FLAG-BEARERS OF RIO 2016 OLYMPICS.......

 By Perekeme Odon

  

Rio 2016 Olympic Logo: Source: Google

Hello readers, carrying a nation's flag at the Olympic Games opening ceremony is one of the highest honours for any athlete. You just don’t need to sit in limbo without knowing who is leading your country out at the 78,838 capacity Maracanã Stadium, Rio de Janeiro,Brazil in the XXXI Rio 2016 opening ceremony The flag bearers at the 2016 Summer Olympics officially known as the Games of the XXXI Olympiad, and commonly known as Rio 2016 include some of the greatest athletes of their generation. But while not all of them are superstars, each one represents their country with pride and esteem. Opening rounds in certain events began on 3 August 2016—two days before the opening ceremony and the Games is formally running from 5 August to 21 August 2016.

Olufunke Oshonaike leads Team Nigeria

More than 11,000 athletes from 206 National Olympic Committees (NOCs), including first time entrants Kosovo and South Sudan, are taking part in 38 Olympic sports—including rugby sevens and golf, which were added by the International Olympic Committee in 2009.; with 306 sets of medals to be won. These sporting events is taking place at 33 venues in the host city and at five venues in the cities of São Paulo (Brazil's largest city), Belo Horizonte, Salvador, Brasília (Brazil's capital), and Manaus.

THE MARACANA STADIUM

Bidding alongside cities like Madrid, Tokyo and Chicago, Rio de Janeiro became the first South American city to host the Summer Olympics after it was announced at the 121st IOC Session held in Copenhagen, Denmark, on 2 October 2009. These are the first Summer Olympic Games under the IOC presidency of Thomas Bach.

Mascot Vinicius_and_Tom

Bunturabie Jalloh leads Sierra Leone

Somali on the move

The Cook Islands, way out in the South Pacific near New Zealand,

Tsgabu Gebremaryam Grmay leads Ethiopia

Germany on the Move

Haiti's Asnage CASTELLY flaging his country

Michael Phelps of the United States carries the flag during the Opening Ceremony of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games at Maracana Stadium. Photograph- Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

Nicole Van Der Velden leads Aruba at the 2016 Rio Olympics

Athletes of Ghana take part in the opening ceremony

Team Belgium on the move

Burkina Faso Rachid SIDIBE flags up at Rio 2016

Athletes of China take part in the opening ceremony

Therese Alshammar carries the flag of Sweden

Mijain Nunez Lopez carries the flag of Cuba during the opening ceremony for the 2016 Summer Olympics

Ivana Maksimo, flag-bearer Belgrade City, Republic of Serbia

Julieta Granada. A proud Olympic Golf member carrying the flag for Paraguay in the Opening Ceremony.

MARACANA STADIUM

The Refugees Olympics Team

Flag bearer Federica Pellegrini of Italy leads her team Photo-Janie Squire

Caroline Wozniacki carries the flag of Denmark during the opening ceremony for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro,

Flag bearer Patrick Barnes of Ireland leads his team during the Opening Ceremony of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games

Karol Bielecki of Poland leads his team during the Opening Ceremony.

Shirtless Pita Nikolas Aufatofua of Tonga carries the flag during the Opening Ceremony. Photograph- Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

Rosie MacLennan leads Canada into opening ceremony

Yane Marques of Brazil carries the country’s flag during the Opening Ceremony of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games at Maracana Stadium, in Rio de Janeiro. Photograph- Cameron Spencer/Getty Images.

TEAM NIGERIA

Medals for Rio 2016 Source: Agência Brasil

Stars to watch at the Rio 2016.Source: Getty

Flag bearer Andy Murray of Team Great Britain leads the team entering the stadium during the Opening Ceremony. Photograph- Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images

Flag bearer Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark . Photograph- Paul Gilham/Getty Images

Flag bearer Rafael Nadal of Spain leads his team. Photograph- Paul Gilham/Getty Images

Flag bearer Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce of Jamaica leads her team. Photograph Paul Gilham/Getty Images.

