List of flag bearers for Rwanda at the Olympics
Table:
#
Event year
Season
Flag bearer
Sport

8

2016

Summer

Adrien Niyonshuti

Cycling

7
2012
Summer
Adrien Niyonshuti
Cycling

6
2008
Summer
Pamela Girimbabazi Rugabira
Swimming

5
2004
Summer
Mathias Ntawulikura
Athletics

4
2000
Summer
Pierre Karemera

3
1996
Summer
Parfait Ntukamyagwe

2
1988
Summer
Mathias Ntawulikura
Athletics

1
1984
Summer
Emmanuel Twagirayezu

Based on the accompanying table as well as the context snippets provided at the end.

Provide an answer to this question: How many Olympics has the 2008 Summer Olympics flag bearer for Rwanda competed in ? Provide just your answer in a JSON object {"answer": "YOUR ANSWER"}.

The 2016 Summer Olympics ( Portuguese : Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016 ) , [ a ] officially known as the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( Portuguese : Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada ) and commonly known as Rio 2016 , was an international multi-sport event that was held from 5 to 21 August 2016 in Rio de Janeiro , Brazil , with preliminary events in some sports beginning on 3 August . These were the first Olympic Games ever to be held in South America and the fourth to be held in a developing country , after the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico , the 1980 Summer Olympics in the Soviet Union , and the 2008 Summer Olympics in China . More than 11,000 athletes from 205 National Olympic Committees took part , including first time entrants Kosovo , South Sudan , and the Refugee Olympic Team . With 306 sets of medals , the games featured 28 Olympic sports , including rugby sevens and golf , which were added to the Olympic program in 2009 . These sporting events took place at 33 venues in the host city and at five separate venues in the Brazilian cities of São Paulo , Belo Horizonte , Salvador , Brasília , and Manaus . These were the first Summer Olympic Games to take place under the International Olympic Committee ( IOC ) presidency of Thomas Bach . The host city Rio de Janeiro was announced at the 121st IOC Session in Copenhagen , Denmark , on 2 October 2009 . Rio became the first South American city ever to host the Olympic Games . These were the first games to be held in a Portuguese-speaking country , the first summer edition to be held entirely in the host country 's winter season , the first since 1968 to be held in Latin America , and the first since 2000 to be held in the Southern Hemisphere . The United States topped the medal table , winning the most gold and overall medals , 46 and 121 , as well as its 1,000th Summer Olympic gold medal overall . Great Britain finished second and became only the second country in modern Olympic history to increase its tally of medals in the Olympiad immediately after it had been host nation . China finished third .
Adrien Niyonshuti ( born 2 January 1987 ) is a professional bicycle racer , who last rode for South African UCI WorldTeam Team Dimension Data . Although he survived , six of Niyonshuti 's brothers were killed in the Rwandan genocide of 1994 . Niyonshuti began riding a bicycle given to him by his uncle as a teenager , when he came to the attention of former professional cyclist Jonathan Boyer in 2006 during the first Wooden Bike Classic . After riding for the Rwanda national cycling team , Niyonshuti secured a professional contract with Team MTN Cycling , beginning in the 2009 professional season .
The cycling competitions of the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro were held at four venues scheduled to host Eighteen events between 6 August and 21 August . The venues were Fort Copacabana in the Copacabana venues were in Clusters for the start and finish of the road cycling road race , Pontal in the Barra Cluster for the road cycling time trial competitions , the Rio Olympic Velodrome , also in the Barra Cluster for track cycling , the Olympic BMX Center for BMX and the Mountain Bike Centre for mountain biking , both in the Deodoro Cluster . Cycling competitions had been contested in every Summer Olympics programme since the first modern Olympiad in 1896 alongside athletics , artistic gymnastics , fencing and swimming . Since the 1896 contests which featured five track events and an 87 km road race from Athens to Marathon and back , Olympic cycling had gradually evolved to include women 's competitions , mountain bike and BMX to arrive at the current eighteen events . In February 2013 , the International Cycling Union ( UCI ) announced its intention to petition the IOC to extend the cycling programme by three events for both men and women : the return of the points races ( track event ) , a BMX freestyle event and a mountain bike eliminator but in August 2013 the IOC stated that the cycling programme will be the same as in 2012 . No changes were made to the 2016 Olympic cycling programme compared to the cycling at the 2012 Olympics .
