Antigua and Barbuda Antigua and Barbuda (, ) is a sovereign country in the West Indies. It lies at the juncture of the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean in the Leeward Islands part of the Lesser Antilles, at 17°N latitude. The country consists of two maj ...

competed at the

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Na ...

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

, submitting a delegation that included athletes

Daniel Bailey Daniel Bakka Everton Bailey (born 9 September 1986) is a sprinter from Antigua and Barbuda who specializes in the 100m. Career Bailey represented Antigua and Barbuda at the 2004 Summer Olympics, the 2006 Commonwealth Games, the 2008 Summer Ol ...

, Brendan Christian,

James Grayman James Theophilus Grayman (born 11 October 1985) is a male high jumper from Antigua and Barbuda. He was born and raised in Parham Town by his mother Evelyn Sheppard. His personal best jump is 2.27 metres, achieved in July 2007 in Pergine Vals ...

, and

Sonia Williams Sonia Olivia Williams (born May 28, 1979 in St. Johns) is a female track and field sprint athlete who competes internationally for Antigua and Barbuda.

in track and field events, and Kareem Valentine in swimming. Antigua and Barbuda's appearance in Beijing marked its eighth appearance at the Summer Olympics since the nation's debut at the

1976 Summer Olympics Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phi ...

in Montréal, Canada. There were no medalists from Antigua and Barbuda in 2008, although Bailey reached the quarterfinals and Christian the semifinals of their respective events.

Background

Antigua and Barbuda participated in eight Olympic Games between its debut at the

in Montréal and its 2008 appearance in Beijing, competing in every edition except for the

1980 Summer Olympics The 1980 Summer Olympics (russian: Летние Олимпийские игры 1980, Letniye Olimpiyskiye igry 1980), officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad (russian: Игры XXII Олимпиады, Igry XXII Olimpiady) and commo ...

in Moscow. The 2008 Summer Olympic delegation was smaller than those of the 1980s and 1990s, when they were composed of thirteen or more athletes, but, with five participants, it was the same size that it had been at the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...

in Athens. As of the conclusion of the Beijing Games, no Antiguan or Barbudan athlete has won a medal, although Brendan Christian progressed to semifinals and

to quarterfinals of their respective events in 2008. At the 2008 games Kareem Valentine was the youngest athlete at fifteen years of age and Sonia Williams was the eldest at twenty-nine. The Foreign Ministry of Antigua and Barbuda supported the Chinese handling of the

civil unrest Civil disorder, also known as civil disturbance, civil unrest, or social unrest is a situation arising from a mass act of civil disobedience (such as a demonstration, riot, strike, or unlawful assembly) in which law enforcement has difficulty m ...

Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, ...

, an issue marred in controversy due to self-immolations by

Tibetans The Tibetan people (; ) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Tibet. Their current population is estimated to be around 6.7 million. In addition to the majority living in Tibet Autonomous Region of China, significant numbers of Tibetans live ...

and numerous crackdowns on protesters, and expressed support for Chinese efforts to host the Olympics in Beijing despite the controversy. The flag-bearer for the Games was James Grayman, an

Antigua Antigua ( ), also known as Waladli or Wadadli by the native population, is an island in the Lesser Antilles. It is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region and the main island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua and Bar ...

n athlete.

Athletics

Men's 100 meters

Antigua Track Club athlete Daniel Everton "Bakka" Bailey competed in the men's 100 m dash on behalf of Antigua and Barbuda and was that year's only Antiguan to take part in the event. His participation in Beijing marked his second appearance in the Olympic games, following the

in Athens. In Beijing he was assigned to Heat 1 during the first round on August 14, competing against

Usain Bolt Usain St. Leo Bolt, , (; born 21 August 1986) is a retired Jamaican sprinter, widely considered to be the greatest sprinter of all time. He is the world record holder in the 100 metres, 200 metres, and 4 × 100 metres relay. An eight- ...

of Jamaica and Vicente Lima of Brazil, among others. Bailey ran the event in 10.24 seconds, coming in second place in a heat of eight people, placing behind heat leader Bolt by 0.04 seconds and ahead of Lima by 0.02 seconds. Overall, in the first round, Bailey tied Trinidad and Tobago's Richard Thompson for tenth place out of eighty athletes. Bailey advanced to the quarterfinals, which occurred later that day. Bailey was placed in Heat 5 against, among others, the United States'

Walter Dix Walter Dix (born January 31, 1986) is a retired American sprinter who specialized in the 100 meters and 200 meters. He is the sixth-fastest 200-meter runner ever with a best of 19.53 seconds, and has broken the 10-second barrier in the 100 ...

and Jamaica's

Asafa Powell Asafa Powell, CD (born 23 November 1982) is a retired Jamaican sprinter who specialised in the 100 metres. He set the 100 metres world record twice, between June 2005 and May 2008 with times of 9.77 and 9.74 seconds. Powell has consiste ...

