São Tomé and Príncipe São Tomé and Príncipe, officially the Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe, is an island country in the Gulf of Guinea, off the western equatorial coast of Central Africa. It consists of two archipelagos around the two main isla ...

sent a delegation to compete in the

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international Olympic sports, sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a Multi-s ...

for the first time 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 ...

, United States from 19 July to 4 August 1996. The delegation consisted of two

100 meters 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 ...

sprinters, Sortelina Pires and Odair Baia. Neither of them were able to advance from their heats.

Background

The Comité Olímpico de São Tomé e Príncipe was recognized by the

International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; , CIO) is the international, non-governmental, sports governing body of the modern Olympic Games. Founded in 1894 by Pierre de Coubertin and Demetrios Vikelas, it is based i ...

on 31 December 1992. Atlanta marked the island nation's debut in Olympic competition. The 1996 Summer Olympics were held from 19 July to 4 August 1996; 10,318 athletes represented 194

National Olympic Committees A National Olympic Committee (NOC) is a national constituent of the worldwide Olympic movement. Subject to the controls of the International Olympic Committee, NOCs are responsible for organizing their people's participation in the Olympic Games ...

. The São Tomé and Príncipe delegation consisted of two sprinters, Sortelina Pires and Odair Baia. Pires was chosen as the flag bearer for 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.

Competitors

The following is the list of number of competitors in the Games.

Athletics

Odair Baia was 18 years old at the time of the Atlanta Olympics, and was making his Olympic debut. On 26 July, he took part in the heats of the men's 100 metres; assigned to heat eight, he finished ninth in his heat with a time of 11.05 seconds. Only the top 3 from a heat advanced, and he was eliminated. Sortelina Pires was 19 years old during these Olympics, and was also making her Olympic debut. In the women's 100 metres heats, also held on 26 July, she was part of the third heat. She finished with a time of 13.31 seconds, eighth in her heat in a format where only the top four from each heat, plus the next three fastest overall, were able to advance, meaning she was eliminated. *Note: Ranks are given within an athlete's heat only.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sao Tome And Principe At The 1996 Summer Olympics

1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...

1996 in São Tomé and Príncipe