Wania Monteiro
Encyclopedia
Wania Monteiro is a Cape Verde
Cape Verde
The Republic of Cape Verde is an island country, spanning an archipelago of 10 islands located in the central Atlantic Ocean, 570 kilometres off the coast of Western Africa...

an rhythmic gymnast
Rhythmic gymnastics
Rhythmic gymnastics is a sport in which individuals or teams of competitors manipulate one or two pieces of apparatus: rope, clubs, hoop, ball, ribbon and Free . An individual athlete only manipulates 1 apparatus at a time...

.

Biography

Born in Santa Catarina
Santa Catarina, Cape Verde
Santa Catarina is a municipality located in the northwestern and the western parts of the island of Santiago in Sotavento in Cape Verde. The municipal population is around 49,829, the area is 243 km² and the density is about 205/km². The seat of the municipality is Assomada...

, Santiago
Santiago, Cape Verde
Santiago , or Santiagu in Cape Verdean Creole, is the largest island of Cape Verde, its most important agricultural centre and home to half the nation’s population. At the time of Darwin's voyage it was called St. Jago....

, she lived in Praia for a while. She is trained by Elena Atmacheva. Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...

noted that she often trained "in a dilapidated gym with ceilings too low to accommodate a proper hoop or ball toss", due to a lack of adequate facilities in Cape Verde.

She later moved to the USA where she currently studies.

Sports career

Monteiro represented her country
Cape Verde at the 2004 Summer Olympics
Cape Verde competed at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece.The country also made its Paralympic Games début this year.- Athletics :Men's marathon* Antonio Carlos Zeferino → 2:36:22 -Boxing:Light Heavyweight...

 at the 2004 Summer Olympics
2004 Summer Olympics
The 2004 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad, was a premier international multi-sport event held in Athens, Greece from August 13 to August 29, 2004 with the motto Welcome Home. 10,625 athletes competed, some 600 more than expected, accompanied by 5,501 team...

 in Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...

, and was Cape Verde's flag bearer during the Games's opening ceremony. She was also the first gymnast from Cape Verde to compete in the Olympic Games.

In 2006, she won four medals at the African Gymnastics Championships, three bronze and one gold, being present on all podiums during this competition.

Monteiro competed again at the 2008 Summer Olympics
2008 Summer Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, was a major international multi-sport event that took place in Beijing, China, from August 8 to August 24, 2008. A total of 11,028 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees competed in 28 sports and 302 events...

 in Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...

, and was, again, her country's flagbearer
2008 Summer Olympics national flag bearers
During the Parade of Nations portion of the 2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, athletes from each country participating in the Olympics paraded in the arena, preceded by their flag...

 during the Games' opening ceremony
2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony
The 2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony was held at the Beijing National Stadium, also known as the Bird's Nest. It began at 8:00 pm China Standard Time on August 8, 2008, as 8 is considered to be a lucky number. The number 8 is associated with prosperity and confidence in Chinese culture...

. She finished 24th, with 49.050 points.

External links

  • Video of Monteiro's performance in Athens, on CNN
    CNN
    Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...

    's website
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