Ethiopia at the 2016 Summer Olympics | |
---|---|
IOC code | ETH |
NOC | Ethiopian Olympic Committee |
Website | www |
in Rio de Janeiro | |
Competitors | 38 in 3 sports |
Flag bearer | Robel Kiros Habte [1] |
Medals Ranked 44th |
|
Summer Olympics appearances (overview) | |
Ethiopia competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, from 5 to 21 August 2016. The country's participation in Rio de Janeiro marked its thirteenth appearance at the Summer Olympics since its debut in 1956, having missed three occasions for joining the African (1976), Soviet (1984), and North Korean (1988) boycotts.
The Ethiopian Olympic Committee (EOC) confirmed a team of 38 athletes, 18 men and 20 women, to compete only in track and field, swimming, and road cycling (the country's Olympic return from a 24-year absence) at the Games. The nation's full roster also achieved a historic milestone, as the number of female athletes outnumbered the men for the first time.
Eleven Ethiopian athletes previously competed in London, with only three of them having won medals, including two-time defending champion Tirunesh Dibaba in the women's 10,000 metres, steeplechaser Sofia Assefa, and long-distance runner Dejen Gebremeskel (men's 5000 metres). Other notable athletes on the Ethiopian team featured Dibaba's younger sister and current world record holder Genzebe in middle-distance running, reigning world champions Mare Dibaba (women's marathon) and Almaz Ayana, and freestyle swimmer Robel Kiros Habte, who was appointed as the nation's flag bearer at the opening ceremony and eventually acknowledged internet fame for his portly build and slow qualifying time. [1] [2]
Ethiopia left Rio de Janeiro with a total of eight medals (1 gold, 2 silver, 5 bronze), matching its overall tally from the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. [3] Among the nation's medalists were Ayana, who overturned a long-standing world record to become an Olympic champion in the women's 10,000 metres, and Feyisa Lilesa, who flaunted an anti-government gesture upon finishing second in the men's marathon. [4] [5] Ayana's predecessor Dibaba witnessed her three-peat bid come to an end with a bronze-medal finish in her pet event, while Genzebe followed her elder sister's Olympic legacy by earning a silver in the women's 1500 metres. [6]
Medal | Name | Sport | Event | Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
Gold | Almaz Ayana | Athletics | Women's 10,000 m | 12 August |
Silver | Genzebe Dibaba | Athletics | Women's 1500 m | 16 August |
Silver | Feyisa Lilesa | Athletics | Men's marathon | 21 August |
Bronze | Tirunesh Dibaba | Athletics | Women's 10,000 m | 12 August |
Bronze | Tamirat Tola | Athletics | Men's 10,000 m | 13 August |
Bronze | Mare Dibaba | Athletics | Women's marathon | 14 August |
Bronze | Almaz Ayana | Athletics | Women's 5000 m | 20 August |
Bronze | Hagos Gebrhiwet | Athletics | Men's 5000 m | 20 August |
Ethiopian athletes have so far achieved qualifying standards in the following athletics events (up to a maximum of 3 athletes in each event): [7] [8]
Following the end of the qualifying period on 11 July, a total of 35 track and field athletes (16 men and 19 women) were officially named to the Ethiopian roster for the Games, with Tirunesh Dibaba looking to defend her Olympic title for the third consecutive time in the women's 10,000 metres. Apart from Dibaba, notable athletes also featured London 2012 silver medalist Dejen Gebremeskel (men's 5000 metres), double Worlds long-distance champion Almaz Ayana, and middle-distance aces Mohammed Aman and Tirunesh's sister Genzebe Dibaba. [9]
Athlete | Event | Heat | Semifinal | Final | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Result | Rank | Result | Rank | Result | Rank | ||||
Mohammed Aman | 800 m | 1:48.33 | 2 Q | 1:46.14 | 8 | Did not advance | |||
Mekonnen Gebremedhin | 1500 m | 3:47.33 | 5 Q | 3:40.69 | 7 | Did not advance | |||
Dawit Wolde | 3:39.29 | 10 q | 3:41.42 | 10 | Did not advance | ||||
Aman Wote | DNS | Did not advance | |||||||
Muktar Edris | 5000 m | 13:19.65 | 2 Q | N/A | DSQ | ||||
Dejen Gebremeskel | 13:19.67 | 3 Q | N/A | 13:51.91 | 12 | ||||
Hagos Gebrhiwet | 13:24.65 | 1 Q | N/A | 13:04.35 | |||||
Yigrem Demelash | 10000 m | N/A | 27:06.27 | 4 | |||||
Abadi Hadis | N/A | 27:26.34 | 15 | ||||||
Tamirat Tola | N/A | 27:06.26 | |||||||
Hailemariyam Amare | 3000 m steeplechase | 8:35.01 | 8 | N/A | Did not advance | ||||
Chala Beyo | 8:32.06 | 7 | N/A | Did not advance | |||||
Tafese Seboka | DSQ | N/A | Did not advance | ||||||
Tesfaye Abera | Marathon | N/A | DNF | ||||||
