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'Shirtless Tongan' Pita Taufatofua leads country during Parade of Nations

Ryan Quigley

NBC Sports

Tags: Olympics, NBC Olympics
Pita Taufatofua led Tonga during the Parade of Nations at the Opening Ceremony. (Hannah Mckay - Pool/Getty Images)

Pita Taufatofua, otherwise known simply as the 'Shirtless Tongan' by many after serving as Tonga's flagbearer at the Rio Olympics, led Tonga during the Parade of Nations once again for the Tokyo Olympics.

Taufatofua, 37, will be competing in taekwondo again for Tonga after competing in the Olympic taekwondo competition in 2016.

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Tonga's flag bearers Malia Paseka (L) and Pita Taufatofua lead the delegation during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games opening ceremony's parade of athletes, at the Olympic Stadium in Tokyo on July 23, 2021.

Pita Taufatofua leads Tonga during the Parade of Nations.

HANNAH MCKAY/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

Taufatofua also served as Tonga's flagbearer during the PyeongChang Olympics in 2018, when he competed in cross-country skiing. More recently, he attempted to qualify for kayaking during the Oceania Olympic qualifier.

This summer's Olympic taekwondo competition begins Friday, July 23 and runs through Tuesday, July 27.

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