The 2012 Summer Olympics , formally the Games of the XXX Olympiad and commonly known as London 2012 , was an international multi-sport event that was held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London , United Kingdom . The first event , the group stage in women 's football , began on 25 July at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff , followed by the opening ceremony on 27 July . 10,768 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees ( NOCs ) participated . Following a bid headed by former Olympic champion Sebastian Coe and then-Mayor of London Ken Livingstone , London was selected as the host city on 6 July 2005 during the 117th IOC Session in Singapore , defeating bids from Moscow , New York City , Madrid , and Paris . London became the first city to host the modern Olympics three times , having previously hosted the Summer Games in 1908 and in 1948 . Construction for the Games involved considerable redevelopment , with an emphasis on sustainability . The main focus was a new 200-hectare ( 490-acre ) Olympic Park , constructed on a former industrial site at Stratford , East London . The Games also made use of venues that already existed before the bid . The Games received general praise for their organisation , with the volunteers , the British military and public enthusiasm praised particularly highly . The opening ceremony , directed by Danny Boyle , received widespread acclaim throughout the world , particular praise from the British public and a minority of widely ranging criticisms from some social media sites . During the Games , Michael Phelps became the most decorated Olympic athlete of all time , winning his 22nd medal . Saudi Arabia , Qatar , and Brunei entered female athletes for the first time , so that every currently eligible country has sent a female competitor to at least one Olympic Games .
Cycling , also called biking or bicycling , is the use of bicycles for transport , recreation , exercise or sport . People engaged in cycling are referred to as cyclists , bikers , or less commonly , as bicyclists . Apart from two-wheeled bicycles , cycling also includes the riding of unicycles , tricycles , quadracycles , recumbent and similar human-powered vehicles ( HPVs ) . Bicycles were introduced in the 19th century and now number approximately one billion worldwide . They are the principal means of transportation in many parts of the world . Cycling is widely regarded as a very effective and efficient mode of transportation optimal for short to moderate distances . Bicycles provide numerous benefits in comparison with motor vehicles , including the sustained physical exercise involved in cycling , easier parking , increased maneuverability , and access to roads , bike paths and rural trails . Cycling also offers a reduced consumption of fossil fuels , less air or noise pollution , and much reduced traffic congestion . These lead to less financial cost to the user as well as to society at large ( negligible damage to roads , less road area required ) . By fitting bicycle racks on the front of buses , transit agencies can significantly increase the areas they can serve . In addition , cycling provides a variety of health benefits . The World Health Organization ( WHO ) states that cycling can reduce the risk of cancers , heart disease , and diabetes that are prevalent in sedentary lifestyles .
The 2008 Summer Olympics , officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad ( Chinese : 第二十九届夏季奥林匹克运动会 ; pinyin : Dì Èrshíjiǔ Jiè Xiàjì Àolínpǐkè Yùndònghuì ) and commonly known as Beijing 2008 , was an international multi-sport event that was held from 8 to 24 August 2008 in Beijing , China . [ b ] A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees ( NOCs ) competed in 28 sports and 302 events ( one event more than those scheduled for the 2004 Summer Olympics ) . This was the first time that China had hosted the Summer Olympics , but the third time that the Games had been held in East Asia , following the 1964 Olympics in Tokyo , Japan , and the Seoul 1988 Summer Olympics . These were the second summer Olympic Games staged in a Communist country , after the Moscow 1980 Summer Olympics and the third in a developing country after the Mexico City 1968 Summer Olympics and the 1980 Summer Olympics in the Soviet Union and the first overall Olympics to be hosted by a Communist state since the former Yugoslavia hosted the 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo . Beijing was awarded the 2008 Games