Portugal secures three golds and one bronze in swimming and cycling at Taranto 2026

Cycling time trial double podium

Portugal opened its medal campaign on Saturday at the 2026 Mediterranean Games in Taranto, Italy, with two podium finishes in the men's 17-kilometre individual time trial. Tiago Antunes, a 29-year-old rider for Efapel, set the winning time of 20:05 minutes after being the first cyclist to depart on the course. His performance held through the entire field, finishing eight seconds ahead of silver medallist Bogdan Zabelinskiy of Cyprus and Portuguese teammate Rafael Reis. Reis, the 34-year-old champion from Oran 2022, took the bronze medal after trailing Antunes by nine seconds at the intermediate check and losing ground on a right-hand corner. The victory concluded a strong racing period for Antunes, who previously won the Volta ao Alentejo and Troféu Joaquim Agostinho before placing sixth at the Volta a Portugal.

Antunes reflected on the victory for the national team following the event.

When we come here, we always dream of winning a medal. It is quite good, it is a great victory, so to speak. Winning for Portugal symbolizes even more what a victory is, and I am very happy.

Martins triumphs in 400m freestyle

At the Torre d'Ayala Swimming Stadium, 23-year-old Francisca Martins claimed Portugal's second gold medal of the day by winning the women's 400-metre freestyle final. Martins finished the race in 4:09.00, finishing ahead of Italian swimmers Bianca Nannucci (4:11.61) and Antonietta Cesarano (4:13.17). Fellow Portuguese finalist Inês Henriques placed seventh with a time of 4:24.07. The victory marked a significant improvement from the Oran 2022 edition, where Martins finished eighth in 4:21.04, and followed four final appearances at the European Championships in Paris, where she finished fourth in the 400-metre freestyle with a national record of 4:06.93.

Martins described the podium ceremony as the realization of a personal ambition.

It is a unique feeling. It was one of my dreams, to hear A Portuguesa and be able to be there. It is truly incredible.

Rebelo defends backstroke title

Shortly after Martins' victory, 23-year-old Camila Rebelo successfully defended her Mediterranean Games title in the women's 200-metre backstroke. The Louzan Natação swimmer, who was a European silver medallist in Paris ten days earlier and a double champion in the 100-metre and 200-metre backstroke in Oran 2022, led the final from start to finish. Rebelo touched the wall in 2:08.88, almost three seconds ahead of Italian silver medallist Federica Toma (2:11.66) and Turkish bronze medallist Sudem Denizli (2:13.13).

Rebelo confirmed her satisfaction with executing her race plan to repeat her Mediterranean title.

I am very happy with the achievement. I think I managed to execute what I was planning to do, which was to repeat the title. It is done!

Portugal reaches 53 total medals

The four podium finishes in Taranto brought Portugal's cumulative medal tally in Mediterranean Games history to 53. Antunes and Reis secured the country's 50th and 51st all-time medals, while Martins and Rebelo added the 52nd and 53rd. Martins and Rebelo, long-time training partners and friends, celebrated their shared victories together on the pool deck. Martins noted that their mutual support helped them achieve results together, while Rebelo expressed pride in carrying the Portuguese flag at the competition.