Serbia at the 2016 Summer Olympics
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Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...
competed at the
2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...
in
Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...
,
Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
, from 5 to 21 August 2016. It was the nation's fourth appearance at the
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 ...
as an independent country. The
Olympic Committee of Serbia The Olympic Committee of Serbia ( sr, / ) is the National Olympic Committee representing Serbia. It organizes the country's representatives at the Olympic Games and other multisport events. Members of the committee are 47 sports federations, wh ...
confirmed a roster of 103 athletes, 58 men and 45 women, to compete across 14 sports at the Games. Serbia left Rio de Janeiro with a total of 8 medals (2 gold, 4 silver, and 2 bronze), achieving the nation's most successful feat in Summer Olympic history since the break-up of
Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
, and also doubling its previous medal tally from the
2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
in London. 54 Serbian athletes (about 52 percent of the whole team) contributed to the medal count, with the majority of those coming in the signature team sports ( men's water polo, men's and
women's A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female humans regardl ...
basketball, and women's volleyball). Five Serbian athletes collected medals in individual sports. Among them were Greco-Roman wrestler
Davor Štefanek Davor Štefanek ( sr-cyr, Давор Штефанек; born 12 September 1985) is a Serbian representative in Greco-Roman Wrestling, he was the 2014 World champion and the 2016 Olympic champion in the Greco-Roman 66 kg category. Biography At t ...
, the first Serbian to win an Olympic gold in the sport after 32 years; long jumper
Ivana Španović Ivana Vuleta (; sr-cyr, Ивана Вулета, , ; born 10 May 1990) is a Serbian long jumper, two-time World indoor champion, three times European indoor champion and reigning European champion. In 2013, Vuleta became the first Serbian tr ...
, the nation's first track and field athlete to stand on the Olympic podium in six decades; taekwondo fighter
Tijana Bogdanović Tijana Bogdanović ( sr-cyr, Тијана Богдановић; born 5 May 1998) is a Serbian taekwondo athlete. She considers fellow taekwondo practitioner Milica Mandić as her idol. Career Bogdanović pursued her interest in taekwondo at the ...
, who captured a silver in the women's flyweight category (49 kg); and kayak tandem
Marko Tomićević Marko Tomićević ( sr-cyr, Марко Томићевић, born 19 April 1990) is a Serbian sprint canoer. He won a silver medal in the K-2 1000 m event at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River ...
and
Milenko Zorić Milenko Zorić ( sr-cyr, Миленко Зорић, born 2 April 1989) is a Serbian sprint canoer. Biography At the 2016 Summer Olympics, he won with Marko Tomićević a silver team medal in the men's K-2 1000 m event. He also competed in the K ...
, who were runners-up in the long-distance double (men's K-2 1000 m).