over four competitors on 13 July 2001 , having won a majority of votes from members of the International Olympic Committee ( IOC ) after two rounds of voting . The Government of the People 's Republic of China promoted the Games and invested heavily in new facilities and transport systems . A total of 37 venues were used to host the events , including twelve constructed specifically for the 2008 Olympics . The equestrian events were held in Hong Kong , making this the third Olympics for which the events were held under the jurisdiction of two different NOCs . [ c ] The sailing events were contested in Qingdao , while the football events took place across several different cities . The official logo for the 2008 Games , titled Dancing Beijing , featured a stylised calligraphic character jīng ( 京 , means capital ) in reference to the host city . The Beijing Olympics was watched by 3,500,000,000 people worldwide and featured the longest distance for an Olympic Torch relay . The event sets numerous world and Olympics records in the history of sports , and is also the most expensive Summer Olympics of all time and second-most expensive overall , after the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi .
Pamela Girimbabazi Rugabira , born January 10 , 1985 , is an Olympic swimmer from Rwanda . She swam for Rwanda at the 2000 , 2004 and 2008 Olympics ; and was the country 's flagbearer in 2008 . During that time , she never had a formal swim lesson or regular coach . She was disqualified during the Sydney Games due to technical rules that she was unaware of , and subsequently taught herself the rules by consulting the Internet . Later , she also taught herself from a book about swimming belonging to fellow Rwandan swimmer Jackson Niyomugabo . She trained in a hotel pool 25 metres in length . Her personal best in the 50 metre freestyle prior to the Beijing Olympics was 35 seconds . She failed to improve on that time in Beijing , finishing third out of four in her heat , and 88th overall , with a time of 39:78 . Girimbabazi has been described as a minor celebrity and an icon of pure sport spirit , an athlete who competes for the love of the game , not for the thrill of victory or the fame and riches that might follow .
Swimming is an individual or team racing sport that requires the use of one 's entire body to move through water . The sport takes place in pools or open water ( e.g. , in a sea or lake ) . Competitive swimming is one of the most popular Olympic sports , with varied distance events in butterfly , backstroke , breaststroke , freestyle , and individual medley . In addition to these individual events , four swimmers can take part in either a freestyle or medley relay . A medley relay consists of four swimmers who will each swim a different stroke , ordered as backstroke , breaststroke , butterfly and freestyle . Swimming each stroke requires a set of specific techniques ; in competition , there are distinct regulations concerning the acceptable form for each individual stroke . There are also regulations on what types of swimsuits , caps , jewelry and injury tape that are allowed at competitions . Although it is possible for competitive swimmers to incur several injuries from the sport , such as tendinitis in the shoulders or knees , there are also multiple health benefits associated with the sport .
The 2004 Summer Olympics ( Greek : Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004 , Therinoí Olympiakoí Agónes 2004 ) , officially known as the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad and commonly known as Athens 2004 , was a premier international multi-sport event held in Athens , Greece , from 13 to 29 August 2004 with the motto Welcome Home . The Games saw 10,625 athletes compete , some 600 more than expected , accompanied by 5,501 team officials from 201 countries . There were 301 medal events in 28 different sports . Athens 2004 marked the first time since the 1996 Summer Olympics that all countries with a National Olympic Committee were in attendance . 2004 also marked the return of the Olympic Games to the city where they began . Having previously hosted the Olympics in 1896 , Athens became one of only four cities to have hosted the Summer Olympic Games on two separate occasions at the time ( together with Paris , London , and Los Angeles ) . A new medal obverse was introduced at these Games , replacing the design by Giuseppe Cassioli that had been used since the 1928 Games . This rectified the long lasting mistake of using a depiction of the Roman Colosseum rather than a Greek venue . The new design features the Panathenaic Stadium . The 2004 Summer Games were hailed as unforgettable , dream games by IOC President Jacques Rogge , and left Athens with a significantly improved infrastructure , including a new airport , ring road , and subway system . There have been arguments ( mostly in popular media ) regarding the cost of the 2004 Athens Summer Games and their possible contribution to the 2010-2018 Greek government-debt crisis , however , there is little or no evidence for such a correlation . The 2004 Olympics were generally deemed to be a success , with the rising standard of competition amongst nations across the world .
