Emmanuel Grace Mouambako, second from left, and Mireille Nganga, center, were the flag bearers for Team Congo at the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Summer Paralympic Games at Place de la Concorde on Aug. 28, 2024. The two athletes and Mouambako’s sighted guide have since gone missing.
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Congolese shot putter Mireille Nganga and sprinter Emmanuel Grace Mouambako went missing shortly after competing in the 2024 Paralympic Games, according to French media reports Thursday.
Le Parisien newspaper reported that French authorities opened an investigation last weekend over their disappearance, and that of Mouambako’s sighted guide, Sharon Victor Loussanga.
A Congolese delegation official told law enforcement that Nganga, Mouambako and Loussanga were all last seen on Sept. 5 at the athletes’ village in Saint-Denis, north of Paris, Le Monde newspaper reported.
Nganga, who has a leg impairment, and Mouambako, who is visually impaired, were their country’s flag bearers at the opening ceremony. Nganga recorded no mark in the seated javelin and shot put events, while Mouambako placed fourth in the men’s 100-meter dash. The two athletes were both absent from the closing ceremony last Sunday.
According to the Associated Press, the athletes’ suitcases have also gone missing, though their passports remain with the Congolese delegation. The Paralympic Committee of the Democratic Republic of Congo did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Several days before the Paralympics’ opening ceremony, Rwandan volleyball player Claudine Bazubagira also went missing in France, Le Monde reported. She previously participated in the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro and the 2020 Games in Tokyo.
