| Syria at the 2016 Summer Olympics | |
|---|---|
%2c_Flag_of_Syria_(1980%25E2%2580%25932024).svg) | |
| IOC code | SYR |
| NOC | Syrian Olympic Committee |
| Website | www |
| inRio de Janeiro | |
| Competitors | 7 in 5 sports |
| Flag bearer | Majed Aldin Ghazal[1] |
| Medals |
|
| Summer Olympics appearances (overview) | |
| Other related appearances | |
 United Arab Republic (1960) | |
Syria competed at the2016 Summer Olympics inRio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 5 to 21 August 2016. It was the nation's thirteenth appearance at the Summer Olympics since its debut in1948.
Syrian Olympic Committee sent a team of seven athletes, four men and three women, to compete in five different sports at the Games, matching the nation's roster size withBeijing 2008 andAtlanta 1996.[2] This was also the youngest delegation in Syria's Olympic history, with about half the team under the age of 25, and many of them were expected to reach their peak in time for the2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Among the sports represented by the athletes, Syria made its Olympic debut in table tennis, as well as its return to judo after a twelve-year absence.
The Syrian delegation featured four returning Olympians from the previous Games; among them were hurdlerGhfran Almouhamad and swimmersBayan Jumah (women's 50 m freestyle) and American-based breaststrokerAzad Al-Barazi. Attending his third Olympics as the oldest and most experienced competitor (aged 29), high jumperMajed Aldin Ghazal reprised his role of leading the Syrian team as the nation's flag bearer for the second consecutive time in the opening ceremony.[3]
Syria, however, did not win any Olympic medals in Rio de Janeiro. The nation's last medal happened at the2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, where heavyweight boxerNaser Al-Shami bagged the silver. Unable to end the podium drought in twelve years, Ghazal improved upon his twenty-eighth position fromLondon 2012 to produce a more substantial finish for the Syrians, sharing a seventh-place tie with Cyprus'Kyriakos Ioannou and the Bahamas'Donald Thomas in the men's high jump final.[4]
As well as the country's official representatives, a number of Syrians participated in theRefugee Olympic Team at the 2016 Summer Olympics andIndependent Paralympic Athletes at the 2016 Summer Paralympics, including swimmerYusra Mardini[5][6] andParalympic swimmerIbrahim Al Hussein, who carried theOlympic flame through theEleonas refugee camp.[7] (Mardini and her sister Sara inspired theNetflix filmThe Swimmers.[8])
Syrian athletes have so far achieved qualifying standards in the following athletics events (up to a maximum of 3 athletes in each event):[9][10]
| Athlete | Event | Heat | Semifinal | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Rank | Result | Rank | Result | Rank | ||
| Ghofrane Mohammad | Women's 400 m hurdles | 58.85 | 8 | Did not advance | |||
| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Final | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Distance | Position | Distance | Position | ||
| Majed Aldin Ghazal | Men's high jump | 2.29 | 7q | 2.29 | =7 |
Syria has received an invitation from the Tripartite Commission to send a judoka competing in the men's lightweight category (73 kg) to the Olympics, signifying the nation's Olympic return to the sport for the first time since2004.
| Athlete | Event | Round of 64 | Round of 32 | Round of 16 | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Repechage | Final /BM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Rank | ||
| Mohamad Kasem | Men's −73 kg | Bye |  An C-r (KOR)L 000–110 | Did not advance | |||||
Syria has received a Universality invitation fromFINA to send two swimmers (one male and one female) to the Olympics.[11][12][13]
| Athlete | Event | Heat | Semifinal | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | ||
| Azad Al-Barazi | Men's 100 m breaststroke | 1:02.22 | 36 | Did not advance | |||
| Bayan Jumah | Women's 50 m freestyle | 26.41 | =49 | Did not advance | |||
Syria has received an invitation from the Tripartite Commission to send Heba Alllejji in the women's singles for the first time to the Olympic table tennis tournament.[14]
| Athlete | Event | Preliminary | Round 1 | Round 2 | Round 3 | Round of 16 | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Final /BM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Rank | ||
| Heba Allejji | Women's singles |  Silva (MEX)L 0–4 | Did not advance | |||||||
Syria has qualified one male weightlifter for the Rio Olympics by virtue of a top seven national finish at the2016 Asian Championships.[15] The team must allocate this place by June 20, 2016.[16]
| Athlete | Event | Snatch | Clean & Jerk | Total | Rank | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Rank | Result | Rank | ||||
| Man Asaad | Men's +105 kg | 180 | =17 | 220 | =14 | 400 | 15 |