, completing the second round in 10.23 seconds. He ranked fourth out of eight in the event, falling behind

Derrick Atkins Derrick Atkins (born 5 January 1984) is a Bahamian sprinter. Atkins specializes in the 100 metres event and also holds the national record, with a time of 9.91 seconds. He is the second cousin of former world record holder Asafa Powell. Atkin ...

of the Bahamas (3rd place with a time of 10.14 seconds) and ahead of Ghana's Aziz Zakari (5th place with a time of 10.24 seconds). Overall, Bailey tied Japan's Naoki Tsukahara for twentieth place out of forty remaining athletes and did not progress to semifinals.

Men's 200 meters

Former

University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

student Brendan Kyle Akeem Christian participated on behalf of Antigua and Barbuda in the 200 m dash at the Beijing Olympics. Christian, who broke the best American high school time in the 100 m and 200 m dashes, is the son of former Olympian

Donald Christian Donald Christian (28 August 1958 – 15 May 2011) was an Antiguan cyclist. He competed in the 1000m time trial and individual pursuit events at the 1976 Summer Olympics Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant ...

, a cyclist for Antigua and Barbuda at the

. Brendan's participation marked his second Olympic appearance, having competed in the

. In Beijing he raced in Heat 8 during the first round of the event on August 17. He ranked second place out of eight athletes, falling behind heat leader

Aaron Armstrong Aaron Nigel Armstrong (born 14 October 1977) is a track and field sprint athlete who competes internationally for Trinidad and Tobago. He is the 2008 Olympic champion in 4 × 100 metres relay. Armstrong attended the University of Florida in Ga ...

of Trinidad and Tobago by 0.01 seconds and placing ahead of Canada's

Jared Connaughton Jared Connaughton (born July 20, 1985) is a Canadian former track athlete who specialized in the 100m and 200m. He is now a physical education cross country, and track and field coach at a private school in Fort Worth, Texas (Fort Worth Country D ...

by 0.02 seconds. Overall, Christian tied Trinidad and Tobago's

Rondel Sorrillo Rondel Kelvin Sorrillo (born 24 January 1986) is a Trinidad and Tobago sprinter, who specializes in the 200 meters. He was the first University of Kentucky athlete to win the men's 200 m title at the NCAA championships, winning it in 2010. Sorr ...

and Japan's

Shinji Takahira is a Japanese sprinter who specialises in the 100 and 200 metres.

for ninth place out of sixty-six athletes. The next day Christian participated in the quarterfinals and was placed in Heat 3 against athletes that included

Churandy Martina Churandy Thomas Martina (born 3 July 1984) is a Dutch sprinter from Curaçao, currently representing the Netherlands. Previously, he represented the Netherlands Antilles until its dissolution in 2010. His personal best time over 100 metres ...

of the Netherlands Antilles and

Kristof Beyens Kristof Beyens (born 13 July 1983 in Herentals) is a Belgian Sprint (running), sprint Track and field athletics, athlete, who specialises in the 100 metres, 100 and 200 metres. His personal best time over 200 metres is 20.44 s, achieved in Osaka ...

of Belgium. Christian took first place in the race with a time of 20.26 seconds, beating second-place finalist Martina by 0.18 seconds and ranking second overall out of thirty-two athletes. Christian fell behind the overall quarterfinal leader Brian Dzingai of Zimbabwe by 0.03 seconds and defeated the United States'

by 0.01 seconds. Christian advanced to semifinals, which took place on the same day. Christian competed in Heat 2 against

of Jamaica,

Shawn Crawford Shawn Crawford (born January 14, 1978) is a retired American sprint athlete. He competed in the 100 meters and 200 meters events. In the 200 meter sprint, Crawford won gold at the 2004 Summer Olympics and silver at the 2008 Summer Olym ...

of the United States, and

Kim Collins Kim Collins (born 5 April 1976) is a former track and field sprinter from Saint Kitts and Nevis. In 2003, he became the World Champion in the 100 metres. He represented his country at the Summer Olympics on five occasions, from 1996 to 2016, a ...

of Saint Kitts and Nevis, among others, and ranked fifth out of eight after running a time of 20.29 seconds. Collins ran 0.04 seconds faster than Christian, while Mauritius' Stephen Buckland ran 0.11 seconds slower. Christian did not advance to the final round.