Lemi Berhanu | N/A | 2:13:29 | 13 | ||||||
Feyisa Lelisa | N/A | 2:09:54 |
Athlete | Event | Heat | Semifinal | Final | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Result | Rank | Result | Rank | Result | Rank | |||
Habitam Alemu | 800 m | 1:58.99 | 3 q | 2:00.07 | 6 | Did not advance | ||
Tigist Assefa | 2:00.21 | 5 | Did not advance | |||||
Gudaf Tsegay | 2:00.13 | 4 | Did not advance | |||||
Genzebe Dibaba | 1500 m | 4:10.61 | 1 Q | 4:03.06 | 1 Q | 4:10.27 | ||
Besu Sado | 4:08.11 | 6 Q | 4:05.19 | 4 Q | 4:13.58 | 9 | ||
Dawit Seyaum | 4:05.33 | 1 Q | 4:04.23 | 2 Q | 4:13.14 | 8 | ||
Almaz Ayana | 5000 m | 15:04.35 | 1 Q | N/A | 14:33.59 | |||
Senbere Teferi | 15:17.43 | 2 Q | N/A | 14:43.75 | 5 | |||
Ababel Yeshaneh | 15:24.38 | 8 q | N/A | 15:18.26 | 14 | |||
Almaz Ayana | 10000 m | N/A | 29:17.45 WR | |||||
Gelete Burka | N/A | 30:26.66 | 8 | |||||
Tirunesh Dibaba | N/A | 29:42.56 | ||||||
Sofia Assefa | 3000 m steeplechase | 9:18.75 | 2 Q | N/A | 9:17.15 | 5 | ||
Hiwot Ayalew | 9:35.09 | 7 | N/A | Did not advance | ||||
Etenesh Diro | 9:34.70 | 7 q | N/A | 9:38.77 | 15 | |||
Mare Dibaba | Marathon | N/A | 2:24:30 | |||||
Tirfi Tsegaye | N/A | 2:24:47 | 4 | |||||
Tigist Tufa | N/A | DNF | ||||||
Yehualeye Beletew | 20 km walk | N/A | DSQ | |||||
Askale Tiksa | N/A | 1:44:15 | 61 |
Ethiopia has qualified one rider in the men's Olympic road race by virtue of being ranked in the top two NOCs at the 2015 African Championships, signifying the nation's Olympic comeback in the sport for the first time since 1992. [10] [11]
Athlete | Event | Time | Rank |
---|---|---|---|
Tsgabu Grmay | Men's road race | Did not finish |
Ethiopia has received a Universality invitation from FINA to send two swimmers (one male and one female) to the Olympics. [12] [13] [14]
Athlete | Event | Heat | Semifinal | Final | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | ||
Robel Kiros Habte | Men's 100 m freestyle | 1:04.95 | 59 | Did not advance | |||
Rahel Gebresilassie | Women's 50 m freestyle | 32.51 | 75 | Did not advance |
Tirunesh Dibaba is an Ethiopian athlete who competes in long-distance track events and international road races. She was the 5000 metres world record holder. She has won three Olympic track gold medals, five World Championship track gold medals, four individual World Cross Country (WCC) adult titles, and one individual WCC junior title. She is nicknamed the "Baby Faced Destroyer."
Ejegayehu Dibaba Keneni ; born 21 March 1982, in Bekoji) is an Ethiopian long-distance runner.
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The 5000 metres or 5000-metre run is a common long-distance running event in track and field, approximately equivalent to 3 miles 188 yards or 16,404 feet 2 inches. It is one of the track events in the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics, run over 12+1⁄2 laps of a standard track. The same distance in road running is called a 5K run; referring to the distance in metres rather than kilometres serves to disambiguate the two events. The 5000 m has been present on the Olympic programme since 1912 for men and since 1996 for women. Prior to 1996, women had competed in an Olympic 3000 metres race since 1984. The 5000 m has been held at each of the World Championships in Athletics in men's competition and since 1995 in women's.
Genzebe Dibaba Keneni is an Ethiopian middle- and long-distance runner. A 1500 metres 2016 Olympic silver medalist, she won a gold medal in this event and a bronze in the 5000 metres at the 2015 World Championships. Genzebe is the current world record holder for the 1500 m outdoor, and the indoor events of 3000 m and 5000 m. Her 2000 m indoor women's world's best time is the absolute world record, as it is faster than the previous women's outdoor mark. She holds the distinction of possessing the most world records by one individual in track history, with her current haul of five, plus two world bests.
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Dejen Gebremeskel is an Ethiopian long-distance runner who primarily competes in track events. His personal best of 12:46.81 minutes for the 5000 metres ranks him as the fifth fastest of all time for the distance. He was the 5000 m silver medallist at the 2012 London Olympics and took the bronze medal over that distance at the 2011 World Championships in Athletics.
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The women's 1500 metres event at the 2016 Summer Olympics took place between 12–16 August at the Olympic Stadium.
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Media related to Ethiopia at the 2016 Summer Olympics at Wikimedia Commons