The

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

island nation

Nauru Nauru ( or ; na, Naoero), officially the Republic of Nauru ( na, Repubrikin Naoero) and formerly known as Pleasant Island, is an island country and microstate in Oceania, in the Central Pacific. Its nearest neighbour is Banaba Island in Ki ...

first competed at the

Summer Olympic Games The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inau ...

in the 1996 games in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

. It is the least populated nation in the 206-member

International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swiss ...

. The nation is mainly known for its weightlifting tradition and all seven athletes that had competed for Nauru at the Olympics before 2012 were weightlifters. Under the leadership of

Vinson Detenamo Vinson Franco Detenamo (born 1954 in Buada) is a Nauruan politician. Since the 1980s, Detenamo has been a member of the Parliament of Nauru for Buada. He served as the Minister of Interior and Finance. He served as Minister Assisting the Presid ...

, the Olympic movement began in Nauru in the early 1990s. The Olympic Committee was established in 1991 and talks with the

started the same year. In May 1994 Nauru presented its bid to join the IOC and in September 1994 the nation was accepted, clearing the path for participation in the 1996 games. 1996 was not the first time that Nauru athletes participated in the Olympics. After his win in the

1990 Commonwealth Games The 1990 Commonwealth Games ( mi, 1990 Taumāhekeheke Commonwealth) were held in Auckland, New Zealand from 24 January – 3 February 1990. It was the 14th Commonwealth Games, and part of New Zealand's 1990 sesquicentennial celebrations. Partic ...

, weightlifter

Marcus Stephen Marcus Ajemada Stephen (born 1 October 1969) is a Nauruan politician and former sportsperson who previously was a member of the Cabinet of Nauru, and who served as President of Nauru from December 2007 to November 2011. The son of Nauruan parli ...

petitioned for citizenship of

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands (Manono Island, Manono an ...

to compete in the 1992 games. Stephen competed for Nauru at the Olympics in 1996 and 2000, placing 11th in the 62 kg category in 2000. In 2009, he replaced Vinson Detenamo as president of Nauru's National Olympic Committee."Nauru president claims national Olympic committee ledaership"
, ABC Radio Australia, January 26, 2009 Paul Coffa is the weightlifting coach of the Oceania Weightlifting Federation and has been Nauru's Olympic coach since 1994.

Medal tables

Medals by Summer Games

Athletes

*Weightlifting **

– 1996, 2000 (First Olympian) **

Quincy Detenamo Quincy Saul Detenamo (born 8 March 1979) was an Olympic weightlifter who was found guilty of manslaughter in Australia. Biography Quincy Detenamo was born in Buada, Nauru. He was one of only a few athletes who represented his country at the 199 ...

– 1996 **

Gerard Garabwan Gerard Darrien Garabwan (10 March 1971) is a former weightlifter who competed for Nauru at the 1996 Summer Olympic Games. He was a plumber when he was picked to represent his nation at the Olympics, he had already competed at the 1995 World Cup ...

– 1996 **

Sheeva Peo Sheeva Ramanda Peo-Cook (7 November 1976) was the inaugural woman to compete at the Olympics for Nauru when she entered weightlifting at the super heavyweight class in the 2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Game ...

– 2000 (First Female Olympian) **

Reanna Solomon Reanna Solomon (16 December 1981 – 1 July 2022) was a Nauruan weightlifter. She was the first female Nauruan athlete to win a Commonwealth Games gold medal, and remains one of the only three Nauruans ever to have won a Commonwealth Games gold, ...

– 2004 **

Itte Detenamo Itte Junior Ronson Detenamo (born 22 September 1986 in Buada) is a Nauruan weightlifter competing in the +105 kg category. Detenamo represented Nauru at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, finishing 14th in the men's 105+kg category. He ...

– 2004, 2008, 2012 **

Yukio Peter Yukio Stinson Peter (born 29 January 1984 in Aiwo) is a weightlifter from Nauru. Career 2004 Yukio snatched 142.5 kg and clean and jerked 165 kg (total 307.5 kg) to place eighth at the 2004 Olympic Games in the Men's 69 kg div ...

– 2004 *Judo **

Sled Dowabobo Sled Tavare Dowabobo (born 31 March 1983) is a Nauruan judoka. He participated at the 2012 Summer Olympics in the Men's 73 kg event, but was eliminated in the first round by Navruz Jurakobilov Navruz Jurakobilov is an Uzbek judoka. He compe ...

– 2012

References

External links

* * * {{Nauru-sport-stub

Medal tables

Medals by Summer Games

Athletes

See also

References

External links