Two weeks after the end of the Olympic Games, the competitive spirit returns to Paris. The Paralympic Games begin this Wednesday and will run until September 8. Portugal, despite having one of the smallest Paralympic delegations in history, with only 27 athletes, has set a record for the number of sports represented. From boccia to powerlifting (a debut sport), meet the Portuguese Paralympic athletes, with some special highlights.
Simone Fragoso, from swimming to powerlifting
The 44-year-old athlete from Palmela will be competing in her fourth Paralympic Games, following her trips to Beijing 2008, London 2012, and Rio de Janeiro 2016. However, Simone has always participated as a swimmer. This time, she represents Portugal in powerlifting, a sport that is debuting at Paris 2024.
She started swimming on medical advice from a very young age to help with her mobility, and after several years dedicated to the sport competitively, she was unable to qualify for Tokyo 2020.
“I didn’t think my career should end on a low note,” the athlete said in a promotional video for the Portuguese Paralympic Committee. Therefore, Simone Fragoso entered into discussions with the Portuguese Sports Federation for People with Disabilities and changed the course of her career. Today, she lifts 59 kilograms, more than double her body weight.
Despite being a newcomer to the sport, Simone achieved seventh place at the Pattaya World Cup and the Tbilisi World Cup, both in 2024. The powerlifting event will take place on September 4, at 12:35 PM in Lisbon.
Cristina Gonçalves, a boccia “legend”
Cristina Gonçalves is a habituée at the Paralympic Games. In Athens 2004, she won the gold medal, in Beijing 2008 the silver, and in Rio 2016 the bronze, all in team events in boccia. She also participated in Tokyo 2020 and is the only athlete in this Portuguese delegation with a Paralympic title in her portfolio.
The athlete from the Cerebral Palsy Association of Lisbon will compete in the individual boccia BC2 event and in the BC1/BC2 team event. Boccia is, in fact, the sport with the greatest Portuguese representation at the Paralympics. In total, there are seven athletes distributed across the four individual classes and team event.
This sport usually brings joy to the Portuguese, as it is the second with the most medals won. There have been 26 medals won from Portugal’s 11 participations in the Paralympic Games since Heidelberg in 1972. Only athletics is ahead with 54 medals. The boccia events will take place from August 29 to September 5.
Carolina Duarte, sprinter at the top of the ranking
Carolina Duarte will participate in athletics, specifically in the 400 meters T13 event. With her, she brings an Olympic participation, in Rio, and a series of international medals in World Championships since then.
Before heading to Rio de Janeiro in 2016, Carolina spoke to PÚBLICO. At the time, she admitted that she remembered the 100-meter race of Francis Obikwelu at the Athens Games in 2004, and that it moved her. The moment was the driving force behind her sprinting career, which even a genetic vision problem couldn’t slow down.
In Rio, she participated in both the 100 meters and the 400 meters events; this year she’ll focus on the longer distance, in which she became vice-world champion last May. This latest achievement, along with several others, makes Carolina Duarte the number one in the world ranking for the event.
The heats for the 400 meters T13 are scheduled for September 5 at 8:15 PM, Lisbon time.
Diogo Cancela, competing three times in the pool
The 22-year-old from Coimbra will also drop one event due to his participation in Tokyo 2020. Still, he will compete in three: 100 meters butterfly S8, 200 meters individual medley SM8, and 400 meters freestyle S8.
Additionally, along with shooter Margarida Lapa, he will be the flag bearer at the opening ceremony, which will take place primarily in the Place de la Concorde this Wednesday from 7 PM. Therefore, in addition to his status as the world’s second-best in the 200 meters individual medley, he will carry the flag of Portugal, which was handed to him by the President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, on August 23.
The swimmer from Louzan Swimming Association will compete in the pools of Paris from September 1 to 7.