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Gambia’s swimming debut at Olympic Games today

Aug 11, 2016, 11:26 AM | Article By: Namory Trawally in Rio Brazil

Barely three days after The Gambia made appearance in judo at the Olympic Games, another growing sport in the country will make its maiden debut in the world biggest sports competition on Thursday 11 August 2016 when  young swimmer Papp D. Jonga will line up in the 50m freestyle at the Olympics Aquatic Stadium in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil.

A grade eleven student at Gambia Senior Secondary School, young swimmer Pap D. Jonga has represented The Gambia in many international competitions and coming with good results.

He competed in the 5th Zone African Swimming Championship in Dakar, Senegal, in 2016, the 28th Dakar-Goree Open Water Swimming competition of 4.5km where he finished 92nd position over one thousand participants.

Born in Barra, North Bank Region, on 1 July 1997 and member of Biramsira Swimming Club, Pap D. Jonga has competed in two World FINA Swimming championships in 2014 in Doha, Qatar,  and in 2016 in Kazan, Russia,  where finished 94th position in the world ranking.

Based on his performance, Pap D. Jonga was again selected to represent The Gambia at the 28th Universiade  Swimming Games in Gwangiu, South Korea, in 2015 where he was ranked 70th in the world.

The 19-year-old Gambian swimmer will write history of swimming in The Gambia today 11 August 2016 for being the first Gambian to compete in the Swimming Competition at the Olympic Games.

Pap D. Jonga will compete in heat 3 today  11 August at 13.00pm in Brazil (15.00pm in Banjul) alongside Soule Alhoumane of Comoros, Jules Bessan of Benin, Amadou Camara of Guinea, Brahim Nishwan of Moldives, Dionisio Augustine of  Micronesia, Shawn  Dingillus of Palau and Santinous Inthavory of Laos.

He is accompanied to the games by the technical director of Gambia Swimming Association Mr Arfang Y. Jobe.