Olympic beach volleyball champions Duda Lisboa and Ana Patrícia will be the flag bearers for Brazil at the closing ceremony of the Paris Games, at 4 pm (Brasília time) on Sunday (11), at the Stade de France. The players were announced by the Brazilian Olympic Committee (COB) on Saturday afternoon (10). Duda, from São Cristóvão in Sergipe, and Ana Patrícia, from Espinosa, won the gold medal on Friday (9), after a 28-year gold medal drought in women’s beach volleyball. The duo had an undefeated campaign (seven consecutive wins) in Paris, crowned with a victory in the final against Canadians Melissa and Brandie by 2 sets to 1 (26-24, 12-21, 15-10).
Ana Patrícia and Duda Lisboa will be our flag bearers for #TimeBrazil at the Closing Ceremony of the #OlympicGames!
You are amazing and deserve this!! 🥇#Paris2024 pic.twitter.com/NXFrxtZvq5
— Time Brazil (@timebrasil) August 10, 2024
“Duda and Ana Patrícia represented the main Olympic values with excellence and made us all proud. They broke a 28-year drought of gold medals for Brazil in beach volleyball, since the historic title won by Jackie Silva and Sandra Pires in Atlanta 1996. The Brazilian flag is in excellent hands,” said Paulo Wanderley, president of the COB.
Jackie and Sandra were the first to reach the top of the Olympic women’s volleyball podium in Atlanta, in an all-Brazilian final: they beat Adriana Samuel and Mônica in the final. In the following Games, in Sydney (2000), Brazil reached the podium again, this time with a double silver (Adriana Behar and Shelda) and bronze (Adriana Samuel and Sandra Pires). It was in Sydney that Sandra Pires was chosen as flag bearer and became the first woman to represent the delegation in the Olympic ceremony.
“Beach volleyball is a very important sport for Brazilian sports, which has frequently reached the podiums in World Championships and Olympic Games for at least three decades. This choice of Duda and Ana Patrícia is largely due to their merit, and also a tribute to so many athletes from the past who built this history of success,” added Rogério Sampaio, head of the Brazilian commission in Paris and general director of the COB.
At the opening of the Olympics in Paris on July 26, the Brazilian flag bearers were canoeist Isaquias Queiroz – silver in the C1 1,000m in this edition of the Games – and rugby player Raquel Kochhann.
