Isménia do Frederico (born 15 June 1971) is a

Cape Verde Cape Verde or Cabo Verde, officially the Republic of Cabo Verde, is an island country and archipelagic state of West Africa in the central Atlantic Ocean, consisting of ten volcanic islands with a combined land area of about . These islands ...

an sprinter. She was the first woman to represent Cape Verde at the Olympics. Do Frederico, a two-time Olympian, first competed for Cape Verde at the 1993 World Championships where she ran the

100 metres The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been contested at ...

in 13.03 seconds. Three years later at 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 List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

, Do Frederico made history along with

António Zeferino António Carlos Pina Zeferino (born 17 January 1966) is a Cape Verdean athlete, specializing in long-distance running, marathon and half marathon. Zeferino, a three-time Olympian, first competed for Cape Verde in a meet in Maia, Portugal se ...

and Henry Andrade by becoming the first athletes to represent the tiny African nation at the Olympic Games. In the women's 100 metres she finished 52nd in a time of 13.03 seconds. The following year she competed in the 1997 Francophone Games, recording her all time personal best in the

with a time of 12.75 seconds. At the

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, officially branded as Sydney 2000, and also known as the Games of the New Millennium, were an international multi-sport event held from 15 September to 1 October ...

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

, Do Frederico had the honour of being the flag bearer at 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.

. In

, she finished in 78th place crossing the line in 12.99 seconds.

References

1971 births Living people Cape Verdean female sprinters Olympic athletes for Cape Verde Athletes (track and field) at the 1996 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2000 Summer Olympics Olympic female sprinters {{CapeVerde-athletics-bio-stub