Cynthia Bolingo

{{Short description|Belgian sprinter (born 1993)}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2015}}

{{Infobox sportsperson

| name = Cynthia Bolingo

| image = Cynthia Bolingo 2018 ECh.jpg

| caption = Bolingo at the 2018 European Championships in Berlin

| fullname = Cynthia Maduengele Bolingo Mbongo

| nickname =

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1993|1|12|df=yes}}

| birth_place = Uccle, Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium

| death_date =

| death_place =

| height = 1.65 m

| weight = 54 kg

| sport = Athletics

| event = 100 m, 200 m, 400m

| club = CABW

| coach = Jean Pecher (–2012)
Carole Bam (2012–2024)
Gary Evans(2024-

|

| show-medals = yes

| medaltemplates =

{{MedalSport|Women's athletics}}

{{Medal|Country|{{BEL}}}}

{{MedalCompetition|European Championships}}

{{MedalBronze|2024 Rome|4×400 m relay}}

{{MedalCompetition|European Indoor Championships}}

{{MedalSilver|2019 Glasgow|400 m}}

{{Medal|Competition|European Games}}

{{Medal|Bronze|2023 Kraków-Małopolska|4×400 m mixed}}

}}

Cynthia Maduengele Bolingo Mbongo (born 12 January 1993),{{World Athletics}} known as Cynthia Bolingo, is a Belgian sprinter. In a career beset with injuries, she won the silver medal in the 400 metres at the 2019 European Athletics Indoor Championships and the bronze medal in the 4 x 400 metres at the 2024 European Athletics Championships.

Bolingo competed in the 200 metres at the 2015 World Championships in Beijing without advancing from the first round.

A few weeks after winning that silver medal in the 400 metres at the 2019 European Athletics Indoor Championships in Glasgow, Bolingo felt a pain in her Achilles that got worse and worse and finally forced her to scrap the entire 2019 season. It would be 18 months before she ran in competition again.{{cite news |title=After a brutally painful year, Bolingo learning to live in the moment |url=https://worldathletics.org/news/feature/cynthia-bolingo-belgium-sprints |access-date=28 August 2024 |publisher=World Athletics |date=12 November 2020}}

On 1 June 2021, she broke the Belgian record on the 400 metres at a meeting in Montreuil, France; with a time of 50 seconds and 75 hundreds, she improved upon the 16-year-old time of 51 seconds 45 hundreds by Kim Gevaert, and qualified to compete at the 2020 Olympics.{{cite news |title=Cynthia Bolingo verpulvert Belgisch record op 400 meter: "Een bevrijding" |url=https://sporza.be/nl/2021/06/01/cynthia-bolingo-verpulvert-belgisch-record-op-400-meter-een-bevrijding~1622574573322/ |accessdate=2 June 2021 |work=Sporza |date=1 June 2021 |language=Dutch}} A month later, she broke it again, lowering it to 50.29 seconds.{{cite news|title= Bolingo and Vanderelst break Belgian records in Heusden|url= https://european-athletics.com/news/bolingo-and-vanderelst-break-belgian-records-in-heusden|date=July 5, 2021|work=European Athletics|language=English}} But then, in the final run-up for the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, she sustained a hamstring injury in training camp in Mito, Japan, making it impossible for her to run at the Olympics.{{cite news|title= Cynthia Bolingo revient sur son forfait à Tokyo: "C'est derrière moi mais je n'oublie pas"|url= https://www.teambelgium.be/fr/nouvelles/cynthia-bolingo-revient-sur-son-forfait-a-tokyo-cest-derriere-moi-mais-je-noublie-pas|date=18 November 2021|access-date=28 July 2024|publisher=Belgian Olympic and Interfederal Committee|language=French}}

On 22 August 2023 she qualified for the 400m final of the world championships by setting a time of 49 s 96 in the semi-final, improving her Belgian record and becoming the first Belgian to reach the final of a 400 metres at the 2023 World Championships in Budapest.

In June 2024, she was on the Belgian 4 x 400 metres women's relay team that won a bronze medal at the European Athletics Championships.{{cite web | url=https://www.belganewsagency.eu/gold-and-bronze-for-belgian-men-and-women-in-4x400m-relay | title=Gold and bronze for Belgian men and women in 4x400m relay | publisher=Belga (news agency) |date=12 June 2024 | accessdate=13 June 2024 |language=French}} Early July she again sustained an injury during a 400m race.{{cite web | url=https://www.belganewsagency.eu/olympics-cynthia-bolingo-injured-after-400m-race-in-italy | title=Olympics: Cynthia Bolingo injured in 400m race in Italy | publisher=Belga (news agency) |date=18 July 2024 | access-date=28 August 2024}} The injury prevented her from running in both the 4x400 women's and mixed relays at the 2024 Summer Olympics denting Belgian teams's chances for a medal. In the only race she did compete in at the Olympics, the women's 400 metres, an obviously not fit Bolingo finished a disappointing 42nd in the heats.{{cite web | url=https://worldathletics.org/competitions/olympic-games/paris24/results/women/400-metres/heats/summary | title=400 METRES WOMEN Heats | publisher=World Athletics | access-date=28 August 2024}}