Uganda made its Paralympic debut at the 1972 Summer Paralympics in Heidelberg, West Germany. After competing at the 1976 Toronto Paralympics, they were absent from the Summer Paralympics until the 1996 Atlanta Games, and have taken part in every Summer Paralympic Games since. These Rio de Janeiro Games were the nation's eighth appearance at a Summer Paralympiad. Uganda had not won its first Paralympic medal before the Rio de Janeiro edition. The 2016 Summer Paralympics were held from 7–18 September 2016 with a total of 4,328 athletes representing 159 National Paralympic Committees taking part. Athletics track runner David Emong was the only competitor for Uganda in Rio de Janeiro. Three other athletes, Christine Akullo, Emmanuel Vukoja and Bashir Bwanga, failed to make the team due to them missing their final qualifying meets. Emong was chosen as the flag bearer for the parade of nations during the opening ceremony.