Denmark at the 2016 Summer Olympics

Denmark at the
2016 Summer Olympics
IOC codeDEN
NOCNational Olympic Committee and Sports Confederation of Denmark
Websitewww.dif.dk (in Danish and English)
in Rio de Janeiro
Competitors120 in 16 sports
Flag bearers Caroline Wozniacki (opening)[1]
Pernille Blume (closing)
Medals
Ranked 28th
Gold
2
Silver
6
Bronze
7
Total
15
Summer Olympics appearances (overview)
Other related appearances
1906 Intercalated Games

Denmark competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 5 to 21 August 2016. Danish athletes have appeared in every edition of the Summer Olympic Games throughout the modern era, except for the sparsely attended 1904 Summer Olympics in St. Louis. The Danish team consisted of 120 athletes, 79 men and 41 women, across sixteen sports.[2] Before the start of the games, DIF sat an official medal goal of 10 medals for the Rio games.[3]

Denmark returned home from Rio de Janeiro with 15 medals (2 golds, 6 silver, and 7 bronze), marking the country's most successful outcome in Summer Olympic history since 1948.[4][5] Three of these medals were awarded to the Danish squad in cycling, two in badminton, rowing, sailing, and swimming, and one each in sprint kayaking, track and field, and Greco-Roman wrestling. These Games also witnessed a historic moment for the male Danes in collective sports, as they overcame the two-time defending French champions 28–26 to win their first ever gold medal in the men's handball tournament.[6][7]

Among the nation's medalists were badminton tandem Kamilla Rytter Juhl and Christinna Pedersen in the women's doubles, rower Morten Jørgensen, who completed a full set of medals at his third Games with a silver in the men's lightweight fours, hurdler Sara Slott Petersen, who made history by becoming the first Danish woman to ascend the podium in any track event,[8] and Greco-Roman wrestler and three-time Olympian Mark Madsen, who brought home the country's first ever medal in his signature sport after more than eight decades.

Two Danish athletes collected more than a single medal at these Games, including track cyclist Lasse Norman Hansen, who won a bronze each in both men's team pursuit and omnium, and swimmer Pernille Blume, who outlasted the favorites in the women's 50 m freestyle to hand her country's first Olympic swimming title since 1948.[9] Additionally, Blume helped the Danish foursome of backstroker Mie Nielsen, breaststroker and world-record holder Rikke Møller Pedersen, and butterfly sprinter and four-time Olympian Jeanette Ottesen beat the European record for the bronze medal in the women's medley relay final.[10]

  1. ^ "Caroline Wozniacki named Denmark flag-bearer for the Rio Olympics". Stuff. 6 February 2016. Retrieved 1 June 2016.
  2. ^ "Stærk dressurkvartet afslutter OL-udtagelserne" [Strong dressage riders complete the Olympic lineup] (in Danish). Team Denmark. 19 July 2016. Retrieved 25 August 2018.
  3. ^ "Danmarks OL-atleter er langt fra at nå medaljemålsætningen".
  4. ^ "Danmark slutter på 15 medaljer ved OL i Rio" [Denmark ends the Rio Olympics with 15 medals] (in Danish). Berlingske. 22 August 2016. Retrieved 8 September 2016.
  5. ^ Rychla, Lucie (27 December 2016). "Record year for Danish elite athletes". The Copenhagen Post. Retrieved 25 August 2018.
  6. ^ Ulmer, Alexandra (22 August 2016). "Handball: Delighted Denmark beat French champions to win first gold". Reuters. Retrieved 25 August 2018.
  7. ^ "Great Danes surprise champions France to win men's handball gold". Olympics. 21 August 2016. Retrieved 25 August 2018.
  8. ^ "It's raining Danish medals in Rio". The Copenhagen Post. 19 August 2016. Retrieved 25 August 2018.
  9. ^ "Pernille Blume wins Denmark's first swim gold since 1948". Eurosport. 14 August 2016. Retrieved 25 August 2018.
  10. ^ Lepesant, Anne (13 August 2016). "Danish Women Take Down European Record in 4×100 Medley Relay". SwimSwam. Retrieved 25 August 2018.