 2:16.10 minutes behind Lucia Chandamale of

Malawi Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast ...

. In these Olympics, Bonfim ran the women's 1500 metres event and finished 14th in her heat with a time of 4:38.86 minutes, failing to qualify for the semifinals. Leitão ran the men's 5000 metres and came 25th in his heat with a time of 15:53.32 minutes. He placed one ahead of Zouhair Aouad who did not finish, and did not qualify for the finals. ;Track & road events

Canoeing

São Tomé and Príncipe qualified one boat in the men's C-1 1000 metres for the Olympics at the 2016 African Championships, signifying the nation's return to the sport after an eight-year hiatus. Buly Triste made his debut in the men's 1000 metres one-man covered canoe event. He came 6th and last in his heat with a time of 4:54.516 minutes. He automatically qualified to the semifinals, but did not reserve a position in any of the finals after coming 7th with a time of 4:46.396 minutes, coming 16 seconds behind Angel Kodinov of

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...

. Qualification Legend: FA = Qualify to final (medal); FB = Qualify to final B (non-medal)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sao Tome and Principe at the 2016 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 ...