Claudia María Poll Ahrens is a Costa Rican / Nicaraguan former swimmer who competed in the 200 m to 800 m freestyle events. She is Costa Rica's only Olympic gold-medalist, having won the country's first Olympic gold medals at the 1996 Olympics in the 200 meter freestyle. She is a multiple national record holder in the freestyle events.
Puerto Rico competed in the 2008 Summer Olympics which was held in Beijing, People's Republic of China from August 8 to August 24, 2008. The American territory with a population of four million people qualified 22 athletes in eight different sports. The appearance of the Puerto Rican delegation at the Beijing Olympics marked the commonwealth's sixteenth consecutive appearance at the Summer Olympics, and its twenty-second appearance at any Olympic Games, since its debut at the 1948 Summer Olympics in London, England. Of its competitors participating in events that involve progression by heats, six athletes advanced at least one round in their events, and two advanced at least two rounds, with Asunción Ocasio almost medaling bronze in taekwondo. However, there were no Puerto Rican medalists at the Beijing Olympics. McWilliams Arroyo, a boxer, bore Puerto Rico's flag at the ceremonies.
Suriname sent a delegation of four people to compete at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China: two athletes (Jurgen Themen and Kirsten Nieuwendam and two swimmers who participated in four distinct events. The appearance of Suriname at Beijing marked its tenth Olympic appearance, which included every Olympic games since the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City and excluded the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow. Its four athletes did not advance past the first round in each of their events. The Surinamese flag bearer in Beijing was not an athlete, but Anthony Nesty, the only medalist in Surinamese history and the nation's Olympic swimming coach.
Christine Mailliet is a Luxembourgian swimmer, who specialized in sprint freestyle and butterfly events. She is a multiple-time Luxembourgish record holder in both long and short course freestyle and butterfly.
Stanislau Anatolievich Neviarouski is a Belarusian former swimmer, who specialized in sprint and relay freestyle events. He is a two-time Olympian, and a multiple-time Belarusian record holder for the sprint freestyle events.
Senele Dlamini is a Swazi swimmer, who specialized in freestyle and backstroke events. She represented her nation Swaziland at the 2008 Summer Olympics, finishing among the top 65 swimmers in the 50 m freestyle.
Loren Yamilé Bahamonde Cabello is an Ecuadorian swimmer, who specialized in freestyle and butterfly events. She represented her nation Ecuador at the 2008 Summer Olympics, and has won a career total of three bronze medals in a major international competition, spanning the two editions of the South American Games. Moreover, she collected a total of sixteen national records in three freestyle events.
Natasha Moodie is a Jamaican competitive swimmer, who specialized in sprint freestyle events. She was a three-time national record holder and NCAA All-American champion, and a member of the Jamaican team at the 2008 Summer Olympics. While studying kinesiology at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Moodie trained and swam for the Michigan Wolverines team under head coach Jim Richardson. She is a member of the award-winning Team Rogers in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Anna-Liza Mopio-Jane is a Papua New Guinean swimmer, who specialized in sprint freestyle events. She represented her nation Papua New Guinea at the 2008 Summer Olympics, swimming in the 50 m freestyle. Before her retirement from competitive swimming career in 2012, Mopio-Jane trained for Chandler Swim Club in her current residence Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, under the tutelage of head coach Drew McGregor.
Elisabeth Nikiema is a Burkinabé swimmer, who specialized in sprint freestyle events. She has competed for her country at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China.
Ragnheiður Ragnarsdóttir, also known as Ragga Ragnars is an Icelandic actress and former swimmer, who specialised in sprint freestyle events. She is a multiple-time Icelandic record holder in both long and short course freestyle. After retiring from swimming, Ragnheiður studied acting and played the role of Gunnhild on the TV series Vikings from 2018 to 2020.
Razan Taha is a Jordanian swimmer, who specialized in sprint freestyle events. She represented her nation Jordan at the 2008 Summer Olympics, placing herself among the top 70 swimmers in the 50 m freestyle.
Eva Lehtonen is a Finnish competition swimmer who specialized in long-distance freestyle events. Lehtonen holds five Finnish records in the same stroke, including a 1500 m freestyle record that dated back to 1983, before she set a mark of 17:18.16 at the 2007 USA Junior National Meet in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Melissa Jane Corfe is a South African swimmer, who specialised in freestyle and backstroke events. She is a multiple-time South African champion and record holder for her respective events. Corfe represented her nation South Africa at the 2008 Summer Olympics, and has won a total of five medals, including three golds in the women's freestyle, at the 2007 All-Africa Games in Algiers, Algeria. She also set two national records, as a member of the South African swimming team, in the freestyle and medley relays, at the 2008 FINA World Short Course Championships in Manchester, England.
Anastasiya Sergeyevna Aksenova is a Russian swimmer, who specialized in sprint freestyle events. She represented her nation Russia in a sprint freestyle swimming double at the 2008 Summer Olympics, and has also claimed multiple Russian championship titles and national records in both the individual and relay freestyle events. Aksenova was also a member of Suduroyar Svimjifelag in Vagur, Faroe Islands, under the tutelage of head coach Jon Bjarnason.
Sharon Paola Fajardo Sierra is a Honduran swimmer, who specialized in sprint freestyle events. She represented her nation Honduras at the 2008 Summer Olympics, and has owned a Honduran record each in both 50 and 100 m freestyle, which were eventually set by Julimar Avila in 2013.
Sandra Kazíková is a Czech former swimmer, who specialized in sprint freestyle events. She posted a long-course national record time of 25.99 seconds, by winning the 50 m freestyle at the 2008 Czech Winter Championships in Pardubice. Kazikova is also a member of the swimming team for Slavia VŠ Plzeň, and is coached and trained by Ivana Felgrova.
Fernando Eurico de Barros Oliveira da Fonseca e Costa is a Portuguese former swimmer, who specialized in long-distance freestyle events. He is a two-time Olympian, and currently holds the Portuguese record in the 1500 m freestyle from the 2007 Summer Universiade in Bangkok, Thailand.
Chang Hee-jin is a South Korean former swimmer, who specialized in sprint freestyle events. She is a two-time Olympian, and a three-time All-American swimmer in the same stroke. Chang is also a former varsity swimmer for the Texas Longhorns, and a graduate of political science at the University of Texas in Austin, Texas. Prior to her time with the Longhorns, she attended Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, where she was a 4-year varsity athlete and a formerly held various NEPSAC swimming records.
Estebán Blanco Uhlenhaut is a Costa Rican former swimmer, who specialized in sprint freestyle events. Representing Costa Rica at the 2000 Summer Olympics, he currently holds a national record in the 50 m freestyle that stood for more than a decade.
Costa Rica 