Men's high jump

James Grayman competed in the Beijing Olympics as Antigua and Barbuda's sole high jumper, where he participated in the second qualifying heat on August 17 against athletes that included Brazil's Jesse Lima and the Czech Republic's Tomáš Janků. Grayman cleared a 2.20 meter height on his second attempt, placing behind tenth-place heat finalist Dmytro Dem'yanyuk of the Ukraine, who made the height on his first try, and eleventh-place heat finalist Linus Thörnblad of Sweden, who also made the height on his second attempt, but had fewer overall misses than Grayman. He finished ahead of the three thirteenth-place heat finalists (Italy's Alessandro Talotti, Spain's

Javier Bermejo Javier Bermejo Merino (born 23 December 1978 in Puertollano) is a Spanish athlete specializing in the high jump. He competed at the 2004 and 2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and a ...

, and Botswana's

Kabelo Kgosiemang Kabelo Kgosiemang (born 7 January 1986) is a high jumper from Botswana. He has won the high jump at the African Championships in Athletics on five consecutive occasions. His personal best, also the current national record of Botswana, was set i ...

) and the sixteenth-place heat finalist ( Hup Wei Lee of Malaysia) who achieved the same height, but did so in three tries. Overall, Grayman ranked 28th out of 40 competitors and did not advance to finals on August 19.

Women's 100 meters

Sonia Williams competed for Antigua and Barbuda in the women's 100 m dash and was the only female member of the Antiguan national delegation in Beijing. Her participation these Games marked her second Olympic appearance, her first having been at the

1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

in Atlanta. In Beijing Williams participated in the first round of the event on August 15, when she was placed in Heat 5 against athletes that included Belgian

Kim Gevaert Kim Gevaert (born 5 August 1978 in Leuven) is a former sprint athlete and Olympic champion from Belgium. Career Her closest brush with a world title came in running 4/100 of a second behind three-time champion Gail Devers at the 2004 IAAF Wor ...

and Belarusian

Yuliya Nestsiarenka Yuliya Nesterenko (alt. spelling: Yulia Nestsiarenka, née Bartsevich ( be, Юлія Несцярэнка, ; russian: Юлия Нестеренко, ; born 15 June 1979) is a Belarusian sprinter, Olympic 100 meters champion of 2004. Nesterenko ...

. She completed the race in 12.04 seconds, finishing sixth out of eight athletes. Guam's Cora Alicto, the seventh place finalist, ran 1.35 seconds slower than Williams, while the fifth place finalist,

Chisato Fukushima is a track and field sprint athlete who competes internationally for Japan. She is the Japanese record holder in the women's 100 metres and 200 metres. Career She began her career with appearances in the sprints at the 2005 World Youth Champi ...

of Japan, ran 0.3 seconds faster. Gevaert, who was the heat leader, earned a time that was 0.71 seconds faster than Williams'. Overall, Williams ranked 54th out of 85 athletes and did not progress to quarterfinals.

Summary

;Men ;Track & road events ;Field events ;Women ;Track & road events ;Key *Note–Ranks given for track events are within the athlete's heat only *Q = Qualified for the next round *q = Qualified for the next round as a fastest loser ''or'', in field events, by position without achieving the qualifying target *NR = National record *N/A = Round not applicable for the event *Bye = Athlete not required to compete in round

Swimming

Fifteen-year-old Kareem "Grinny" Valentine Sandoval was the only person to compete in a swimming event from Antigua and Barbuda in 2008. At the time he was in his third year in high school. He competed in the men's 50 m freestyle, taking part in the August 14 preliminaries. His participation in the event marked the fifth time that he had swum in a pool, as he usually practiced in the ocean. During the course of his event Valentine was placed in Heat 2 of 12 against swimmers that included

Thepphithak Chindavong Thepphithak Chindavong is a Laotian freestyle swimmer who competed in the 2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport even ...

of Laos. Valentine swam the event in 31.23 seconds, ranking fifth among six competitors.

Stany Kempompo Ngangola Stany Kempompo Ngangola (born 8 January 1974), is a swimmer and electrical engineer from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. He DR Congo at the 2008 Summer Olympics, represented his country at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. Due to a misprin ...

of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (6th) finished nearly four seconds behind him with a time of 35.19 seconds, while Chindavong led the heat with a time of 29.31 seconds. Overall, Valentine ranked 96th out of 97 swimmers in the event and did not advance to semifinals, which were held that same day. ;Men

References

{{Country at games navbox, Antigua and Barbuda, Summer Olympics Nations at the 2008 Summer Olympics

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

Summer Olympics 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 ...