Thailand at the 2002 Winter Olympics

Thailand sent a delegation to compete at the Winter Olympic Games for the first time at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, United States from 8–24 February 2002. The delegation consisted of a single representative, cross-country skier Prawat Nagvajara. He failed to finish the 30 kilometre freestyle mass start and placed 67th in the sprint

Thailand at the 2002 Winter Olympics
IOC code	THA
NOC	National Olympic Committee of Thailand
in Salt Lake City
Competitors	1 in 1 sport
Flag bearer	Prawat Nagvajara
Medals	Gold 0 Silver 0 Bronze 0 Total 0
Winter Olympics appearances (overview)
2002 2006 2010 2014 2018 2022

Background

Thailand first joined Olympic competition at the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki and, except for the boycotted 1980 Summer Olympics, has participated in every Summer Olympics since.[1][2] Prawat Nagvajara qualified for the 2002 Winter Olympics, marking the first time Thailand had a participant in any Winter Olympic Games.[1][3][4] As the only participant for Thailand, he was selected as the flag bearer for the opening ceremony.[5]

Cross-country skiing

Main article: Cross-country skiing at the 2002 Winter Olympics

Prawat Nagvajara was 43 years old at the time of the Salt Lake City Olympics, and was serving as an associate professor of computer and electrical engineering at Drexel University in the United States.[3] After training on roller skis, he hired a coach, former Bulgarian bi-athlete Pepa Miloucheva, in the run-up to the Olympics.[3] On 9 February, Nagvajara took part in the 30 kilometre freestyle mass start, where any competitor lapped by the leader was eliminated, and he failed to finish the race.[3][6] On 19 February, Nagvajara was a competitor in the sprint and finished the qualification race in a time of 4 minutes and 14 seconds, which was good for 67th place.[7] Only the top 16 from the qualifying round were allowed to proceed to the next stage, meaning he was eliminated.[8] He would later go on to represent Thailand at the 2006 Winter Olympics in the 15 kilometres classical event.[9]

Athlete	Event	Qualifying		Quarterfinal		Semifinal		Final
		Total	Rank	Total	Rank	Total	Rank	Total	Rank
Prawat Nagvajara	Sprint	4:14.55	67	Did not advance					67
	30 kilometre freestyle mass start	n/a						Did not finish

See also

• Thailand at the 2002 Asian Games

References

1. "Thailand". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on 9 March 2018. Retrieved 24 July 2018.
2. "54 Boycotted in 1980". The New York Times. 10 May 1984. Archived from the original on 30 January 2018. Retrieved 1 May 2018.(subscription required)
3. Robbins, Liz (8 February 2002). "OLYMPICS; Team Thailand Starts And Ends With Skier". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 8 March 2016. Retrieved 24 July 2018.
4. Aron, Jaime (12 February 2002). "Eleven on their own in Games". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Archived from the original on 23 June 2018. Retrieved 24 July 2018.
5. "List of the 77 delegations in the order they will enter the stadium and the name of their flag bearer" (PDF). International Olympic Committee. Archived (PDF) from the original on 28 February 2017. Retrieved 24 July 2018.
6. "Cross Country Skiing at the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Games: Men's 30 kilometres". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on 6 February 2018. Retrieved 24 July 2018.
7. "Cross Country Skiing at the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Games: Men's Sprint Qualifying Round". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on 23 March 2018. Retrieved 24 July 2018.
8. "Cross Country Skiing at the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Games: Men's Sprint". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on 16 February 2018. Retrieved 24 July 2018.
9. "Thailand at the 2006 Torino Winter Games". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on 17 July 2017. Retrieved 24 July 2018.