Samoa at the 2024 Summer Olympics

Samoa at the 2024 Summer Olympics
IOC code	SAM
NOC	Samoa Association of Sports and National Olympic Committee Inc.
Website	www.sasnoc.com
in Paris, France 26 July 2024 (2024-07-26) – 11 August 2024 (2024-08-11)
Competitors	24 in 9 sports
Flag bearer	Don Opeloge & Iuniarra Sipaia
Medals	Gold 0 Silver 0 Bronze 0 Total 0
Summer Olympics appearances (overview)
1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024

Samoa competed at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris from 26 July to 11 August 2024. It was the nation's eleventh consecutive appearance at the Summer Olympic Games, for four of which it competed under the name Western Samoa.

Competitors

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

Sport	Men	Women	Total
Athletics	1	0	1
Boxing	1	0	1
Canoeing	1	1	2
Judo	1	0	1
Rugby sevens	12	0	12
Sailing	1	1	2
Swimming	1	1	2
Weightlifting	1	1	2
Wrestling	1	0	1
Total	20	4	24

Athletics

Main articles: Athletics at the 2024 Summer Olympics and Athletics at the 2024 Summer Olympics – Qualification

Samoan track and field athletes achieved the entry standards for Paris 2024, either by passing the direct qualifying mark (or time for track and road races) or by world ranking, in the following events (a maximum of three athletes each): ^{[1] [2]}

Key

• Note–Ranks given for track events are within the athlete's heat only
• Q = Qualified for the next round
• q = Qualified for the next round as a fastest loser or, in field events, by position without achieving the qualifying target
• NR = National record
• N/A = Round not applicable for the event
• Bye = Athlete not required to compete in round

Field events

Athlete	Event	Qualification		Final
		Distance	Position	Distance	Position
Alex Rose	Men's discus throw	62.88	12	61.89	12

Boxing

Main articles: Boxing at the 2024 Summer Olympics and Boxing at the 2024 Summer Olympics – Qualification

Samoa entered one boxer into the Olympic tournament. Tokyo 2020 Olympian Ato Plodzicki-Faoagali secured one spot in the heavyweight division, following his gold medal win at the 2023 Pacific Games in Honiara, Solomon Islands.

On 26 July, the team's coach, Lionel Elika Fatupaito, died at the Olympic Village. ^[3]

Athlete	Event	Round of 16	Quarterfinals	Semifinals	Final
		Opposition Result	Opposition Result	Opposition Result	Opposition Result	Rank
Ato Plodzicki-Faoagali	Men's heavyweight	Schelstraete  (BEL) L 0–5	Did not advance

Lionel Elika Fatupaito

Lionel Elika Fatupaito (1964 – July 26, 2024) was a Samoan boxing coach during the Games. He coached Ato Plodzicki-Faoagali. ^{[4] [5]} Fatupaito died from a cardiac arrest on July 26, 2024, ^{[4] [5]} hours before the opening ceremony at the 2024 Summer Olympics. He was 60. ^[6]

The International Boxing Association, gave their condolences to his family, friends and his colleagues. ^{[7] [8] [9]} The Oceania National Olympic Committees and the Samoa Association of Sports and National Olympic Committee also expressed their sadness over Fatupaito's death. ^[10] Ato Plodzicki-Faoagali said that he was saddened about Fatupaito's death in an Instagram post. ^[11]

Canoeing

Main articles: Canoeing at the 2024 Summer Olympics and Canoeing at the 2024 Summer Olympics – Qualification

Sprint

Samoan female canoeists qualified two boats for the Games through the result of highest rank eligible nation's, each in the men's K-1 1000 m and women's K-1 500 metres event at the 2024 Oceania Canoe Sprint Qualifier in Penrith, Australia. ^{[12] [13]}

Athlete	Event	Heats		Quarterfinals		Semifinals		Final
		Time	Rank	Time	Rank	Time	Rank	Time	Rank
Tuva'a Clifton	Men's K-1 1000 m	3:54.49	6	3:55.20	28	Did not advance
Samalulu Clifton	Women's K-1 500 m	2:02.12	7	1:59.64	37	Did not advance

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

Judo

Main articles: Judo at the 2024 Summer Olympics and Judo at the 2024 Summer Olympics – Qualification

Samoa qualified one judoka for the following weight class at the Games. William Tai Tin (men's lightweight, 73 kg) was qualified via continental quota based on Olympic point rankings.

