Cameroon at the Olympics
Cameroon's National Olympic Committee was established in 1963 and was recognized by the International Olympic Committee in the same year. They first participated in the Summer Games the very next year. In 1964, Cameroon sent a single athlete to represent them in Tokyo, Japan. Runner David Njitock represented Cameroon for the men's 100 and 200 meters in Tokyo in 1964.
The next meeting, Cameroon won its first Olympic medal. In 1968, boxer Joseph Bessala took the silver in the men's welterweight division in Mexico City, Mexico. Cameroon competed for the first three days of the 1976 Games before withdrawing in support of the boycott by most other African nations.
Since their first medal in 1968, Cameroon had to wait 16 years before they again tasted Olympic honors. In 1984, another Cameroonian boxer Martin Ndongo Ebanga won the bronze medal in the men's lightweight division in Los Angeles, California, USA.
Cameroon's next Olympic medal and first-ever gold medal from the Olympics came in the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Cameroon's football team won the gold in Sydney and became the country's first-ever top place. Cameroon's appearance in Sydney set the trend for the next 2 Summer Games. Cameroon also won gold in Athens (2004) and Beijing (2008). In 2004 and 2008, Françoise Mbango Etone won gold in women's triple jump becoming the country's only back to back Olympic gold medalist.
Cameroon also is one of the very few African countries that participated in the Winter Games. Cross country skier Isaac Menyoli carried the Cameroonian flag in the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA.
Related Pages
- Cameroon at the Winter Olympics
- List of all countries that have participated at the Olympic Games.
- About sport in Cameroon
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