For the wellness of empire: political uses of sport in Portu- guese Guinea (1949-1960)

Abstract

This study examines the meanings attributed to sports in Portuguese Guinea between the years 1949 (when Sarmento Rodrigues had left the provincial government) and 1961 (when the colonial conflicts became clear). We investigate the political uses of the practice, the representations that were forged from the interpretation of certain assumptions on the part of the governmental administration. We draw upon newspapers published in the period, in which we note that the positions on sports were influenced by “Lusotropicalismo” as a discursive issue to legitimize maintaining colonialism.