The Maldives competed at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece, from 13 to 29 August 2004. The delegation's participation in the Athens Olympics marked the Maldives' fifth appearance at the Summer Olympics since their debut at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea. Four athletes competed across two sports; Sultan Saeed and Shifana Ali in track and field, and Hassan Mubah and Aminath Rouya Hussain in swimming. None of the track or swimming athletes advanced past the first round in their events, and no Maldivian has won a medal in any events. Sultan Saeed bore the Maldives' flag during the parade of nations of the opening ceremony.
Park Tae-hwan is a South Korean competitive swimmer who is an Olympic gold medalist and world champion. He has four Olympic medals, five world titles, and 20 Asian Games medals. He won a gold medal in the 400-meter freestyle and a silver in the 200-meter freestyle events at the 2008 Summer Olympics. He also won two silver medals at the 2012 Summer Olympics in the 200- and 400-meter freestyle. He is the first Asian swimmer to claim a gold medal in the men's 400-meter freestyle, and the first-ever South Korean swimmer to win any Olympic medal in swimming. He also holds 3 Asian Records, all in Men's Freestyle. He is best known for his impressive range and versatility, as he is able to compete at international level in 100-, 200-, 400- and 1,500-meter freestyle.
The men's 200 metre freestyle event at the 2008 Olympic Games took place on 10–12 August at the Beijing National Aquatics Center in Beijing, China. There were 58 competitors from 50 nations. The winning margin was 1.89 seconds which as of 2023 remains the only time this race has been won by more than 1.8 seconds at the Olympics.
Sun Yang is a Chinese Olympic and former world-record-holding competitive swimmer. In 2012, Sun became the first Chinese athlete to win an Olympic gold medal in men's swimming. Sun is the first male swimmer in history to earn Olympic and World Championship gold medals at every freestyle distance from 200 to 1500 metres. A three-time Olympic gold medalist and eleven-time world champion, he is the most decorated Chinese swimmer in history. In 2017, NBC Sports described him as "very arguably the greatest freestyle swimmer of all time".
The men's 100 metre freestyle event at the 1988 Summer Olympics took place on 22 September at the Jamsil Indoor Swimming Pool in Seoul, South Korea. There were 77 competitors from 51 nations. Nations had been limited to two swimmers each since the 1984 Games.
The men's 200 metre freestyle event at the 1988 Summer Olympics took place on 18–19 September at the Olympic Park Swimming Pool in Seoul, South Korea. There were 63 competitors from 41 nations, with each nation having up to two swimmers.
The inaugural men's 50-metre freestyle event at the 1988 Summer Olympics took place on 24 September at the Jamsil Indoor Swimming Pool in Seoul, South Korea.
The men's 100 metre freestyle event at the 2010 Asian Games took place on 17 November 2010 at Guangzhou Aoti Aquatics Centre.
The men's 200 metre freestyle event at the 2010 Asian Games took place on 17 November 2010 at Guangzhou Aoti Aquatics Centre.
The men's 400 metre freestyle event at the 2010 Asian Games took place on 16 November 2010 at Guangzhou Aoti Aquatics Centre.
The women's 400 metre freestyle event at the 2010 Asian Games took place on 15 November 2010 at Guangzhou Aoti Aquatics Centre.
The men's 400 metre freestyle event at the 2012 Summer Olympics took place on 28 July at the London Aquatics Centre in London, United Kingdom.
The Women's 100 metre freestyle event at the 2013 SEA Games took place on 12–13 December 2013 at Wunna Theikdi Aquatics Centre.
Zhang Yufei is a Chinese competitive swimmer who specializes in sprint freestyle and butterfly events. Considered one of the most promising swimming in the international scene, she produced a tally of forty-three medals in her swimming career, spanning the Youth Olympics, Asian Games, World Championships and the Summer Olympics. She currently holds the record for most Olympic medals for a Chinese athlete. In 2023, she was named as the most valuable player in the women's division, in the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou.
The Maldives competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 5 to 21 August 2016. This was the nation's eighth consecutive appearance at the Summer Olympics. The delegation included two track and field athletes: Hassan Saaid and Afa Ismail, as well as swimmers Ibrahim Nishwan and Aminath Shajan. Both Shajan and Ismail were returning competitors from the 2012 London Olympics, with the former leading the Maldivian squad as the flag bearer in the opening ceremony. The Maldives, however, has yet to win its first ever Olympic medal.
Ariarne Elizabeth Titmus is an Australian swimmer. She is the reigning Olympic champion in the women's 400-metre freestyle, having won the event at the 2020 Summer Olympics and the 2024 Summer Olympics and the world record holder in the long course 200-metre freestyle and 400-metre freestyle events. In 2019 and 2020, she competed representing the Cali Condors in the International Swimming League.
Kayla Noelle Sanchez is a Filipino-Canadian swimmer who represents the Philippines internationally since 2023. She has represented Canada through 2022, at the Olympic and World championship level, and is a two-time Olympic medalist.
The men's 200 metre freestyle event at the 2020 Summer Olympics was held from 25 to 27 July 2021 at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre. There were 39 competitors from 30 nations, with the ultimate numbers determined through the ongoing selection process, including universality places.
Hwang Sun-woo is a South Korean swimmer. He is the 2024 World Champion in the men's 200m freestyle and won 6 medals in the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games.
