Samoa at the 2016 Summer Olympics | |
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IOC code | SAM |
NOC | Samoa Association of Sports and National Olympic Committee Inc. |
Website | www |
in Rio de Janeiro | |
Competitors | 8 in 5 sports |
Flag bearer | Mary Opeloge[1] |
Medals |
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Summer Olympics appearances (overview) | |
Samoa competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 5 to 21 August 2016. This was the nation's ninth consecutive appearance at the Summer Olympic Games, although it had previously competed in four editions under the name Western Samoa.
Samoa Association of Sports and National Olympic Committee Inc. (SASNOC) sent the nation's second-largest delegation to the Games, tying its record for the most athletes with Los Angeles 1984 and London 2012. A total of eight athletes, five men and three women, were selected to the Samoan squad across five different sports; all of them made their Olympic debut in Rio de Janeiro.[2] Among the sports represented by the athletes, Samoa marked its Olympic debut in swimming.
Four Samoan athletes were born and raised in the United States and New Zealand, having acquired a dual citizenship to compete for their parents' homeland at the Games. Among them were New Zealand-born flatwater kayaker Anne Cairns, discus thrower Alex Rose, sprinter Jeremy Dodson, and 18-year-old freestyle swimmer Brandon Schuster.[3] Meanwhile, weightlifter and Commonwealth Games champion Mary Opeloge (women's 75 kg) continued the tradition of her family in carrying the Samoan flag at the opening ceremony, with her older sister Ele having had the honor in 2008 and 2012.[4] Samoa, however, has yet to win its first ever Olympic medal.