Medalists

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Competitors

The
Olympic Committee of Serbia The Olympic Committee of Serbia ( sr, / ) is the National Olympic Committee representing Serbia. It organizes the country's representatives at the Olympic Games and other multisport events. Members of the committee are 47 sports federations, wh ...
fielded a team of 103 athletes, 58 men and 45 women, across fourteen sports at the Games. It was the nation's second-largest delegation sent to the Olympics, falling short of the record for the most number of athletes (116) achieved in London four years earlier by nearly 12 percent. Serbia qualified teams in men's water polo and women's volleyball, as well as both the men's and women's basketball for the first time in its Olympic history. Traditional collective sports accounted for nearly half of the nation's roster, amassing a combined total of 49 athletes. By individual-based sport, however, track and field constituted the largest percentage of athletes on the Serbian team, with 12 entries. There was a single competitor each in road cycling, mountain biking, judo, and table tennis. Highlighting the list of Serbian athletes were Beijing 2008 bronze medalist
Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic ( sr-Cyrl, Новак Ђоковић, translit=Novak Đoković, ; born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player. He has been ranked world No. 1 for a record total 373 weeks, and has finished as the year-end No. 1 ...
, who entered the Games as the world's top-ranked tennis player in the men's singles, and taekwondo fighter
Milica Mandić Milica Mandić ( sr-cyr, Милица Мандић, born 6 December 1991) is a Serbian taekwondo athlete. She is a two-time Olympic champion in the +67 kg category, as well as World champion in the same category. Career Mandić won a bronze m ...
, who became the country's first ever Olympic champion in London four years earlier. Rifle shooting legend Stevan Pletikosić, who officially made his sixth Olympic appearance, topped the nation's roster lineup as the oldest and most experienced competitor (aged 43). Meanwhile, Pletikosic's female counterpart Ivana Anđušić Maksimović, who followed her father Goran's sporting legacy to win a silver medal in the small-bore rifle at
London 2012 The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
, acted as the flag bearer for the Serbian team in the opening ceremony. Other notable athletes on the Serbian roster included long jumper and European outdoor champion
Ivana Španović Ivana Vuleta (; sr-cyr, Ивана Вулета, , ; born 10 May 1990) is a Serbian long jumper, two-time World indoor champion, three times European indoor champion and reigning European champion. In 2013, Vuleta became the first Serbian tr ...
, pistol shooters
Zorana Arunović Zorana Arunović ( sr-cyr, Зорана Аруновић; born 22 November 1986) is a Serbian Shooting sports, sport shooter. She won 10 metre air pistol event at the 2010 ISSF World Shooting Championships, 2010 World Shooting Championships and wa ...
(European Games gold medalist) and Andrea Arsović (European champion and world's top-ranked), freestyle swimmer and London 2012 finalist
Velimir Stjepanović Velimir Stjepanović (Serbian Cyrillic: Велимир Стјепановић; born 7 August 1993) is a Serbian professional swimmer currently representing DC Trident at the International Swimming League. He has won gold medals at the European ...
, water polo team captain
Živko Gocić Živko Gocić ( sr-cyrl, Живко Гоцић; born 22 August 1982) is a former Serbian water polo player. He was a member of the Serbian teams that won bronze medals at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics and a gold medal in 2016. He also held the worl ...
, and basketballers
Miloš Teodosić Miloš Teodosić ( sr-cyr, Милош Теодосић, born March 19, 1987) is a Serbian professional basketball player for Virtus Bologna of the Italian Lega Basket Serie A (LBA) and the EuroLeague. He also represents the National Basketball ...
(team captain and EuroLeague champion), Nikola Jokić (who currently played for
NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...
's
Denver Nuggets The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The team was founded as the D ...
) and
Ana Dabović Ana Dabović (Serbian Cyrillic: Ана Дабовић; born August 18, 1989) is a Serbian professional basketball player for the BLMA of the French Ligue 1 and EuroLeague Women. Standing at , she plays at the shooting guard position. She also ...
( WNBA's
Los Angeles Sparks The Los Angeles Sparks (LA Sparks) are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Sparks compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The team was foun ...
and
EuroBasket EuroBasket, also commonly referred to as the European Basketball Championship, is the main international basketball competition that is contested quadrennially, by the senior men's national teams that are governed by FIBA Europe, which is the E ...
MVP). The following is the list of number of competitors participating in the Games:


Athletics

Serbian athletes have so far achieved qualifying standards in the following athletics events (up to a maximum of 3 athletes in each event): ;Track & road events ;Men ;Women ;Field events ;Combined events – Men's decathlon


Basketball


Men's tournament

Serbia men's basketball team qualified for the Olympics by securing its lone outright berth and winning the final match over Puerto Rico at the Belgrade leg of the 2016 FIBA World Qualifying Tournament, signifying the nation's debut in the sport since it gained independence from Montenegro in 2006. ;Team roster ;Group play ---- ---- ---- ---- ;Quarterfinal ;Semifinal ;Gold medal match


Women's tournament

The Serbian women's basketball team qualified for the Olympics by winning the
EuroBasket Women 2015 The 2015 EuroBasket Women, European Women Basketball Championship, commonly called EuroBasket Women 2015, was the 35th edition of the continental tournament in women's basketball, sanctioned by the FIBA Europe. The tournament was co-held in Hunga ...
in
Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...
. ;Team roster ;Group play ---- ---- ---- ---- ;Quarterfinal ;Semifinal ;Bronze medal match


Canoeing


Sprint

Serbian canoeists have qualified one boat in each of the following events through the 2015 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships. ;Men ;Women Qualification Legend: FA = Qualify to final (medal); FB = Qualify to final B (non-medal)


Cycling


Road

Serbia has qualified one rider in the men's Olympic road race by virtue of his top 200 individual ranking in the
2015 UCI Europe Tour The 2015 UCI Europe Tour was the eleventh season of the UCI Europe Tour. The 2015 season began on 29 January 2015 with the Vuelta a Mallorca, Trofeo Santanyí-Ses Salines-Campos and ended on 25 October 2015 with the Tour of Aegean. The points le ...
.


Mountain biking

Serbia has qualified one mountain biker for the women's Olympic cross-country race, as a result of her nation's seventeenth-place finish in the UCI Olympic Ranking List of 25 May 2016.


