Marshall Islands at the 2016 Summer Olympics

The Marshall Islands competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 5 to 21 August 2016. This was the nation's third consecutive appearance at the Summer Olympics.

Marshall Islands at the
2016 Summer Olympics
IOC codeMHL
NOCMarshall Islands National Olympic Committee
Websitewww.oceaniasport.com/marshalls
in Rio de Janeiro
Competitors5 in 3 sports
Flag bearerMathlynn Sasser[1]
Medals
Gold
0
Silver
0
Bronze
0
Total
0
Summer Olympics appearances (overview)

The Marshall Islands Olympic delegation included five athletes, competing only in athletics, swimming, and weightlifting.[2] Among them were freestyle swimmer Giordan Harris, the lone returning Olympian from London 2012, and weightlifter Mathlynn Sasser (women's 58 kg), who led the contingent as the Marshall Islands flag bearer in the opening ceremony.[3] The Marshall Islands made their Olympic debut in weightlifting and had one of their largest Olympic delegations, matching their size in 2008. The delegation, however, failed to win their first-ever Olympic medal.

History

The Marshall Islands are a Micronesian island nation, located in the western Pacific Ocean midway between Hawaii and Australia. As of 2016 the nation had a population of approximately 53,000. The islands were under Spain's influence until their annexation by Germany in 1885. Japan occupied the Islands during World War I and formally annexed them as part of its postwar South Pacific Mandate. The Marshall Islands were placed under United States control in 1944. The islands granted independence in 1986 under a Compact of Free Association with the United States.[4][5][6]

The Marshall Islands created its National Olympic Committee in 2001 and gained International Olympic Committee (IOC) recognition at their 9 February 2006 meeting.[6] The addition of the Marshall Islands brought the total number of IOC-recognized National Olympic Committees to 203 at the time of admission.[5][6]

Athletics
Main articles: Athletics at the 2016 Summer Olympics and Athletics at the 2016 Summer Olympics – Qualification

The Marshall Islands received universality slots from the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) to send one male, and one female athlete, to the 2016 Summer Olympics.[7][8] Richson Simeon represented the Marshall Islands in the men's 100 meter competition, and Mariana Cress represented the nation in the women's 100 meter.[9]

Both athletes failed to advance to their next rounds, with Simeon placing eighth in his heat with a time of 11:81, and Cress placing sixth with a time of 13:20. Jamaica and the United States won medals in both competitions, and Canada received one for the men's event.[10][11]

Key
  • Note–Ranks given for track events are within the athlete's heat only
  • Q = Qualified for the next round
  • q = Qualified for the next round as a fastest loser or, in field events, by position without achieving the qualifying target
  • NR = National record
  • N/A = Round not applicable for the event
  • Bye = Athlete not required to compete in round
Track & road events
Athlete Event Heat Quarterfinal Semifinal Final
Time Rank Time Rank Time Rank Time Rank
Richson Simeon Men's 100 m 11.81 8 Did not advance[10]
Mariana Cress Women's 100 m 13.20 6 Did not advance[11]

Swimming
Main article: Swimming at the 2016 Summer Olympics
Olympic Aquatics Stadium where Harris and Furgeson competed in the 2016 Summer Olympics

The Marshall Islands received universality invitations from FINA to send one male and one female swimmer to the 2016 Summer Olympics.[12][13][14]

Giordan Harris placed fifth in his heat for the men's 50 meter freestyle with a time of 25:81 and Colleen Furgeson placed first in the women's 50 meter freestyle with a time of 28:16, but both failed to advance to the next round.[15]

The United States won medals in both events, with France receiving a medal for the men's and Denmark and Belarus receiving medals for the women's competitions.[15][16][17]

Athlete Event Heat Semifinal Final
Time Rank Time Rank Time Rank
Giordan Harris Men's 50 m freestyle 25.81 5 Did not advance[15]
Colleen Furgeson Women's 50 m freestyle 28.16 1 Did not advance[16]

Weightlifting
Main articles: Weightlifting at the 2016 Summer Olympics and Weightlifting at the 2016 Summer Olympics – Qualification

The Marshall Islands received an invitation from the Tripartite Commission for Mathlynn Sasser to compete in the women's lightweight category (58 kg), signifying the nation's Olympic weightlifting debut. Sasser had a total score of 199, placing eleventh.[18] The medals in the event went to athletes from Thailand and Chinese Taipei.[19]

Athlete Event Snatch Clean & Jerk Total Rank
Result Rank Result Rank
Mathlynn Sasser Women's −58 kg 87 11 112 10 199 11[18]
gollark: I wrote *exactly* 54% of them.
gollark: That YOU wrote #9‽
gollark: This is not how instincts work. On a related note, make macron.
gollark: It seems that people mostly went for the same set of algorithms then.
gollark: Because it's good?

References
  1. "The Flagbearers for the Rio 2016 Opening Ceremony". International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 5 August 2016.
  2. Sablan, Jerick (29 July 2016). "Palau, Marshalls each send 5 athletes to Rio". Pacific Daily News. Retrieved 25 September 2016.
  3. "Mattie Sasser is lifted by Rio experience". Fox Sports Pulse. 9 August 2016. Retrieved 25 September 2016.
  4. "The World Factbook — Central Intelligence Agency". www.cia.gov. Retrieved 6 March 2017.
  5. "2008 Beijing Summer Olympics | Marshall Islands , Country Profile, Olympic Tradition | Outlook, Medal Count". NBC Olympics. 24 August 2008. Archived from the original on 24 August 2008. Retrieved 6 March 2017.CS1 maint: BOT: original-url status unknown (link)
  6. "About MINOC - Marshall Islands National Olympic Committee - SportsTG". SportsTG. Retrieved 6 March 2017.
  7. "iaaf.org – Top Lists". IAAF. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
  8. "IAAF Games of the XXX Olympiad – Rio 2016 Entry Standards" (PDF). IAAF. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
  9. "Marshallese athletics athletes in the Olympic Games". www.olympiandatabase.com. Retrieved 10 May 2017.
  10. "100 m M - Athletics at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio - Results". www.olympiandatabase.com. Retrieved 10 May 2017.
  11. "100 m W - Athletics at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio - Results". www.olympiandatabase.com. Retrieved 10 May 2017.
  12. "Swimming World Rankings". FINA. Archived from the original on 6 January 2011. Retrieved 14 March 2015.
  13. "Men's Final Entry List" (PDF). FINA. Retrieved 20 July 2016.
  14. "Women's Final Entry List" (PDF). FINA. Retrieved 20 July 2016.
  15. "50 m freestyle M - Swimming at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio - Results". www.olympiandatabase.com. Retrieved 10 May 2017.
  16. "50 m freestyle W - Swimming at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio - Results". www.olympiandatabase.com. Retrieved 10 May 2017.
  17. "Rio 2016 50m freestyle women - Olympic Swimming". International Olympic Committee. 3 May 2017. Retrieved 10 May 2017.
  18. "Mathlynn Sasser - Olympic Facts and Results". www.olympiandatabase.com. Retrieved 10 May 2017.
  19. "Rio 2016 58kg women - Olympic Weightlifting". International Olympic Committee. 25 January 2017. Retrieved 10 May 2017.
  • [MHL/summer/2016/ Marshall Islands at the 2016 Summer Olympics] at SR/Olympics
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