| Portugal at the 2016 Summer Olympics | |
|---|---|
 | |
| IOC code | POR |
| NOC | Olympic Committee of Portugal |
| Website | www |
| in Rio de Janeiro | |
| Competitors | 92 in 16 sports |
| Flag bearers | João Rodrigues (opening)[1] Telma Monteiro (closing)[2] |
| Medals Ranked 78th |
|
| Summer Olympics appearances (overview) | |
Portugal competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 5 to 21 August 2016. Portuguese athletes had appeared in every edition of the Summer Olympic Games since the nation's debut in 1912.
The Olympic Committee of Portugal fielded a team of 92 athletes, 62 men and 30 women, across 16 sports at the Games.[3] It was the nation's second-largest ever delegation sent to the Olympics, falling short of the record for the most athletes (107) achieved in Atlanta 1996 by nearly 20 percent. Men's football was the only team-based sport in which Portugal had representatives at these Games, returning to the Olympic scene after being absent from the previous two editions.[4] Portugal also marked its Olympic debut in golf (new to the 2016 Games), as well as its return to taekwondo after 8 years, and slalom canoeing and tennis after 16 years.
The Portuguese roster featured 31 returning Olympians, including three past medalists: triple jumper and Beijing 2008 champion Nelson Évora and sprint canoeing duo Fernando Pimenta and Emanuel Silva, who brought home the nation's only medal, a silver, at London 2012. Windsurfer and multiple-time European champion João Rodrigues, who was selected as the nation's flag bearer in the opening ceremony, set a historic milestone as the first Portuguese athlete to participate in his seventh and final Olympics.[1][5] Pistol shooter João Costa, the oldest of the team (aged 52), and Laser sailor Gustavo Lima joined the list of the nation's athletes who attended their fifth Games. Other notable competitors on the Portuguese roster included world-ranked judoka and four-time Olympian Telma Monteiro, road cycling pro Rui Costa, European Games taekwondo champion Rui Bragança, and sprinter Lorène Bazolo, who ran for her native Congo in London four years earlier.
Portugal left Rio de Janeiro with only a bronze medal won by Monteiro in the women's 57 kg, saving its pride from the humiliation of returning empty-handed for the first time since Barcelona 1992.[6] Several Portuguese athletes advanced further to the finals of their respective sporting events, but came closest to the nation's medal haul, including Évora (sixth, men's triple jump), Pimenta (fifth, men's K-1 1000 m), Silva and his new partner João Ribeiro (fourth, men's K-2 1000 m), and João José Pereira, who finished fifth in the men's triathlon.[7]
- ^ a b "João Rodrigues é o Porta-Estandarte da Missão Rio 2016" [João Rodrigues will be the flag bearer for Rio 2016] (in Portuguese). Olympic Committee of Portugal. 15 June 2016. Retrieved 16 June 2016.
- ^ "Telma Monteiro vai ser a Porta-Estandarte na Cerimónia de Encerramento" [Telma Monteiro will be the flagbearer in the closing ceremony] (in Portuguese). Olympic Committee of Portugal. 20 August 2016. Retrieved 20 August 2016.
- ^ Aleixo, Mário (12 July 2016). "Portugal já garantiu 92 atletas para o Rio2016" [Portugal has already selected 92 athletes for Rio 2016] (in Portuguese). Rádio e Televisão de Portugal. Retrieved 10 January 2017.
- ^ Zaccardi, Nick (25 June 2015). "Four European nations qualify for 2016 Olympic men's soccer tournament". Rádio e Televisão de Portugal. Retrieved 10 January 2017.
- ^ "Rio 2016, more flag bearers for sailing than Beijing and London combined". International Sailing Federation. 5 August 2016. Retrieved 12 September 2016.
- ^ "Telma Monteiro conquista o bronze no Rio 2016" [Telma Monteiro wins bronze in Rio 2016] (in Portuguese). Olympic Committee of Portugal. 8 August 2016. Retrieved 10 January 2017.
- ^ "Portugal brings home one medal from Rio as athletes slam lack of support from government". Portugal Resident. 22 August 2016. Retrieved 10 January 2017.