Athlete	Event	Round of 64	Round of 32	Round of 16	Quarterfinals	Semifinals	Repechage	Final / BM
		Opposition Result	Opposition Result	Opposition Result	Opposition Result	Opposition Result	Opposition Result	Opposition Result	Rank
William Tai Tin	Men's −73 kg	Bye	A.T. Mlugu  (TAN) L 10-01	Did not advance

Rugby sevens

Main article: Rugby sevens at the 2024 Summer Olympics

Summary

Team	Event	Pool round				Classification	Classification
		Opposition Result	Opposition Result	Opposition Result	Rank	Opposition Result	Opposition Result	Rank
Samoa	Men's tournament	Australia L 14–21	Argentina L 12–28	Kenya W 26–0	3	Japan W 42–7	Kenya L 5–10	10

Men's tournament

Main articles: Rugby sevens at the 2024 Summer Olympics – Men's tournament and Rugby sevens at the 2024 Summer Olympics – Men's qualification

The Samoa national rugby sevens team qualified for the Olympics by securing the second place at the 2023 Oceania Sevens Championship; ^{[14] [15]} marking the nation's debut in this sport at the Olympics.

Team roster

Samoa's squad of 12 players was finalized on 18 July 2024. Additionally, Paul Eti Slater and Malakesi Masefau were named as traveling reserves. ^[16]

Head coach: Brian Lima

No.	Player	Date of birth (age)
1	Vaovasa Afa Su'a	(1991-10-11)11 October 1991 (aged 32)
2	Alamanda Motuga	(1994-09-11)11 September 1994 (aged 29)
3	BJ Telefoni Lima	(1999-07-23)23 July 1999 (aged 25)
4	Motu Opetai	(2001-06-20)20 June 2001 (aged 23)
5	Tom Maiava	(1999-03-06)6 March 1999 (aged 25)
6	Taunu'u Niulevaea	(2000-01-21)21 January 2000 (aged 24)
7	Lalomilo Lalomilo	(1999-02-12)12 February 1999 (aged 25)
8	Neueli Leitufia	(2001-10-24)24 October 2001 (aged 22)
9	Fa'afoi Falaniko	(2002-03-14)14 March 2002 (aged 22)
10	Paul Scanlan	(1996-08-09)9 August 1996 (aged 27)
11	Steve Onosai	(2001-09-19)19 September 2001 (aged 22)
12	Va'a Apelu Maliko (c)	(1998-11-10)10 November 1998 (aged 25)

Group stage

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	PF	PA	PD	Pts	Qualification
1	Australia	3	3	0	0	64	35	+29	9	Advance to Quarter-finals
2	Argentina	3	2	0	1	73	46	+27	7
3	Samoa	3	1	0	2	52	49	+3	5
4	Kenya	3	0	0	3	19	78	−59	3

Source: World Rugby
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Head-to-head result; 3) Point difference; 4) Points scored.

24 July 2024 (2024-07-24) 15:30

Australia	21–14	Samoa
Try: Hutchison (2) 8' c, 14' c Lawson 11' c Con: Roache (3/3) 8', 11', 14'	World Rugby	Try: Opetai 3' c Falaniko 15' c Con: Scanlan (1/1) 3' Maiava (1/1) 15'

Stade de France, Paris Attendance: 69,000 [17] [18] Referee: Jérémy Rozier (France)

---

24 July 2024 (2024-07-24) 19:30

Argentina	28–12	Samoa
Try: Osadczuk (2) 2' c, 9' c Graziano 5' c Pellandini 7' c Con: Pellandini (4/4) 2', 6', 8', 9'	World Rugby	Try: Apelu Maliko 11' c Leitufia 14' m Con: Leitufia (1/2) 11'

Stade de France, Paris Attendance: 69,000 [17] [18] Referee: Francisco González (Uruguay)

