| Maldives at the 2008 Summer Olympics | |
|---|---|
 | |
| IOC code | MDV |
| NOC | Maldives Olympic Committee |
| Website | www |
| inBeijing, China 8 August 2008 (2008-08-08) – 24 August 2008 (2008-08-24) | |
| Competitors | 4 in 2 sports |
| Flag bearer (opening) | Aminath Rouya Hussain |
| Flag bearer (closing) | Ali Shareef |
| Medals |
|
| Summer Olympics appearances (overview) | |
TheMaldives competed in the2008 Summer Olympics, which were held inBeijing,China from August 8 to August 24, 2008. The country's participation at the Beijing Olympics marked its seventh appearance in the Summer Olympics since its debut at the1988 Summer Olympics. The delegation included four athletes, two in athletics (Ali Shareef andAishath Reesha), and two in swimming (Ibrahim Shameel andAminath Rouya Hussain) who participated in four distinct events. Its four athletes did not advance past the first round in each of their events. Aminath Rouya Hussain carried the Maldivian flag during theparade of nations of the opening ceremony with sprinter Ali Shareef being the flagbearer for theclosing ceremony. The country failed to win an Olympic medal at these Games and has yet to win their first medal.
The Maldives is anarchipelagic country located inSouthern Asia, situated in theIndian Ocean. Formerly aprotectorate of the United Kingdom, it gained independence in 1965. TheMaldives Olympic Committee was formed in 1985, and was recognized by theInternational Olympic Committee the same year.[1] The Maldives have participated in every Summer Olympics since its debut in the1988 Summer Olympics inSeoul. The highest number of Maldivians participating at any single Summer Games was seven at the 1988 Games and the1992 Games inBarcelona,Spain.[2] No Maldivian has ever won a medal at the Olympics.[3]
The 2008 Summer Olympics were held from 8 to 24 August 2008. For the 2008 Summer Olympics, the Maldives sent a delegation of four athletes. The Maldivian team at the 2008 Games featured two track and field athletes and two swimmers. SprintersAli Shareef andAishath Reesha were chosen to compete in themen's 100 metres andwomen's 800 metres respectively. SwimmersIbrahim Shameel andAminath Rouya Hussain participated in themen's 50 metre freestyle andwomen's 50 metre freestyle respectively.[4] Aminath Rouya Hussain was the only returning athlete from the2004 Summer Olympics inAthens, Greece.[5] She was also the flagbearer for the Maldives during theparade of nations of the opening ceremony with sprinter Ali Shareef being the flagbearer for theclosing ceremony.[6][7]
The Maldives was represented by a male athlete and a female athlete in athletics at the 2008 Summer Olympics, Ali Shareef and Aishath Reesha. At the age of 29, Ali Shareef was the country's oldest competitor, and was competing at his first Olympics. He competed on 15 August in Beijing, and finished 7th out of 8 in heat six. His time of 11.11 seconds placed him 69th out of 80 competitors overall. The fastest athlete wasTyrone Edgar finishing with a time of 10.13 seconds and the slowest athlete that progressed to the semi-finals wasUchenna Emedolu who finished with a time of 10.46 seconds. Shareef, who was 0.65 seconds behind Emedolu, did not progress to the semi-finals.[8]
Competing at her first Olympics, Aishath Reesha was the only female competing in the track and field events at the 2008 Summer Olympics for Maldives.[9] She competed in the800 metres on 15 August. Reesha was drawn into heat five for the event.[10] She ran a personal best time of 2 minutes and 30.14 seconds.[11] She finished seventh and last in her heat, almost 30 seconds behind the winner,Zulia Calatayud. She finished last out of 39 athletes overall. Reesha was 31.23 seconds behind the fastest athleteMaria Mutola and 26.29 seconds behind the slowest athlete who progressed to the semi-finals,Élodie Guégan. Therefore, Reesha did not progress to the semi-finals.[12]
| Athlete | Event | Heat | Quarterfinal | Semifinal | Final | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Rank | Result | Rank | Result | Rank | Result | Rank | ||
| Ali Shareef | 100 m | 11.11NR | 7 | Did not advance | |||||
| Athlete | Event | Heat | Semifinal | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Rank | Result | Rank | Result | Rank | ||
| Aishath Reesha | 800 m | 2:30.14PB | 7 | Did not advance | |||
Swimmer Ibrahim Shameel was the youngest athlete to participate in the Maldivian delegation atBeijing; he was sixteen years old at the time of his performance, and the only male swimmer in the delegation.[13] Shameel has not previously appeared at any Olympic games.[14] The preliminary round for the men's 50 meters freestyle, the event in which he participated, took place on August 15. Shameel was placed in the third heat. He completed his event in 29.28 seconds, taking seventh in the heat. Out of the 97 athletes who participated in the preliminary round, Shameel ranked 88th. He did not advance to later rounds.[15]
Then 17-year-old Aminath Rouya Hussain participated on Maldives's behalf in the women's 50 meters freestyle. Her participation in Beijing marked her second Olympic appearance, as she had participated previously inwomen's 50 meters freestyle at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens.[16] She was the only female Maldivian swimmer participating in the Beijing games. During the August 15 preliminary round, Rouya participated in the fourth heat. She completed her event in 30.21 seconds, ranking seventh out of the eight athletes in the heat. Overall, Rouya ranked 72 out of the 90 athletes who participated in the event.[a] She did not advance to later rounds.[17]
| Athlete | Event | Heat | Semifinal | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Rank | Result | Rank | Result | Rank | ||
| Ibrahim Shameel | 50 m freestyle | 29.28 | 88 | Did not advance | |||
| Athlete | Event | Heat | Semifinal | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Rank | Result | Rank | Result | Rank | ||
| Aminath Rouya Hussain | 50 m freestyle | 30.21 | 72 | Did not advance | |||
