| Ethiopia at the 2016 Summer Olympics | |
|---|---|
 | |
| IOC code | ETH |
| NOC | Ethiopian Olympic Committee |
| inRio de Janeiro | |
| Competitors | 38 in 3 sports |
| Flag bearer | Robel Kiros Habte[1] |
| Medals Ranked 44th |
|
| Summer Olympics appearances (overview) | |
Ethiopia competed at the2016 Summer Olympics inRio de Janeiro, from 5 to 21 August 2016. The country's participation in Rio de Janeiro marked its thirteenth appearance at the Summer Olympics since its debut in1956, having missed three occasions for joining the African (1976), Soviet (1984), and North Korean (1988) boycotts.
TheEthiopian Olympic Committee (EOC) confirmed a team of 38 athletes, 18 men and 20 women, to compete only in track and field, swimming, and road cycling (the country's Olympic return from a 24-year absence) at the Games. The nation's full roster also achieved a historic milestone, as the number of female athletes outnumbered the men for the first time.
Eleven Ethiopian athletes previously competed in London, with only three of them having won medals, including two-time defending championTirunesh Dibaba in the women's 10,000 metres, steeplechaserSofia Assefa, and long-distance runnerDejen Gebremeskel (men's 5000 metres). Other notable athletes on the Ethiopian team featured Dibaba's younger sister and current world record holderGenzebe in middle-distance running, reigning world championsMare Dibaba (women's marathon) andAlmaz Ayana, and freestyle swimmerRobel Kiros Habte, who was appointed as the nation's flag bearer at the opening ceremony and eventually acknowledged internet fame for his portly build and slow qualifying time.[1][2]
Ethiopia left Rio de Janeiro with a total of eight medals (1 gold, 2 silver, 5 bronze), matching its overall tally from the2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney.[3] Among the nation's medalists were Ayana, who overturned a long-standing world record to become an Olympic champion in thewomen's 10,000 metres, andFeyisa Lilesa, who flaunted an anti-government gesture upon finishing second in themen's marathon.[4][5] Ayana's predecessor Dibaba witnessed her three-peat bid come to an end with a bronze-medal finish in her pet event, while Genzebe followed her elder sister's Olympic legacy by earning a silver in thewomen's 1500 metres.[6]
| Medal | Name | Sport | Event | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Gold | Almaz Ayana | Athletics | Women's 10,000 m | 12 August |
 Silver | Genzebe Dibaba | Athletics | Women's 1500 m | 16 August |
| Silver | Feyisa Lilesa | Athletics | Men's marathon | 21 August |
 Bronze | Tirunesh Dibaba | Athletics | Women's 10,000 m | 12 August |
| Bronze | Tamirat Tola | Athletics | Men's 10,000 m | 13 August |
| Bronze | Mare Dibaba | Athletics | Women's marathon | 14 August |
| Bronze | Almaz Ayana | Athletics | Women's 5000 m | 20 August |
| Bronze | Hagos Gebrhiwet | Athletics | Men's 5000 m | 20 August |
Ethiopian athletes have so far achieved qualifying standards in the following athletics events (up to a maximum of 3 athletes in each event):[7][8]
Following the end of the qualifying period on 11 July, a total of 35 track and field athletes (16 men and 19 women) were officially named to the Ethiopian roster for the Games, withTirunesh Dibaba looking to defend her Olympic title for the third consecutive time in the women's 10,000 metres. Apart from Dibaba, notable athletes also featured London 2012 silver medalistDejen Gebremeskel (men's 5000 metres), double Worlds long-distance championAlmaz Ayana, and middle-distance acesMohammed Aman and Tirunesh's sisterGenzebe Dibaba.[9]
