Athletes quartet

In athletics, Benfica was represented by four athletes at the 1952 Helsinki Olympic Games.

The Benfica trio made up of Tomás Paquete, Eugénio Eleutério, and Fernando Casimiro, completed by Rui Maia, participated in the 4x100m relay, finishing the heat in 6th position with a time of 42.8s. Each of them also participated individually in speed events.

Matos Fernandes showed what his fibre was made of, having finished the demanding decathlon event in the 16th position, with a total of 5,604 points. The athlete also competed in the 400m hurdles, finishing in 4th place in his heat, with 56.8s.

Tomás Paquete’s participation in the 100m race was marked by an unusual episode:
“When I arrived at the starting place, I saw that there were no «starting blocks» in the corridor that was destined to me [...]. With my opponents waiting, I went to ask for them and, after fixing them to the ground, [...] I took off my tracksuit jacket. Up to this point, everything was normal. A bit nervous, but I hurriedly took off my trousers and - God! - The shorts and the «trunks» came with too!... I did not get to undress completely of course. [...] But what is certain is that the public, in the stands, laughed heartily and I, was even more nervous, of course...”.