Abhinav Bindra leads the Indian contingent at the Parade of Nations during the Opening Ceremony of the Rio Olympics at Maracana Stadium on Friday night. Photograph- Clive Brunskill/Getty Images

Sergei Tetiukhin of Russia carries the flag during the Opening Ceremony. Photograph- Cameron Spencer/Getty Image

Rafeal Nadal of Spain carries the flag during the Opening Ceremony of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games at Maracana Stadium. Photograph- Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

Zahra Nemati of Islamic Republic of Iran leads her team during the Opening Ceremony of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games at Maracana Stadium. Photograph- Jamie Squire/Getty Images

Country First name Surname Gender Sport Greece Sofia BEKATOROU Female Sailing Afghanistan Mohammad Tawfiq BAKHSHI Male Judo South Africa Wayde VAN NIEKERK Male Athletics Albania Luiza GEGA Female Athletics Germany Timo BOLL Male Table Tennis Andorra Laura SALLES LOPEZ Female Judo Angola Luisa KIALA Female Handball Antigua and Barbuda Daniel BAILEY Male Athletics Saudi Arabia Sulaiman HAMAD Male Judo Algeria Sonia ASSELAH Female Judo Argentina Luis SCOLA Male Basketball Armenia Vahan MKHITARYAN Male Swimming Aruba Nicole VAN DER VELDEN Female Sailing Australia Anna MEARES Female Cycling Austria Jia LIU Female Table Tennis Azerbaijan Teymur MAMMADOV Male Boxing Bahamas Shaunae MILLER Female Athletics Bangladesh Mohammad RAHMAN Male Golf Barbados Ramon GITTENS Male Athletics Bahrain Farhan FARHAN Male Swimming Belarus Vasil KIRYIENKA Male Cycling Belgium Olivia BORLEE Female Athletics Belize Brandon JONES Male Athletics Benin Yemi Geoffrey Afiss APITHY Male Fencing Bermuda Tyrone SMITH Male Athletics Bolivia Angela CASTRO Female Athletics Bosnia and Herzegovina Amel TUKA Male Athletics Botswana Nijel AMOS Male Athletics Brunei Darussalam Mohammad Fakhri ISMAIL Male Athletics Bulgaria Ivet LALOVA-COLLIO Female Athletics Burkina Faso Rachid SIDIBE Male Judo Burundi Olivier IRABARUTA Male Athletics Bhutan Karma KARMA Female Archery Cape Verde Maria ANDRADE Female Taekwondo Cameroon Dieudonne Wilfred SEYI NTSENGUE Male Boxing Cambodia Seavmey SORN Female Taekwondo Canada Rosannagh MACLENNAN Female Gymnastics Qatar Sheikh Ali AL-THANI Male Equestrian Kazakhstan Ruslan ZHAPAROV Male Taekwondo Cayman Islands Forbes RONALD Male Athletics Central African Republic Chloe Marie Helene SAVOUREL Female Athletics Chad Ali Taher BIBIRO Female Athletics Chile Erika OLIVERA Female Athletics People's Republic of China Sheng LEI Male Fencing Cyprus Pavlos KONTIDES Male Sailing Colombia Yuri ALVEAR ORJUELA Female Judo Comoros Mohamed Andhumdine NAZLATI Female Swimming Congo Franck ELEMBA Male Athletics Democratic Republic of the Congo Rosa KELEKV LUKUSA Female Taekwondo Cook Islands Ella NICHOLAS Female Canoeing Republic of Korea Bongil GU Male Fencing Côte d'Ivoire Murielle AHOURE Female Athletics Costa Rica NERY BRENES Male Athletics Croatia Josip PAVIC Male Water polo Cuba Mijain NUNEZ LOPEZ Male Wrestling Denmark Caroline WOZNIACKI Female Tennis Djibouti Abdi Waiss MOUHYADIN Male Athletics Dominica Yordanys DURANONA