| Athlete | Event | Heat | Semifinal | Final | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Rank | Result | Rank | Result | Rank | ||||
| Mohammed Aman | 800 m | 1:48.33 | 2Q | 1:46.14 | 8 | Did not advance | |||
| Mekonnen Gebremedhin | 1500 m | 3:47.33 | 5Q | 3:40.69 | 7 | Did not advance | |||
| Dawit Wolde | 3:39.29 | 10q | 3:41.42 | 10 | Did not advance | ||||
| Aman Wote | DNS | Did not advance | |||||||
| Muktar Edris | 5000 m | 13:19.65 | 2Q | N/a | DSQ | ||||
| Dejen Gebremeskel | 13:19.67 | 3Q | N/a | 13:51.91 | 12 | ||||
| Hagos Gebrhiwet | 13:24.65 | 1Q | N/a | 13:04.35 | | ||||
| Yigrem Demelash | 10000 m | N/a | 27:06.27 | 4 | |||||
| Abadi Hadis | N/a | 27:26.34 | 15 | ||||||
| Tamirat Tola | N/a | 27:06.26 | | ||||||
| Hailemariyam Amare | 3000 m steeplechase | 8:35.01 | 8 | N/a | Did not advance | ||||
| Chala Beyo | 8:32.06 | 7 | N/a | Did not advance | |||||
| Tafese Seboka | DSQ | N/a | Did not advance | ||||||
| Tesfaye Abera | Marathon | N/a | DNF | ||||||
| Lemi Berhanu | N/a | 2:13:29 | 13 | ||||||
| Feyisa Lelisa | N/a | 2:09:54 | | ||||||
| Athlete | Event | Heat | Semifinal | Final | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Rank | Result | Rank | Result | Rank | |||
| Habitam Alemu | 800 m | 1:58.99 | 3q | 2:00.07 | 6 | Did not advance | ||
| Tigist Assefa | 2:00.21 | 5 | Did not advance | |||||
| Gudaf Tsegay | 2:00.13 | 4 | Did not advance | |||||
| Genzebe Dibaba | 1500 m | 4:10.61 | 1Q | 4:03.06 | 1Q | 4:10.27 | | |
| Besu Sado | 4:08.11 | 6Q | 4:05.19 | 4Q | 4:13.58 | 9 | ||
| Dawit Seyaum | 4:05.33 | 1Q | 4:04.23 | 2Q | 4:13.14 | 8 | ||
| Almaz Ayana | 5000 m | 15:04.35 | 1Q | N/a | 14:33.59 | | ||
| Senbere Teferi | 15:17.43 | 2Q | N/a | 14:43.75 | 5 | |||
| Ababel Yeshaneh | 15:24.38 | 8q | N/a | 15:18.26 | 14 | |||
| Almaz Ayana | 10000 m | N/a | 29:17.45WR | | ||||
| Gelete Burka | N/a | 30:26.66 | 8 | |||||
| Tirunesh Dibaba | N/a | 29:42.56 | | |||||
| Sofia Assefa | 3000 m steeplechase | 9:18.75 | 2Q | N/a | 9:17.15 | 5 | ||
| Hiwot Ayalew | 9:35.09 | 7 | N/a | Did not advance | ||||
| Etenesh Diro | 9:34.70 | 7q | N/a | 9:38.77 | 15 | |||
| Mare Dibaba | Marathon | N/a | 2:24:30 | | ||||
| Tirfi Tsegaye | N/a | 2:24:47 | 4 | |||||
| Tigist Tufa | N/a | DNF | ||||||
| Yehualeye Beletew | 20 km walk | N/a | DSQ | |||||
| Askale Tiksa | N/a | 1:44:15 | 61 | |||||
Ethiopia has qualified one rider in the men's Olympic road race by virtue of being ranked in the top two NOCs at the 2015 African Championships, signifying the nation's Olympic comeback in the sport for the first time since 1992.[10][11]
| Athlete | Event | Time | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tsgabu Grmay | Men's road race | Did not finish | |
Ethiopia has received a Universality invitation fromFINA to send two swimmers (one male and one female) to the Olympics.[12][13][14]
| Athlete | Event | Heat | Semifinal | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | ||
| Robel Kiros Habte | Men's 100 m freestyle | 1:04.95 | 59 | Did not advance | |||
| Rahel Gebresilassie | Women's 50 m freestyle | 32.51 | 75 | Did not advance | |||
Media related toEthiopia at the 2016 Summer Olympics at Wikimedia Commons