Judo

Serbia has qualified one judoka for the men's middleweight category (90 kg) at the Games. Aleksander Kukolj was directly ranked among the top 22 eligible judokas for men in the IJF World Ranking List of 30 May 2016.


Rowing

Serbia has qualified two boats for each of the following rowing classes into the Olympic regatta. One rowing crew had confirmed Olympic place for their boat in the men's pair at the 2015 FISA World Championships in
Lac d'Aiguebelette Lac d'Aiguebelette is a natural lake in the commune of Aiguebelette-le-Lac, within the department of Savoie, France. Geography Description With a surface area of 5.45 km2 and a depth of 71 meters it is one of the largest natural lakes of Fr ...
,
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
, while the men's double sculls rowers had added one more boat to the Serbian roster as a result of their top two finish at the 2016 European & Final Qualification Regatta in
Lucerne Lucerne ( , ; High Alemannic German, High Alemannic: ''Lozärn'') or Luzern ()Other languages: gsw, Lozärn, label=Lucerne German; it, Lucerna ; rm, Lucerna . is a city in central Switzerland, in the Languages of Switzerland, German-speaking po ...
,
Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
. Qualification Legend: FA=Final A (medal); FB=Final B (non-medal); FC=Final C (non-medal); FD=Final D (non-medal); FE=Final E (non-medal); FF=Final F (non-medal); SA/B=Semifinals A/B; SC/D=Semifinals C/D; SE/F=Semifinals E/F; QF=Quarterfinals; R=Repechage


Shooting

Serbian shooters have achieved quota places for the following events by virtue of their best finishes at the 2014 ISSF World Shooting Championships, the 2015 ISSF World Cup series, and European Championships or Games, as long as they obtained a minimum qualifying score (MQS) by 31 March 2016. The entire shooting squad was named to the Serbian roster for the Games on 6 July 2016, with rifle specialist Stevan Pletikosić becoming the first male shooter to compete at his sixth Olympics. Notable absence in the roster was pistol legend
Jasna Šekarić Jasna Šekarić (; born 17 December 1965) is a Serbian sport shooter, considered as one of the most successful female shooters in ISSF history. She has won a total of five Olympic medals: one gold, three silvers and one bronze. She has also won ...
, who bid to establish a historic milestone as one of the first female athletes, alongside Georgian shooter
Nino Salukvadze Nino Salukvadze ( ka, ნინო სალუქვაძე; born 1 February 1969, in Tbilisi) is a female Georgian sport shooter. She is a nine-time Olympian and has won medals on three occasions. At age 19 and competing for the Soviet Unio ...
to appear in eight editions of the Games. ;Men ;Women


Swimming

Serbian swimmers have so far achieved qualifying standards in the following events (up to a maximum of 2 swimmers in each event at the Olympic Qualifying Time (OQT), and potentially 1 at the Olympic Selection Time (OST)):


Table tennis

Serbia has entered one athlete into the table tennis competition at the Games.
Aleksandar Karakašević Aleksandar Karakašević ( sr-cyr, Александар Каракашевић; born 9 December 1975) is a Serbian table tennis player. His powerful backhand has helped him win against some of the top players in the world. He won a bronze medal a ...
granted an invitation from ITTF to compete in the men's singles as one of the next seven highest-ranked eligible players, not yet qualified, on the Olympic Ranking List.


Taekwondo

Serbia entered two athletes into the taekwondo competition at the Olympics. Reigning Olympic champion
Milica Mandić Milica Mandić ( sr-cyr, Милица Мандић, born 6 December 1991) is a Serbian taekwondo athlete. She is a two-time Olympic champion in the +67 kg category, as well as World champion in the same category. Career Mandić won a bronze m ...
qualified automatically for the women's heavyweight category (+67 kg) by finishing in the top 6 WTF Olympic rankings. 2015 European Games silver medalist Tijana Bogdanović secured the remaining spot on the Serbian team by virtue of her top two finish in the women's flyweight category (49 kg) at the 2016 European Qualification Tournament in
Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...
,
Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
.