Male Athletics Dominican Republic Luguelin SANTOS Male Athletics Egypt Ahmad ELAHMAR Male Handball El Salvador Lilian CASTRO Female Shooting United Arab Emirates Nada ALBEDWAWI Female Swimming Ecuador Estefania GARCIA Female Judo Eritrea volunteer Slovakia Danka BARTEKOVA Female Shooting Slovenia Vasilij ZBOGAR Male Sailing Spain Rafael NADAL Male Tennis Federated States of Micronesia Jennifer CHIENG Female Boxing United States of America Michael PHELPS Male Swimming Estonia Karl-Martin RAMMO Male Sailing Ethiopia Tsgabu Gebremaryam GRMAY Male Cycling The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia Anastasia BOGDANOVSKI Female Swimming Fiji Osea KOLINISAU Male Rugby 7 Philippines Ian LARIBA Female Table Tennis Finland Tuuli PETAJA Female Sailing France Teddy RINER Male Judo Gabon Anthony Mylann OBAME Male Taekwondo Gambia Gina BASS Female Athletics Ghana Flings OWUSU-AGYAPONG Female Athletics Georgia Avtandili TCHRIKISHVILI Male Judo Great Britain Andy MURRAY Male Tennis Grenada Kirani JAMES Male Athletics Guam Benjamin SCHULTE Male Swimming Guatemala Ana Sofia GOMEZ Female Gymnastics Guyana Hannibal GASKIN Male Swimming Guinea Mamadama BANGOURA Female Judo Equatorial Guinea Reina-Flor OKORI Female Athletics Guinea-Bissau Augusto MIDANA Male Wrestling Haiti Asnage CASTELLY Male Wrestling Honduras Rolando PALACIOS Male Athletics Hong Kong, China Stephanie AU Female Swimming Hungary Aron SZILAGYI Male Fencing Yemen Zeyad MATER Male Athletics India Abhinav BINDRA Male Shooting Indonesia Maria LONDA Female Athletics Islamic Republic of Iran Zahra NEMATI Female Archery Iraq Waheed Abdulridha WAHEED KARAAWI Male Boxing Ireland Patrick BARNES Male Boxing Iceland Thormodur JONSSON Male Judo Israel Neta RIVKIN Female Gymnastics Italy Federica PELLEGRINI Female Swimming Jamaica Shelly-Ann FRASER-PRYCE Female Athletics Japan Kiesuke USHIRO Male Athletics Jordan Hussein IASHAISH Male Boxing Kiribati David KATOATAU Male Weightlifting Kosovo Majlinda KELMENDI Female Judo Lao People's Democratic Republic Xaysa ANOUSONE Male Athletics Lesotho Mosito LEHATA Male Athletics Latvia Maris STROMBERGS Male Cycling Lebanon Nacif ELIAS Male Judo Liberia Emmanuel MATADI Male Athletics Libya Mohamed Fuad HREZI Male Athletics Liechtenstein Julia HASSLER Female Swimming Lithuania Gintare SCHEIDT Female Sailing Luxembourg Gilles MULLER Male Tennis Madagascar Eliane SAHOLINIRINA Female Athletics Malaysia Chong Wei LEE Male Badminton Malawi Kefasi CHITSALA Male Athletics Maldives Aminath SHAJAN Female Swimming Mali Djenebou DANTE Female Athletics Malta Andrew CHETCUTI Male Swimming Marshall Islands Mathlynn SASSER Female Weightlifting Morocco Abdelkebir OUADDAR Male Equestrian Mauritius Kate FOO KUNE Female Badminton Mauritania Jidou EL MOCTAR Male Athletics Mexico Daniela CAMPUZANO Female Cycling Mozambique Joaquim LOBO Male Canoeing Republic of Moldova Nicolai CEBAN Male Wrestling Monaco Brice ETES Male Athletics Mongolia Temuulen BATTULGA Male Judo Montenegro BOJANA POPOVIC Female Handball Myanmar Naing Soe YAN Male Judo Namibia Jonas Junias JONAS Male Boxing Nauru Elson BRECHTEFELD Male Weightlifting Nepal Phupu Lamu KHATRI Female