Mathias Ntawulikura ( born 14 June 1964 in Gisovu/Kibuye ) is a retired Rwandan long-distance runner . He reached the World Athletics Championships final and participated in the Olympic Games in the 5000 ( 1988 ) and 10000 metres ( 1992 , 1996 ) and Marathon ( 2000 , 2004 ) . He also participated five times in the IAAF World Cross Country Championships . His best Olympic performance was 8th in the 10 000m at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics , a race where the top eight positions were taken by ( six ) African countries . He was forty when he competed in the marathon at the 2004 Athens Olympics ; of the hundred men who started the race , he came 62nd with a time of 2hours , 26 minutes , 5 seconds . He is the first ( and as of 2010 , only ) Rwandan to compete at five Olympic Games . The only African to compete in five Olympics before him was Egyptian shooter Mohamed Khorshed . In 2004 , Ntawulikura joined three other track and field athletes - Nigerian Mary Onyali , Mozambican Maria Mutola , and Angolan João N'Tyamba in becoming the second African to compete at five Olympics . He was affiliated with the Pro Patria Milano sporting club in Italy .
Athletics is a group of sporting events that involves competitive running , jumping , throwing , and walking . The most common types of athletics competitions are track and field , road running , cross country running , and race walking . The results of racing events are decided by finishing position ( or time , where measured ) , while the jumps and throws are won by the athlete that achieves the highest or furthest measurement from a series of attempts . The simplicity of the competitions , and the lack of a need for expensive equipment , makes athletics one of the most common types of sports in the world . Athletics is mostly an individual sport , with the exception of relay races and competitions which combine athletes ' performances for a team score , such as cross country . Organized athletics are traced back to the Ancient Olympic Games from 776 BC . The rules and format of the modern events in athletics were defined in Western Europe and North America in the 19th and early 20th century , and were then spread to other parts of the world . Most modern top level meetings are held under the auspices of World Athletics , the global governing body for the sport of athletics , or its member continental and national federations . The athletics meeting forms the backbone of the Summer Olympics . The foremost international athletics meeting is the World Athletics Championships , which incorporates track and field , marathon running and race walking . Other top level competitions in athletics include the World Athletics Cross Country Championships and the World Half Marathon Championships . Athletes with a physical disability compete at the Summer Paralympics and the World Para Athletics Championships .
The 2000 Summer Olympics , officially known as the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and commonly known as Sydney 2000 or the Millennium Olympic Games/Games of the New Millennium , was an international multi-sport event held between 15 September and 1 October 2000 in Sydney , New South Wales , Australia . It was the second time the Summer Olympics were held in Australia , and also the Southern Hemisphere , the first being in Melbourne , Victoria , in 1956 .
The 1996 Summer Olympics , officially known as the Games of the XXVI Olympiad , commonly known as Atlanta 1996 , and also referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games , were an international multi-sport event that was held from July 19 to August 4 , 1996 , in Atlanta , Georgia , U.S . These Games , which were the fourth Summer Olympics to be hosted by the United States , marked the centennial of the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens - the inaugural edition of the modern Olympic Games . They were also the first since 1924 to be held in a different year from a Winter Olympics , under a new IOC practice implemented in 1994 to hold the Summer and Winter Games in alternating , even-numbered years . More than 10,000 athletes from 197 National Olympic Committees competed in 26 sports , including the Olympic debuts of beach volleyball , mountain biking , and softball , as well as the new disciplines of lightweight rowing and women 's football ( soccer ) . 