| Iceland at the 2011 World Aquatics Championships | |
|---|---|
 | |
| FINA code | ISL |
| National federation | Sundsamband Íslands |
| Website | www |
| in Shanghai, China | |
| Competitors | 7 in 1 sports |
| Medals Ranked -th |
|
| World Aquatics Championships appearances | |
Iceland competed at the 2011 World Aquatics Championships in Shanghai, China between July 16 and 31, 2011.
Iceland qualified 7 swimmers. [1]
| Athlete | Event | Heats | Semifinals | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | ||
| Anton Sveinn McKee | Men's 800m Freestyle | 8:17.83 | 39 | did not advance | |||
| Jakob Sveinsson | Men's 100m Breaststroke | 1:01.51 | 27 | did not advance | |||
| Men's 200m Breaststroke | 2:13.84 | 25 | did not advance | ||||
| Athlete | Event | Heats | Semifinals | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | ||
| Ragnheiður Ragnarsdóttir | Women's 50m Freestyle | 25.57 | 21 | did not advance | |||
| Women's 100m Freestyle | 56.28 | 34 | did not advance | ||||
| Ingibjörg Kristín Jónsdóttir | Women's 50m Backstroke | 29.66 | 35 | did not advance | |||
| Eygló Ósk Gústafsdóttir | Women's 200m Backstroke | 2:15.16 | 30 | did not advance | |||
| Erla Dögg Haraldsdóttir | Women's 50m Breaststroke | 32.10 | 17 | did not advance | |||
| Women's 200m IM | 2:21.86 | 49 | did not advance | ||||
| Hrafnhildur Lúthersdóttir | Women's 100m Breaststroke | 1:09.82 | 26 | did not advance | |||
| Women's 200m IM | 2:18.20 | 26 | did not advance | ||||
Iceland is a Nordic island country between the North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the region's westernmost and most sparsely populated country. Its capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which is home to about 36% of the country's roughly 380,000 residents. The official language of the country is Icelandic. Iceland is on a rift between tectonic plates, and its geologic activity includes geysers and frequent volcanic eruptions. The interior consists of a volcanic plateau with sand and lava fields, mountains and glaciers, and many glacial rivers flow to the sea through the lowlands. Iceland is warmed by the Gulf Stream and has a temperate climate, despite a latitude just south of the Arctic Circle. Its latitude and marine influence keep summers chilly, and most of its islands have a polar climate.
Reykjavík is the capital of, and largest city in Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói Bay. With a latitude of 64°08′ N, the city is the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. Reykjavík has a population of around 140,000 as of 2023. The Capital Region has a population of around 248,000.
The economy of Iceland is small and subject to high volatility. In 2011, gross domestic product was US$12 billion, but by 2018 it had increased to a nominal GDP of US$27 billion. With a population of 387,000, this is $55,000 per capita, based on purchasing power parity (PPP) estimates. The 2008–2011 Icelandic financial crisis produced a decline in GDP and employment, which has since been reversed entirely by a recovery aided by a tourism boom starting in 2010. Tourism accounted for more than 10% of Iceland's GDP in 2017. After a period of robust growth, Iceland's economy is slowing down according to an economic outlook for the years 2018–2020 published by Arion Research in April 2018.
Iceland's defence forces consist of the Icelandic Coast Guard, which patrols Icelandic waters and monitors its airspace, and other services such as the National Commissioner's National Security and the Special Unit of the National Police Commissioner. Iceland maintains no standing army, the only NATO member for which this is the case.
Iceland took control of its foreign affairs in 1918 when it became a sovereign country, the Kingdom of Iceland, in a personal union with the King of Denmark. As a fully independent state, Iceland could have joined the League of Nations in 1920, but chose not to do so for cost reasons. It negotiated with Denmark to initially carry out most of its foreign relations, while maintaining full control. Denmark appointed a diplomatic envoy (Ambassador) to Iceland in 1919 and Iceland reciprocated in 1920, opening an embassy in Copenhagen. Iceland established its own Foreign Service in April 1940 when Denmark became occupied by Nazi Germany and ties between the two countries were severed. The Republic of Iceland was founded in 1944. The Icelandic foreign service grew slowly in the post-WWII period, but increased rapidly after the mid-1990s. Iceland's closest relations are with the Nordic states, the European Union and the United States. Iceland has been a member of the United Nations since 1946. Iceland was a founding member of the World Bank in 1946 and NATO in 1949. In terms of European integration, Iceland was a founding member of the OEEC in 1948 and the Nordic Council in 1952, it joined EFTA in 1970, was a founding member of the CSCE in 1973 and the EEA in 1992 and joined Schengen in 1996.
Erik Thorvaldsson, known as Erik the Red, was a Norse explorer, described in medieval and Icelandic saga sources as having founded the first European settlement in Greenland. Erik most likely earned the epithet "the Red" due to the color of his hair and beard. According to Icelandic sagas, Erik was born in the Jæren district of Rogaland, Norway, as the son of Thorvald Asvaldsson; to which Thorvald would later be banished from Norway, and would sail west to Iceland with Erik and his family. During Erik's life in Iceland, he married Þjódhild Jorundsdottir and would have four children, with one of Erik's sons being the well-known Icelandic explorer Leif Erikson. Around the year of 982, Erik was exiled from Iceland for three years, during which time he explored Greenland, eventually culminating in his founding of the first successful European settlement on the island. Erik would later die there around 1003 CE during a winter epidemic.
Akureyri is a town in northern Iceland, the country's fifth most populous municipality and the largest outside the Capital Region. The municipality includes the town's neighbourhood at the head of Eyjafjörður and two farther islands: Hrísey at the mouth of Eyjafjörður and Grímsey off the coast.
The króna or krona is the currency of Iceland. One króna was formerly divided into 100 eyrir.
Icelandair is the flag carrier of Iceland, with its corporate head office on the property of Reykjavík Airport in the capital city Reykjavík. It is part of the Icelandair Group and operates to destinations on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean from its main hub at Keflavík International Airport. The geographical position of Iceland is convenient for one-stop transatlantic flights via the Atlantic Bridge route, which is one pillar of the airline's business strategy, along with traffic to, from, and within the country.
Iceland is heavily integrated into the European Union via the Agreement on the European Economic Area and the Schengen Agreement, despite its status as a non-EU member state. Iceland applied for membership in 2009. The Minister for Foreign Affairs sent a letter in 2015 that ended the application process.
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Iceland has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 36 times since its debut in 1986, missing only two contests since then, in 1998 and 2002, when prevented from competing due to finishing outside qualification places the preceding years. The country's best result is second place, which it achieved with "All Out of Luck" by Selma in 1999 and "Is It True?" by Yohanna in 2009. The Icelandic participant broadcaster in the contest is Ríkisútvarpið (RÚV), which select its entrant with the national competition Söngvakeppnin.
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The Icelandic financial crisis was a major economic and political event in Iceland between 2008 and 2010. It involved the default of all three of the country's major privately owned commercial banks in late 2008, following problems in refinancing their short-term debt and a run on deposits in the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Relative to the size of its economy, Iceland's systemic banking collapse was the largest of any country in economic history. The crisis led to a severe recession and the 2009 Icelandic financial crisis protests.
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