Albania at the 2018 Winter Olympics

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Albania at the
2018 Winter Olympics
Flag of Albania.svg
Flag of Albania
IOC code ALB
NOC Albanian National Olympic Committee
Website nocalbania.org.al  (in Albanian)
in Pyeongchang, South Korea
9–25 February 2018
Competitors2 (1 man and 1 woman) in 1 sport
Flag bearer Suela Mëhilli
Medals
Gold
0
Silver
0
Bronze
0
Total
0
Winter Olympics appearances (overview)

Albania competed at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, which were held from 9 to 25 February 2018. The country's participation in Paris marked its fourth appearance at the Winter Olympics since its debut in 2006. The athlete delegation of the country was composed of two people: Erjon Tola and Suela Mëhilli in alpine skiing. The nation had aimed for a delegation of three or four athletes.

Contents

Mëhilli first competed in the women's giant slalom though placed 53rd, and then did not finish in the Women's slalom. Two days later, Tola competed in the men's giant slalom and placed 47th. He then placed 36th in the men's slalom. Thus, Albania has yet to win a Winter Olympic medal.

Background

The 2018 Winter Olympics were held in Pyeongchang, South Korea, from 9 to 25 February 2018. [1] This edition marked the nation's fourth appearance at the Winter Olympics since its debut at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy. The nation had never won a medal at the Winter Olympics, with its best performance coming from alpine skier Erjon Tola placing 35th in the men's giant slalom at the 2006 Winter Games. [2]

Delegation and ceremonies

Before the games, three athletes, namely Tola, Suela Mëhilli and Marsel Biçoku received Olympic scholarships for the preparations for the 2018 Winter Games. The Albanian National Olympic Committee aimed for the delegation to include either three or four athletes for the Winter Games, citing it would be their biggest Winter Olympic delegation. Tola had competed for the nation since the nation's debut while Mëhilli had competed at the last games. [3] The final delegation was composed of two athletes, Tola and Mëhilli and their coach Marko Teroni. [4] They trained in Italy as the nation does not have proper training skiing facilities. [5]

The Albanian delegation came in 48th out of the 91 National Olympic Committees in the 2018 Winter Olympics Parade of Nations within the opening ceremony. [6] Mëhilli solely held the flag for the delegation in the parade. [7] At the closing ceremony, she held the flag again. [8]

Competitors

List of Albanian competitors at the 2018 Winter Olympics
SportMenWomenTotal
Alpine skiing 112
Total112

Alpine skiing

Albania qualified two alpine skiers, one male and one female. [9]

The alpine skiing events were held at the Yongpyong Alpine Centre. Mëhilli competed first for the nation, competing in the women's giant slalom on 15 February. Her first run recorded a time of 1:24.67 while her second was at 1:21.90. With a combined time of 2:46.57 she placed 53rd in the event, while the winner was Mikaela Shiffrin of the United States with a combined time of 2:20.02. [10] She then competed in the women's slalom the following day though did not finish her first run and thus did not have a second run. The winner of the event was Frida Hansdotter of Sweden in a time of 1:38.63. [11]

Two days later, Tola competed in the men's giant slalom. His first run recorded a time of 1:16.86 while his second run was in a time of 1:16.77. With a combined time of 2:33.63 she placed 47th in the event, while Marcel Hirscher of Austria won the event with a combined time of 2:18.04. [12] He then competed in the men's slalom on 22 February, recording a time of 58.00 seconds for his first run and 59.06 seconds for his second run. With a combined time of 1:57.06 he placed 36th while André Myhrer of Sweden won with a combined time of 1:38.99. [13]

Alpine skiing summary
AthleteEventRun 1Run 2Total
TimeRankTimeRankTimeRank
Erjon Tola Men's giant slalom 1:16.86541:16.77492:33.6347
Men's slalom 58.004559.06351:57.0636
Suela Mëhilli Women's giant slalom 1:24.67601:21.90542:46.5753
Women's slalom DNF

See also

References

  1. ↑ "PyeongChang 2018". International Olympic Committee . Archived from the original on 22 March 2025. Retrieved 17 June 2025.
  2. ↑ "Albania Overview". Olympedia . Archived from the original on 3 February 2025. Retrieved 17 June 2025.
  3. ↑ Palmer, Dan (1 January 2017). "Albanian NOC backs three skiers in build-up to Pyeongchang 2018". Inside the Games . Archived from the original on 12 January 2025. Retrieved 17 June 2025.
  4. ↑ "Albania is represented by two skiers in Winter Olympics 2018". Oculus News. 10 February 2018. Archived from the original on 11 February 2018. Retrieved 17 June 2025.
  5. ↑ "Two Italy-based skiers represent Albania at South Korea's Winter Olympics". Tirana Times . 6 February 2018. Archived from the original on 17 June 2025. Retrieved 17 June 2025.
  6. ↑ "Opening Ceremony Flagbearers - Olympic Winter Games, PyeongChang 2018" (PDF). International Olympic Committee . 9 February 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 February 2018. Retrieved 17 June 2025.
  7. ↑ Dunphy, Mark (10 February 2018). "What every country wore to the 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony". Boston.com . Archived from the original on 2 January 2024. Retrieved 17 June 2025.
  8. ↑ "Closing Ceremony Flagbearers - Olympic Winter Games, PyeongChang 2018" (PDF). International Olympic Committee . Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 April 2023. Retrieved 17 June 2025.
  9. ↑ "Alpine Skiing Quota List for Olympic Games 2018". International Ski Federation. 12 December 2017. Archived from the original on 9 February 2018. Retrieved 16 December 2017.
  10. ↑ "Giant Slalom, Women". Olympedia . Archived from the original on 31 May 2025. Retrieved 17 June 2025.
  11. ↑ "Slalom, Women". Olympedia . Archived from the original on 19 January 2025. Retrieved 17 June 2025.
  12. ↑ "Giant Slalom, Men". Olympedia . Archived from the original on 10 February 2025. Retrieved 17 June 2025.
  13. ↑ "Slalom, Men". Olympedia . Archived from the original on 19 January 2025. Retrieved 17 June 2025.
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