24 countries made their Summer Olympic debut in Atlanta , including eleven former Soviet republics participating for the first time as independent nations . The hosting United States led the medal count with a total of 101 medals , and the most gold ( 44 ) and silver ( 32 ) medals out of all countries . The U.S. topped the medal count for the first time since 1984 , and for the first time since 1968 in a non-boycotted Summer Olympics . Notable performances during competition included those of Andre Agassi - who became the first men 's singles tennis player to combine a career Grand Slam with an Olympic gold medal , Donovan Bailey - who set a new world record of 9.84 for the men 's 100 meters , and Lilia Podkopayeva - who became the second gymnast to win an individual event gold after winning the all-round title in the same Olympics . The festivities were marred by violence on July 27 , when Eric Rudolph detonated pipe bombs at Centennial Olympic Park - a downtown park that was built to serve as a public focal point for the Games ' festivities , killing 1 and injuring 111 . In 2003 , Rudolph confessed to the bombing and a series of related attacks on abortion centers and a gay bar , and was sentenced to life in prison . He claimed that the bombing was meant to protest the U.S. government 's sanctioning of abortion on demand . The Games turned a profit , helped by record revenue from sponsorship deals and broadcast rights , and reliance on private funding ( as opposed to the extensive public funding used on later Olympics ) , among other factors .
The 1988 Summer Olympics ( Korean : 서울 하계 올림픽 ; RR : Seoul Hagye Ollimpik [ sʌ.ul ɦaɡje olːimpʰik ] ) , officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad , was an international multi-sport event celebrated from 17 September to 2 October 1988 in Seoul , South Korea . In the Seoul Games , 159 nations were represented by a total of 8,391 athletes : 6,197 men and 2,194 women . 237 events were held and 27,221 volunteers helped to prepare the Olympics . 11,331 media ( 4,978 written press and 6,353 broadcasters ) showed the Games all over the world . These were the last Olympic Games for the Soviet Union and East Germany , as both ceased to exist before the next Olympic Games . The Soviets utterly dominated the medal table , winning 55 gold and 132 total medals . No country came close to this result after 1988 . The games were boycotted by North Korea and its ally , Cuba . Ethiopia , Albania and the Seychelles did not respond to the invitations sent by the IOC . Nicaragua did not participate due to athletic and financial considerations . The participation of Madagascar had been expected , and their team was expected at the opening ceremony of 160 nations . However , the country withdrew because of financial reasons .
The 1984 Summer Olympics , officially known as the Games of the XXIII Olympiad , was an international multi-sport event that was held from July 28 to August 12 , 1984 , in Los Angeles , California , United States ( and other venues around the United States ) . This was the second time that Los Angeles had hosted the Games , the first being in 1932 . California was the home state of then-U.S. President Ronald Reagan , who officially opened the Games . The logo for the 1984 Games , branded Stars in Motion , featured red , white and blue stars arranged horizontally and struck through with alternating streaks . The official mascot of the Games was Sam the Olympic Eagle . These were the first Summer Olympic Games under the IOC presidency of Juan Antonio Samaranch . The 1984 Games were boycotted by a total of fourteen Eastern Bloc countries , including the Soviet Union and East Germany , in response to the American-led boycott of the previous 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow in protest of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan ; Romania was the only Eastern Bloc nation that opted to attend the Games . Iran and Libya also chose to boycott the Games for unrelated reasons . Despite the field being depleted in certain sports due to the boycott , 140 National Olympic Committees took part , which was a record at the time . The United States won the most gold and overall medals , followed by Romania and West Germany . The 1984 Summer Olympics are widely considered to be the most financially successful modern Olympics and served as an example of how to run the model Olympic Games . As a result of low construction costs , coupled with a reliance on private corporate funding , the 1984 Olympic Games generated a profit of more than $ 250 million .