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25 July 2024 (2024-07-25) 14:00

Samoa	26–0	Kenya
Try: Opetai 3' m Scanlan 8' c Apelu Maliko 14' c Onosai 16' c Con: Falaniko (1/2) 9' Maiava (1/1) 14' Leitufia (1/1) 17'	World Rugby

Stade de France, Paris Attendance: 70,000 [19] Referee: Reuben Keane (Australia)

Ranking of third-placed teams

Pos	Grp	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	PF	PA	PD	Pts	Qualification
1	C	United States	3	1	1	1	57	67	−10	6	Advance to Quarter-finals
2	A	South Africa	3	1	0	2	59	32	+27	5
3	B	Samoa	3	1	0	2	52	49	+3	5

Source: World Rugby
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Point difference; 3) Points scored.

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9–12th place playoff semi-final

Samoa try against Japan

25 July 2024 (2024-07-25) 20:00

Samoa	42–7	Japan
Try: Scanlan (2) 1' c, 3' c Apelu Maliko 9' c Leitufia 10' c Maiava 12' c Lalomilo 14' c Con: Leitufia (2/2) 1', 4' Scanlan (2/2) 9', 11' Maiava (1/1) 12' Apelu Maliko 15'	World Rugby	Try: Noguchi 8' c Con: Taninaka (1/1) 9'

Stade de France, Paris Attendance: 70,000 [19] Referee: Gianluca Gnecchi (Italy)

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Ninth place match

27 July 2024 (2024-07-27) 17:00

Samoa	5–10	Kenya
Try: Opetai 11' m	World Rugby	Try: Okeyo (2) 3' m, 8' m

Stade de France, Paris Referee: Tevita Rokovereni (Fiji)

Sailing

Main articles: Sailing at the 2024 Summer Olympics and Sailing at the 2024 Summer Olympics – Qualification

Samoa qualified two sailors to compete at the games. Eroni Leilua qualified one boat in the men's ILCA 7 classes through the 2023 Sail Sydney in Sydney, Australia. Later, the nations receiving the allocations of Universality placed in the women's ILCA 6. ^[20]

Medal race events

Athlete	Event	Race																Net points	Final rank
		1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	M*
Eroni Leilua	Men's ILCA 7	42	41	43	42	39	39	31	40	—							—	274	42
Vaimooia Ripley	Women's ILCA 6	42	41	43	40	38	39	44	39	43	—						—	325	43

M = Medal race; EL = Eliminated – did not advance into the medal race

Swimming

Main articles: Swimming at the 2024 Summer Olympics and Swimming at the 2024 Summer Olympics – Qualification

Samoa sent two swimmers to compete at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Athlete	Event	Heat		Semifinal		Final
		Time	Rank	Time	Rank	Time	Rank
Johann Stickland	Men's 100 m freestyle	52.94	66	Did not advance
Kaiya Brown	Women's 50 m freestyle	28.31	48	Did not advance

Weightlifting

Main articles: Weightlifting at the 2024 Summer Olympics and Weightlifting at the 2024 Summer Olympics – Qualification

For the first time since 2016, Samoa entered two weightlifters into the Olympic competition. Don Opeloge (men's 102 kg) and Iuniarra Sipaia (women's +81 kg) secured one of the top ten slots in their respective weight divisions based on the IWF Olympic Qualification Rankings.

Athlete	Event	Snatch		Clean & Jerk		Total	Rank
		Result	Rank	Result	Rank
Don Opeloge	Men's −102 kg	170	DNF	—	—	—	DNF
Iuniarra Sipaia	Women's +81 kg	105	12	141	9	246	11

Wrestling

Main articles: Wrestling at the 2024 Summer Olympics and Wrestling at the 2024 Summer Olympics – Qualification

For the first time since 2000, Samoa qualified one wrestler into the Olympic competition. Gaku Akazawa qualified for the games after winning the semifinal round at the 2024 African & Oceania Olympic Qualification Tournament in Alexandria, Egypt. ^[21]

Key:

• VT (ranking points: 5–0 or 0–5) – Victory by fall.
• VB (ranking points: 5–0 or 0–5) – Victory by injury (VF for forfeit, VA for withdrawal or disqualification)
• PP (ranking points: 3–1 or 1–3) – Decision by points – the loser with technical points.
• PO (ranking points: 3–0 or 0–3) – Decision by points – the loser without technical points.
• ST (ranking points: 4–0 or 0–4) – Great superiority – the loser without technical points and a margin of victory of at least 8 (Greco-Roman) or 10 (freestyle) points.
• SP (ranking points: 4–1 or 1–4) – Technical superiority – the loser with technical points and a margin of victory of at least 8 (Greco-Roman) or 10 (freestyle) points.

