Pontal, Beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Pontal is a beach on the western edge of Rio de Janeiro, running along the Atlantic coast between the far end of Recreio Beach and the Itapua rock formation. It is wider than many other Rio beaches, with lifeguard stations, showers, restrooms, and kiosks that rent out umbrellas and chairs.

Pontal's modern history began in the 1920s, when Californian Joseph Wesley Finch bought land here and sold lots from 1921 until his death in 1934. Sales stalled until broker Sérgio Castro set up a stand at Pontal, and in 1953 José Otacílio Saboya Ribeiro's urbanisation plan for Recreio dos Bandeirantes was launched. Pontal later hosted the 2016 Olympic race walk and cycling time trial events.

The name Pontal, meaning "point" in Portuguese, refers to the small peninsula that juts out where the beach sits. In the 1940s the broker Sérgio Castro set up his sales stand at Pontal to sell lots of the Recreio subdivision, and the wooden shed he used was later sold and turned into a well-known restaurant.

Pontal lies at the western end of Recreio dos Bandeirantes, where Avenida Lúcio Costa meets Estrada do Pontal. The 2016 Olympic race walk and time trial courses started and finished near the Avenida Lúcio Costa roundabout and at Tim Maia Square. The beach is reached by car along Avenida Lúcio Costa; the sand is open at all times.

Pontal was a temporary venue of the 2016 Summer Olympics: the cycling time trials started at Tim Maia Square on Estrada do Pontal and finished on Avenida Lúcio Costa, and the race walk events ran laps along the same avenues. The men's time trial covered 54.5 km in two laps of the 29.8 km Grumari circuit.