Judo Nicaragua Rafael Antonio LACAYO PALADINO Male Shooting Niger Abdoulrazak ISSOUFOU ALFAGA Male Taekwondo Nigeria OLUFUNKE OSHONAIKE Female Table tennis Norway Ole Kristian BRYHN Male Shooting New Zealand Peter BURLING Male Sailing Oman Hamed AL KHATRI Male Shooting Netherlands Jeroen DUBBELDAM Male Equestrian Palau Florian Skilang TEMENGIL Male Wrestling Palestine Mayada AL-SAYED Female Athletics Panama Alonso EDWARD Male Athletics Papua New Guinea Ryan PINI Male Swimming Pakistan Ghulam Mustafa BASHIR Male Shooting Paraguay Julieta GRANADA Female Golf Peru Francisco BOZA Male Shooting Poland Karol BIELECKI Male Handball Puerto Rico Jamie Yusept ESPINAL Male Wrestling Portugal João RODRIGUES Male Sailing Kenya Shehzana ANWAR Female Archery Kyrgyzstan Erkin ADYLBEK UULU Male Boxing Democratic People's Republic of Korea Jon Wi CHOE Male Weightlifting Romania Catalina PONOR Female Gymnastics Rwanda Adrien NIYONSHUTI Male Cycling Russian Federation Sergei TETIUKHIN Male Volleyball Solomon Islands Jenly WINI Female Weightlifting Samoa Mary OPELOGE Female Weightlifting American Samoa Tanumafili Malietoa JUNGBLUT Male Weightlifting San Marino Arianna PERILLI Female Shooting Saint Lucia Levern SPENCER Female Athletics Saint Kitts and Nevis Antoine ADAMS Male Athletics Sao Tome and Principe Buly DA CONCEICAO TRISTE Male Canoeing St Vincent and the Grenadines Kineke ALEXANDER Female Athletics Seychelles Rodney GOVINDEN Male Sailing Senegal Isabelle SAMBOU Female Wrestling Sierra Leone Bunturabie JALLOH Female Swimming Serbia Ivana ANDUSIC MAKSIMOVIC Female Shooting Singapore Zi Liang Derek WONG Male Badminton Syrian Arab Republic Majd Eddin GHAZAL Male Athletics Somalia Mohamed MOHAMED Male Athletics Sri Lanka Indrajith COORAY Female Athletics Swaziland Sibusiso MATSENJWA Male Athletics Sudan Abdalla YOUSIF Male Athletics South Sudan Guor MARIAL Male Athletics Sweden Therese ALSHAMMAR Female Swimming Switzerland Giulia BATTULGA Female Gymnastics Suriname Soren OPTI Male Badminton Tajikistan Dilshod NAZAROV Male Athletics Thailand Ratchanok INTANON Female Badminton Chinese Taipei Isheau WONG Female Equestrian United Republic of Tanzania Andrew Thomas MLUGU Male Judo Czech Republic Lukas KRPALEK Male Judo Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste Francelina CABRAL Female Cycling Togo Adzo Rebecca KROSSI Female Swimming Tonga Pita Nikolas AUFATOFUA Male Taekwondo Trinidad and Tobago Kenshorn WALCOTT Male Athletics Tunisia Oussama MELLOULI Male Swimming Turkmenistan Merdan ATAYEV Male Swimming Turkey Riza KAYAALP Male Wrestling Tuvalu Etimoni TIMUANI Male Athletics Ukraine Mykola MILCHEV Male Shooting Uganda Joshua E TIBATEMWA Male Swimming Uruguay Dolores MOREIRA FRASCHINI Female Sailing Uzbekistan Bakhopir JALOLOV Male Boxing Vanuatu Yoshua SHING Male Table Tennis Venezuela Ruben LIMARDO GASCON Male Fencing Vietnam Thanh an VU Male Fencing Virgin Islands, US Cy THOMPSON Male Sailing Virgin Islands, British Ashley KELLY Female Athletics Zambia Mathews PUNZA Male Judo Zimbabwe Kirsty COVENTRY Female Swimming Refugee Olympic Team Rose Lokonyen NATHIKE Female Athletics Brazil Yane MARQUES Female Modern Pentathlon