Freestyle

Athlete	Event	Round of 16	Quarterfinal	Semifinal	Repechage	Final / BM
		Opposition Result	Opposition Result	Opposition Result	Opposition Result	Opposition Result	Rank
Gaku Akazawa	Men's −65 kg	Dudaev  (ALB) L 10–0	Did not advance				14

References

1. "Athletics at Paris 2024: The entry standards". International Olympic Committee. 20 December 2022. Retrieved 27 December 2022.
2. "Alex ROSE – Profile". World Athletics . Retrieved 8 June 2024.
3. "Samoa boxing coach dies during Paris Olympics". Rappler. 27 July 2024. Retrieved 28 July 2024.
4. "Samoa Boxing Coach Passes Away at Olympic Village". Samoa Global News. 27 July 2024. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
5. "Samoa boxing coach dies at Olympic Village, officials say". CBS News. 27 July 2024. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
6. "Samoan boxing coach Lionel Elika Fatupaito dies aged 60 in Olympic Village hours before opening ceremony". 7 News. 27 July 2024. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
7. "Samoan Boxing Coach Lionel Elika Fatupaito Dies at 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
8. "Samoa boxing coach dead after suffering cardiac arrest in Olympic village". The Mirror US. 27 July 2024. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
9. "Lionel Elika Fatupaito: Samoa boxing coach dies at Paris Olympics". The Independent. 27 July 2024. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
10. "Boxing coach, 60, dies after suffering cardiac arrest in Olympic village". Metro. 27 July 2024. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
11. "Samoa boxing coach Lionel Elika Fatupaito dies at 2024 Olympics". New York Post. 27 July 2024. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
12. "Paris 2024 Canoe Sprint Quota Allocation" (PDF). International Canoe Federation . Retrieved 18 May 2024.
13. "Paris Olympics: Sibling rivalry for Samoan canoeists". RNZ. 7 August 2024. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
14. "Samoa and Fiji secure Olympic qualification in Brisbane". World Rugby. 12 November 2023. Retrieved 15 November 2023.
15. Retzlaff-Lima, Brisin Manu (12 November 2023). "History: Manu Samoa 7s Qualify for Paris Olympics – Samoa Global News". Samoa Global News. Retrieved 15 November 2023.
16. worldrugby.org. "Samoa - Rugby Sevens Olympic Games Paris 2024 | World Rugby". www.world.rugby. Retrieved 19 July 2024.
17. Martel, Clément (25 July 2024). "Paris 2024: A festive first day in rugby sevens, yet short of blue sparkles". Le Monde . Groupe Le Monde. Archived from the original on 25 July 2024.
18. "Record crowd as rugby sevens gets Olympic Games Paris 2024 off to a flying start". world.rugby. World Rugby. 24 July 2024. Archived from the original on 25 July 2024.
19. "JO Paris 2024 : énorme bronca à l'entrée des Argentins puis un stade de France en feu pour la qualification de l'équipe de France à 7" [Paris 2024 Olympics: a huge roar as the Argentinians enter the stadium, then a blaze at the Stade de France as the French 7-a-side team qualify]. Le Figaro (in French). Groupe Figaro. 25 July 2024. Archived from the original on 27 July 2024.
20. "PARIS 2024 WHO'S QUALIFIED?". World Sailing . Retrieved 18 May 2024.
21. "Samoa, Australia, South Africa end Olympic drought with Paris spots in Alexandria". United World Wrestling. 24 March 2024. Archived from the original on 25 March 2024. Retrieved 25 March 2024.