| Estonia at the 2016 Summer Olympics | |
|---|---|
 | |
| IOC code | EST |
| NOC | Estonian Olympic Committee |
| Website | www |
| in Rio de Janeiro | |
| Competitors | 45 in 13 sports |
| Flag bearers | Karl-Martin Rammo (opening)[1] Mart Seim (closing) |
| Medals Ranked 78th |
|
| Summer Olympics appearances (overview) | |
| Other related appearances | |
 Russian Empire (1908–1912) Soviet Union (1952–1988) | |
Estonia competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 5 to 21 August 2016. It was the nation's twelfth appearance at the Games and seventh consecutive in the post-Soviet era.
The Estonian Olympic Committee fielded a team of 45 athletes, 28 men and 17 women, across 13 sports at the Games.[2] It was the nation's second-largest delegation sent to the Olympics, just two athletes short of the record achieved in Beijing 2008 (47). Among the sports represented by its athletes, Estonia marked its Olympic return to triathlon after being absent from London 2012, as well as weightlifting after eight decades. Athletics had the largest team by sport with only 13 competitors, roughly a third of the nation's full roster size. Apart from triathlon and weightlifting, there was also a single competitor each in archery, judo, and shooting.
Fifteen Estonian athletes competed in London, with discus thrower and 2008 champion Gerd Kanter, rowers Tõnu Endrekson and Andrei Jämsä, and épée fencer Nikolai Novosjolov headed to their fourth Games as the most experienced competitors of the team.[2] Sisters and marathon runners Leina, Liina, and Lily Luik set a historic record for Estonia, as the first identical triplets to compete in the same event at the Games.[3][4] Other notable athletes on the Estonian roster featured Greco-Roman wrestler and 2012 silver medalist Heiki Nabi in the super heavyweight category, and Laser sailor Karl-Martin Rammo, who was selected by the committee as the nation's flag bearer in the opening ceremony.[1][5]
Estonia left Rio de Janeiro with only a bronze medal. It was awarded to the rowing foursome of Endrekson, Jämsä, and three-time Olympians Allar Raja and Kaspar Taimsoo in the men's quadruple sculls, rebounding from their out-of-medal position at London 2012.[6][7] Several Estonian athletes advanced further to the finals of their respective sporting events, but came closest to the medal haul, including the women's épée team, discus throwers Kanter and Martin Kupper, hurdler Rasmus Mägi, and Nabi, who could not reproduce his podium feat from London after losing the bronze to Russia's Sergey Semenov.[8]
- ^ a b "Eesti lippu kannab olümpiamängude avatseremoonial Karl-Martin Rammo" [Karl-Martin Rammo will carry the Estonian flag in the Olympic opening ceremony] (in Estonian). Delfi. Retrieved 3 August 2016.
- ^ a b "Ametlik: Eesti Olümpiakomitee lähetab Rio olümpiamängudele 46 sportlast" [Official: Estonian Olympic Committee sends 46 athletes to the Rio Olympics] (in Estonian). Delfi. 15 July 2016. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
- ^ Bieler, Des (26 May 2016). "Meet the triplets set to make history in the Olympic marathon". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
- ^ Samuelson, Kate (5 August 2016). "Meet The Estonian Triplets Who Are Competing Against Each Other in Rio". Time. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
- ^ "Rio 2016, more flag bearers for sailing than Beijing and London combined". International Sailing Federation. 5 August 2016. Retrieved 12 September 2016.
- ^ "Thrills, spills and medals galore on the Rio 2016 rowing lagoon". Olympics. 11 August 2016. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
- ^ Leheste, Gunnar (13 August 2016). "Sõudjad Endrekson ja Jämsä: medalipidu oli väga südamlik" [Rowers Endrekson and Jämsä: "Medal celebration was indeed cordial."] (in Estonian). Delfi. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
- ^ Täll, Kaarel (24 August 2016). "Sangarid tõid Rio ilma kodumaale" [Heroes arrived in their homeland from Rio] (in Estonian). Postimees. Retrieved 2 December 2016.