Fernando Ismael Fernandes Pimenta (, born 13 August 1989) is a Portuguese sprint canoeist who has won multiple medals at the

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and European championships. At club level, he represents Benfica.

Career

Pimenta has competed since the late 2000s. His first major result came at the 2010 World Championships in

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, Poland, when he won the K-2 500 metres silver medal together with João Ribeiro. One year later, he contributed to the Portuguese K-4 1000 metres gold medal at the European Championships in

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, Serbia, and claimed a bronze in the K-1 1000 metres. Together with Emanuel Silva, he won the silver medal in the K-2 1000 metres event at the

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, which was Portugal's only medal at these Games. In 2013, Pimenta won multiple medals in international events, namely two silvers (K-1 5000 metres and K-4 1000 metres) at the European Championships, held in Portugal's Montemor-o-Velho racing course, and two golds (K-1 500 and 1000 metres) at the

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. The following year, he secured his second world championship medal in Moscow, after a runner-up finish in the K-4 1000 metres event. At the European Championships in

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, Germany, Pimenta finished again in the top-three places of the K-1 5000 and K-4 1000 metres, taking a bronze medal in both events. Pimenta participated in the inaugural edition of the European Games, in

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, Azerbaijan, where he became the first Portuguese sprint canoeist to win a medal in this competition, after finishing second in the K-1 1000 metres event; a day later, he added another silver medal in the K-1 5000 metres. At the World Championships in

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, Pimenta won the K-1 1000 metres bronze medal – his third medal at this level – and secured his country's qualification for this event at the

2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Rio 2016, were an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with preliminary events i ...

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. In 2016, Pimenta won his first individual continental titles after taking the K-1 1000 and 5000 metres gold medals at the European Championships in

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. At the Olympics, he missed the medal places, finishing 5th and 6th in the K-1 1000 metres and K-4 1000 metres finals, respectively. The following year in July, he defended his European K-1 1000 metres title in

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, but lost the K-1 5000 metres crown to his German rival Max Hoff. However, the following month, Pimenta would beat Hoff in a sprint finish for the K-1 5000 metres gold medal at the World Championships in Račice, to win his first individual world title. On 5 March 2018, he moved from Clube Náutico de Ponte de Lima to S.L. Benfica. At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Pimenta won his heat, earning direct access to the semi-final which he also won with an Olympic Record. During the 3 August 2021 final, Pimenta won the bronze medal with faster time than in the previous round.

Major results

Olympics

World championships

Orders

PRT Order of Prince Henry - Grand Officer BAR

Grand Officer of the

Order of Prince Henry The Order of Prince Henry () is a Portuguese order of knighthood created on 2 June 1960, to commemorate the quincentenary of the death of the Portuguese ''infante'' Prince Henry the Navigator, one of the main initiators of the Age of Discovery. M ...

Commander of the

Order of Merit The Order of Merit () is an order of merit for the Commonwealth realms, recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or the promotion of culture. Established in 1902 by Edward VII, admission into the order r ...

Atletas condecorados com Ordem do Mérito
(in Portuguese)

References

External links