| Albania at the 2016 Summer Olympics | |
|---|---|
 | |
| IOC code | ALB |
| NOC | Albanian National Olympic Committee |
| Website | nocalbania |
| inRio de Janeiro | |
| Competitors | 6 in 3 sports |
| Flag bearer | Luiza Gega[1] |
| Medals |
|
| Summer Olympics appearances (overview) | |
Albania competed at the2016 Summer Olympics inRio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 5 to 21 August 2016. This was the nation's eighth appearance at the Olympics after its debut in 1972. TheNational Olympic Committee of Albania sent a total of six athletes to the Games, three per gender, who competed in three sports (athletics, swimming, and weightlifting).[2][3]
Notable athletes in the Albanian roster featured weightlifter and London 2012 OlympianBriken Calja, swimmerSidni Hoxha, who competed at his third Olympics in the sprint freestyle, and middle-distance runnerLuiza Gega, who was selected to carry the nation's flag in the opening ceremony.[1] Albania has yet to win its first Olympic medal.
Albanian athletes achieved qualifying standards in the following athletics events (up to a maximum of 3 athletes in each event):[4][5]
| Athlete | Event | Heat | Final | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Rank | Result | Rank | ||
| Luiza Gega | Women's 3000 m steeplechase | 9:58.49 | 16 | Did not advance | |
| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Final | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Distance | Position | Distance | Position | ||
| Izmir Smajlaj | Men's long jump | 7.72 | 21 | Did not advance | |
Albania received a Universality invitation fromFINA to send two swimmers (one male and one female) to the Olympics.[6][7][8]
| Athlete | Event | Heat | Semifinal | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | ||
| Sidni Hoxha | Men's 50 m freestyle | 22.80 | 41 | Did not advance | |||
| Nikol Merizaj | Women's 100 m freestyle | 59.99 | 43 | Did not advance | |||
Albania qualified one male weightlifter for the Olympics by virtue of his top 15 individual finish, among those who had not secured any quota places through the World or European Championships, in theIWF World Rankings as of 20 June 2016. The place was awarded to London 2012 OlympianBriken Calja in the men's lightweight division (69 kg).[9]
Meanwhile, an unused women's Olympic spot was awarded to the Albanian team byIWF, as a result of Russia's complete ban from the Games due to the "multiple positive cases" of doping.[10] This place was given toEvagjelia Veli.
| Athlete | Event | Snatch | Clean & Jerk | Total | Rank | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Rank | Result | Rank | ||||
| Briken Calja | Men's −69 kg | 145 | 5 | 181 | 5 | 326 | 5 |
| Evagjelia Veli | Women's −53 kg | 75 | 9 | 90 | 8 | 165 | 8 |
