Olympic Honor for UConn Swimmer

Chinyere Pigot will be the flag bearer for Suriname at the opening ceremony.

By Bob Connors

| Monday, Jul 23, 2012 | Updated 2:10 PM EDT

Getty Images/UConn

Chinyere Pigot, a sophomore at UConn, will carry the flag for Suriname at the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in London. Pigot was born in Suriname.

UConn swimmer Chinyere Pigot has been chosen to be the flag bearer for Suriname at the opening ceremony of the Olympics in London this Friday.

Pigot, a sophomore at UConn, is from Miami, but was born in Suriname. The country of about 500,000 people is in South America. She will compete in the sprint freestyle races for Suriname.

As a freshman, Pigot set UConn records in the 50-yard and 100-yard freestyle events, according to the university. She has received many honors, including being named All-Big East Conference. This is the second Olympic appearance for Pigot. As a 14-year-old, she swam in the 2008 Games in Beijing.

She is not the only Olympic swimmer in her family. Chinyere's brother, Diguan Pigot, will be competing for Suriname in the 100-meter breaststroke event. Diguan will be entering UConn as a freshman in the fall.

Get the latest headlines sent to your inbox!