Cook Islands at the 2020 Summer Olympics

Cook Islands at the 2020 Summer Olympics
Flag of the Cook Islands
IOC code	COK
NOC	Cook Islands Sports and National Olympic Committee
Website	www.oceaniasport.com/cookis
in Tokyo, Japan July 23, 2021 (2021-07-23) – August 8, 2021 (2021-08-08)
Competitors	6 in 3 [1] sports
Flag bearers (opening)	Wesley Roberts Kirsten Fisher-Marsters
Flag bearer (closing)	N/A
Officials	John Paul Wilson (Chef de Mission) [1]
Medals	Gold 0 Silver 0 Bronze 0 Total 0
Summer Olympics appearances (overview)
1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024

The Cook Islands competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Originally scheduled to take place from 24 July to 9 August 2020, the Games were postponed to 23 July to 8 August 2021, because of the COVID-19 pandemic. It was the nation's ninth consecutive appearance at the Summer Olympics. The Cook Islands sent their first delegation to the Olympics at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea. In the Games, the country sent six athletes to the Olympics across three sports. They were Alex Beddoes in athletics, Jane Nicholas, Kohl Horton, and Jade Tierney in canoeing, and Wesley Roberts and Kirsten Fisher-Marsters in swimming. Roberts and Fisher-Marsters were the flagbearers at the opening ceremony, and there were no flagbearers at the closing ceremony. The Cook Islands did not win any medals during the Tokyo Olympics.

Background

In 1986, the Cook Islands Sports and National Olympic Committee was recognised by the International Olympic Committee. ^[2] The Cook Islands sent their first delegation to the Olympics at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea. Since 1988, the Cook Islands has sent delegations to all Summer Olympic games. ^[3]

At the Games, six athletes competed for the Cook Islands. They competed across three sports (athletics, canoeing, and swimming). As of the 2020 Olympics, there has not been a Cook Islander who has won a medal at the Olympics. ^[4]

The 2020 Summer Olympics were held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo. ^[5] The Cook Islands sent a delegation of six athletes. ^[6] Roberts and Fisher-Marsters were the flagbearers at the opening ceremony. ^[7] No athletes from the Cook Islands were present for the closing ceremony due to COVID-19 related protocols that required athletes to leave Japan within 48 hours from completion of their final event. ^{[8] [9]}

Competitors

The following is the list of number of competitors in the Games.

Sport	Men	Women	Total
Athletics	1	0	1
Canoeing	1	2	3
Swimming	1	1	2
Total	3	3	6

Athletics

Main articles: Athletics at the 2020 Summer Olympics and Athletics at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Qualification

The Cook Islands received a universality slot from the IAAF to send a male track and field athlete to the Olympics. ^[10] The Cook Islands were represented by one male athlete at the 2020 Summer Olympics in athletics: Alex Beddoes in the men's 800 metres run. ^[11] Beddoes was making his second Olympic appearance, having previously represented the Cook Islands at the 2016 Summer Olympics. ^[12] On 31 July, he participated in the first round of the men's 800 metres race, and was drawn into heat two. He finished the race in 1:47.26 seconds, seventh out of eight competitors in his heat, and failed to advance to the semi-finals. ^[13] The gold medal was eventually won in 1:45.33 by Emmanuel Korir of Kenya; the silver was won by Ferguson Rotich of Kenya, and the bronze was earned by Patryk Dobek of Poland. ^[13]

Key

• Note–Ranks given for track events are within the athlete's heat only
• NR = National record
• Q = Qualified

Track & road events

Athlete	Event	Heats		Semifinal		Final
		Result	Rank	Result	Rank	Result	Rank
Alex Beddoes	Men's 800 m	1:47.26 NR	7	Did not advance

Canoeing

Main articles: Canoeing at the 2020 Summer Olympics and Canoeing at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Qualification

Slalom

The Cook Islands qualified one canoeist in the women's K-1 class, Jane Nicholas, by finishing as the 16th ranked eligible NOC at the 2019 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships in La Seu d'Urgell, Spain. ^[14]

Athlete	Event	Preliminary						Semifinal		Final
		Run 1	Rank	Run 2	Rank	Best	Rank	Time	Rank	Time	Rank
Jane Nicholas	Women's C-1	151.95	19	205.74	22	151.95	21	Did not advance
	Women's K-1	150.17	23	120.10	20	120.10	21 Q	144.84	22	Did not advance

Sprint

Canoeists from the Cook Islands qualified two boats in each of the following distances for the Games through the 2020 Oceania Championships in Penrith, New South Wales. ^[15]

Athlete	Event	Heats		Quarterfinals		Semifinals		Final
		Time	Rank	Time	Rank	Time	Rank	Time	Rank
Kohl Horton	Men's K-1 200 m	40.061	4 QF	DNF		Did not advance
	Men's K-1 1000 m	4:24.679	6 QF	4:39.138	6	Did not advance
Jade Tierney	Women's K-1 200 m	48.271	6 QF	49.290	8	Did not advance

Qualification Legend: FA = Qualify to final A (medal); FB = Qualify to final B (non-medal)

Swimming

Main articles: Swimming at the 2020 Summer Olympics and Swimming at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Qualification

Cook Islands qualified two swimmers in three events. ^[16]

Athlete	Event	Heat		Semifinal		Final
		Time	Rank	Time	Rank	Time	Rank
Wesley Roberts	Men's 200 m freestyle	1:50.41	37	Did not advance
	Men's 400 m freestyle	3:55.65	30	—		Did not advance
Kirsten Fisher-Marsters	Women's 100 m breaststroke	1:13.98	36	Did not advance

References

1. "Team Cook Islands unfazed by growing Covid cases in Japan". 13 July 2021. Retrieved 14 July 2021.
2. "Cook Islands". International Olympic Committee . Retrieved 14 January 2025.
3. "Olympedia – Cook Islands (COK)". www.olympedia.org. Retrieved 2025-01-14.
4. "Cook Islands Sports and National Olympic Committee (CISNOC) | ONOC". www.oceanianoc.org. Retrieved 2025-01-14.
5. "Joint Statement from the International Olympic Committee and the Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee". Olympics. 24 March 2020. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
6. "Pacific Island nations on the rise at Paris 2024". World Aquatics. 2024-07-28. Retrieved 2025-01-14.
7. "Tokyo-2020-Opening-Ceremony-Flag-bearers-Marching-order.pdf" (PDF). International Olympic Committee . Archived from the original (PDF) on 2024-08-05. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
8. "Tokyo-2020-Closing-Ceremony-Flag-bearers.pdf" (PDF). stillmed.olympics.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2024-03-24. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
9. Bruton, Michelle (8 August 2021). "Closing Ceremony Tokyo 2021: Highlights, Flag Bearers and More". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 7 July 2023.
10. "Road to Olympic Games 2020". World Athletics . Retrieved 11 June 2021.
11. "Olympedia – Cook Islands at the 2020 Summer Olympics". www.olympedia.org. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
12. "Olympedia – Alex Beddoes". www.olympedia.org. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
13. "Olympedia – 800 metres, Men". www.olympedia.org. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
14. Canoe Slalom Quota Allocation
15. "Kayakers eye Olympic debut". cookislandsnews.com. 17 June 2021. Retrieved 14 July 2021.
16. "National coach teaches swimming to teachers". cookislandsnews.com. 30 June 2021. Retrieved 14 July 2021.