Lima participated in several swimming contests but never advanced past preliminaries. In 1988, he was disqualified from the Men's 50 m freestyle, finished 62nd in the Men's 100 m freestyle, 42nd in the Men's 100 m butterfly. In 1992, Lima finished 43rd in the Men's 50 m freestyle and 53rd in the Men's 100 m butterfly. Lima also won a gold and bronze medal at the 1991 All-Africa Games, he won the gold medal in the Men's 50 m freestyle and a bronze in the Men's 100 m butterfly