| Georgia at the 2016 Summer Olympics | |
|---|---|
 | |
| IOC code | GEO |
| NOC | Georgian National Olympic Committee |
| Website | www |
| in Rio de Janeiro | |
| Competitors | 40 in 12 sports |
| Flag bearers | Avtandil Tchrikishvili (opening)[1] Lasha Talakhadze (closing) |
| Medals Ranked 38th |
|
| Summer Olympics appearances (overview) | |
| Other related appearances | |
 Russian Empire (1900–1912) Soviet Union (1952–1988) Unified Team (1992) | |
Georgia competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 5 to 21 August 2016. This was the nation's sixth consecutive appearance at the Summer Olympics in the post-Soviet era.
Georgian National Olympic Committee sent the nation's largest ever delegation to the Games, with 40 athletes, 30 men and 10 women, competing across 12 sports.[2] Among the sporting events represented by the nation's athletes, Georgia marked its Olympic debut in flatwater canoeing, men's tennis, women's judo, and women's weightlifting, as well as its return to fencing after two decades and rhythmic gymnastics after 16 years.
The Georgian roster was merely highlighted by pistol shooting legend and three-time medalist Nino Salukvadze, who set a historic record as the second female athlete to appear at eight Olympics, and also teamed up with her 18-year-old son and fellow shooter Tsotne Machavariani to become the first mother-son tandem competing together at a single edition.[3][4] Aside from Salukvadze, ten more Georgian athletes had past Olympic experience, with archers Kristine Esebua and Khatuna Narimanidze headed to their fourth Games, and judoka Lasha Shavdatuashvili seeking to add another medal after his golden finish in London four years earlier. Other notable Georgian athletes featured world-ranked rhythmic gymnast Salome Pazhava, freestyle wrestler and 2015 world champion Vladimer Khinchegashvili (men's 57 kg), and European Games judo champion Avtandili Tchrikishvili (men's 81 kg), who was selected to lead his delegation as the flag bearer in the opening ceremony.[1]
Georgia left Rio de Janeiro a total of seven medals (two golds, one silver, and four bronze), which matched its overall tally from the previous Olympics in London.[5] Among the nation's medalists were Shavdatuashvili, who obtained a bronze in the men's 73 kg; his fellow judoka Varlam Liparteliani, who bounced back from his early elimination in London to earn a silver in the men's 90 kg; and Khinchegashvili, who upgraded his silver from the previous Games to a gold in freestyle wrestling.[6] For the first time in Olympic history, two Georgian athletes shared the same podium in any sport, as weightlifter Lasha Talakhadze established a new world record to capture the men's +105 kg title, with his compatriot and London 2012 Olympian Irakli Turmanidze claiming the bronze.[7][8]
- ^ a b "რიო-დე-ჟანეიროში საქართველოს ოლიმპიური დელეგაციის მედროშე ავთანდილ ჭრიკიშვილი იქნება" [Avtandil Tchrikishvili will be flag bearer at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics] (in Georgian). Inter Press Service. 30 June 2016. Retrieved 19 July 2016.
- ^ "Georgian athlete secures last-minute qualification for Rio Olympics". Agenda.ge. 31 July 2016. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
- ^ Bonesteel, Matt (3 May 2016). "A mother and son have never competed in the same Olympics. Until now. In shooting, no less". The Washington Post. Retrieved 4 May 2016.
- ^ "Mother and son team up for a Games first". Olympics. 5 August 2016. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
- ^ "Georgia celebrates its Olympic heroes". Agenda.ge. 27 August 2016. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
- ^ "Georgia wins second gold at Rio Olympics". Agenda.ge. 20 August 2016. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
- ^ "Talakhadze claims gold with weightlifting world record". Olympics. 16 August 2016. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
- ^ "Lasha Talakhadze sets world record to claim gold in over 105-kilogram weightlifting". Los Angeles Times. 16 August 2016. Retrieved 30 October 2016.