Singapore at the Olympics

Singapore at the
Olympics
IOC code SGP
NOC Singapore National Olympic Council
Website www.singaporeolympics.com
Medals
Gold Silver Bronze Total
0 0 0 0
Summer appearances
Other related appearances
Malaysia Malaysia (1964)

Singapore has sent athletes to most Summer Olympic Games held since 1948, when it was established as a separate British Crown Colony from the Straits Settlements just over three months before the commencement of the 1948 Summer Olympics. It continued to send a team to the Games until 1964 when Singapore was part of Malaysia, which sent a combined team. Upon Singapore's full independence from Malaysia in 1965, the country continued to participate in all subsequent editions of the Summer Games except in 1980 when the country participated in a large Olympic boycott. No athlete from Singapore has competed in any Winter Olympic Games. Singapore is making a bid to participate in the Winter Olympic Games in 2014 via construction of its first Olympic-sized ice skating rink in April 2012.[1]

The country has won five Olympic medals, the first at the 1960 Summer Games, the second at the 2008 Summer Games[2] and the third and fourth at the 2012 Summer Games.[3] At the 2016 Summer Games Singapore won their first ever gold medal and the fifth overall.[4]

Singapore's first Olympic medal was won by Tan Howe Liang, who won silver in lightweight weightlifting in 1960. The first Olympic gold medal was won by Joseph Schooling in the men's 100 metre butterfly at the 2016 Summer Olympics.

In table tennis, Jing Jun Hong and Li Jiawei came close to winning medals by finishing in fourth place at the 2000 Sydney Olympics and 2004 Athens Olympics respectively. Singapore sent a big contingent to the Beijing Olympics, and many felt that with many 'home' players in Singapore's squad, this was their best chance of winning a medal since 1960 – they were proven right.

In the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Li Jiawei, together with Feng Tianwei and Wang Yuegu, beat the South Korea Women's Table Tennis team, composed of Dang Ye-Seo, Kim Kyung-Ah and Park Mi-Young 3-2 in the semi-finals, assuring Singapore of at least a silver medal and ending Singapore's 48-year Olympic medal drought. Singapore faced host China in the gold medal final.[5]

In the 2012 London Olympics, Feng Tianwei beat Kasumi Ishikawa from Japan 4-0 in the Table Tennis Women's Singles Bronze Medal Match, winning Singapore's first individual Olympic medal in 52 years. In the Table Tennis Women's Team Bronze Medal Match, Li Jiawei, together with Feng Tianwei and Wang Yuegu, beat the South Korea team composing Dang Ye-Seo, Kim Kyung-Ah and Seok Ha-Jung 3-0, winning another bronze medal.

The two bronze medals won at the 2012 London Olympics marked the first time that Singapore won more than one medal in a single Olympic Games.

In the 2016 Rio Olympics, Olympic swimmer Joseph Schooling won a gold medal in the Men's 100 metre butterfly in a Olympics record of 50.39 seconds, beating joint second Michael Phelps, Chad le Clos, and László Cseh by 0.75 seconds. This is also the first ever gold Olympic medal by a Southeast Asian male swimmer and the first Olympic gold that Singapore achieved. [6] [7] [8] [9]

To date, athletes from Singapore have won a total of 5 medals at the Olympics including 1 gold.

Medal tables

Medals by Games

Games Gold Silver Bronze Total
Italy 1960 Rome 0 1 0 1
China 2008 Beijing 0 1 0 1
United Kingdom 2012 London 0 0 2 2
Brazil 2016 Rio de Janeiro 1 0 0 1
Japan 2020 Tokyo future event
Total 1 2 2 5

Medals by sport

Sport Gold Silver Bronze Total
Swimming 1 0 0 1
Table tennis 0 1 2 3
Weightlifting 0 1 0 1
Total 1 2 2 5

List of medalists

Medal Name Games Sport Event
 Silver Tan Howe Liang Italy 1960 Rome Weightlifting Lightweight
 Silver Feng Tianwei
Li Jiawei
Wang Yuegu
China 2008 Beijing Table tennis Women's team
 Bronze Feng Tianwei United Kingdom 2012 London Table tennis Women's singles
 Bronze Feng Tianwei
Li Jiawei
Wang Yuegu
United Kingdom 2012 London Table tennis Women's team
 Gold Joseph Schooling Brazil 2016 Rio de Janeiro Swimming Men's 100 m butterfly

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Singapore at the Olympic Games.
  1. "Singapore's first Olympic-size ice skating rink opens at JCube mall". Channel NewsAsia. 2012-04-02.
  2. "News". Retrieved 13 August 2016.
  3. "News". Retrieved 13 August 2016.
  4. "News". Retrieved 13 August 2016.
  5. "Medallists for Singapore". Retrieved 13 August 2016.
  6. "Rio Olympics 2016: Joseph Schooling beats Michael Phelps in 100m butterfly". BBC. 13 August 2016.
  7. "Joseph Schooling is Singapore's first-ever Olympics champion". Channel News Asia. 13 August 2016.
  8. "How Joseph Schooling achieved the impossible". The Straits Times. 13 August 2016.
  9. "Meet Team Singapore". The Straits Times. 13 August 2016.
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