Tennis

Serbia has entered six tennis players (three men and three women) into the Olympic tournament. Beijing 2008 bronze medalist and world no. 1 seed
Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic ( sr-Cyrl, Новак Ђоковић, translit=Novak Đoković, ; born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player. He has been ranked world No. 1 for a record total 373 weeks, and has finished as the year-end No. 1 ...
and London 2012 Olympian
Viktor Troicki Viktor Troicki ( sr-Cyrl, Виктор Троицки, ; born 10 February 1986) is a Serbian former professional tennis player. He won his first ATP singles title at the 2010 Kremlin Cup, and his second and third ATP singles titles at the 2015 a ...
(world no. 21) qualified directly for the men's singles as three of the top 56 eligible players in the ATP World Rankings, while
Ana Ivanovic Ana Schweinsteiger ( sr, Ана Швајнштајгер / ''Ana Švajnštajger''; born 6 November 1987), professionally known by her birth name Ana Ivanovic (Ана Ивановић / ''Ana Ivanović'', ), is a Serbian former world No. 1 tenn ...
(world no. 25) and three-time Olympian
Jelena Janković Jelena Janković ( sr-Cyrl, Јелена Јанковић, ; born 28 February 1985) is a Serbian former tennis player. A former world No. 1, Janković reached the top ranking before her career-best major performance, a runner-up finish at the ...
(world no. 24) did so for the women's singles based on their WTA World Rankings as of 6 June 2016. Having been directly entered to the singles, Djokovic and Janković also opted to play with their partners
Nenad Zimonjić Nenad Zimonjić ( sr-Cyrl, Ненад Зимоњић, ; born 4 June 1976) is a Serbian former professional tennis player who was ranked world No. 1 in doubles. He is an eight-time Grand Slam champion, having won the 2008 and 2009 Wimbledon Cham ...
and
Aleksandra Krunić Aleksandra Krunić ( sr-Cyrl, Александра Крунић; born 15 March 1993) is a Serbian professional tennis player. She has won one singles title and six doubles titles on the WTA Tour along with one singles title on WTA 125 tournament ...
, respectively, in the men's and women's doubles.


Volleyball


Indoor


Women's tournament

The Serbian women's volleyball team qualified for the Olympics by reaching the top two towards the final match of the 2015 FIVB Volleyball Women's World Cup in
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
. Summary ;Team roster ;Group play ---- ---- ---- ---- ;Quarterfinal ;Semifinal ;Gold medal match


Water polo

;Summary


Men's tournament

The Serbian men's water polo team qualified for the Olympics by winning the 2015 FINA World League Super Final in
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
. ;Team roster ;Group play ---- ---- ---- ---- ;Quarterfinal ;Semifinal ;Gold medal match


Wrestling

Serbia has qualified three wrestlers for each the following weight classes into the Olympic competition. One of them finished among the top six to secure an Olympic spot in the men's Greco-Roman 66 kg at the 2015 World Championships, while two more Olympic places were awarded to Serbian wrestlers, who progressed to the top two finals at the 2016 European Qualification Tournament. ;Men's Greco-Roman


Reaction to Kosovo's participation

Because of Albanian boycotts after the
breakup of Yugoslavia The breakup of Yugoslavia occurred as a result of a series of political upheavals and conflicts during the early 1990s. After a period of political and economic crisis in the 1980s, constituent republics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yu ...
, only Serbs from Kosovo participated as part of
Serbia and Montenegro Serbia and Montenegro ( sr, Cрбија и Црна Гора, translit=Srbija i Crna Gora) was a country in Southeast Europe located in the Balkans that existed from 1992 to 2006, following the breakup of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yu ...
and
Serbia at the Olympics Serbia first participated at the Olympic Games in 1912 as the Kingdom of Serbia. The country returned to the Olympics as an independent team after ninety-six years at the 2008 Summer Olympics. History Despite not participating at the first O ...
. On 17 February 2008 Kosovo's Parliament declared independence from Serbia, but Serbia doesn't recognize it and considers it its southern province. On 9 December 2014 the
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 ...
recognized the
Olympic Committee of Kosovo The Olympic Committee of Kosovo ( sq, Komiteti Olimpik i Kosovës, sr, Олимпијски комитет Косова / ''Olimpijski komitet Kosova'') is the National Olympic Committee representing Kosovo. Officially established in 1992, the O ...
therefore
Kosovo Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a partially recognised state in Southeast Euro ...
is a participant at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In reaction to the decision of the International Olympic Committee to accept Kosovo as a full member,
Vlade Divac Vlade Divac ( sr-Cyrl, Владе Дивац, ; born February 3, 1968) is a Serbian professional basketball executive and former player who was most recently the vice president of basketball operations and general manager of the Sacramento Kings ...
said that the Serbian Olympic Committee did all they could while foreign minister
Ivica Dačić Ivica Dačić ( sr-cyr, Ивица Дачић, ; born 1 January 1966) is a Serbian politician serving as first deputy prime minister of Serbia and minister of foreign affairs since 2022, roles which he previously served under governments of Mirk ...
and minister of sports
Vanja Udovičić Vanja Udovičić ( sr-Cyrl, Вања Удовичић, ; born 12 September 1982) is a Serbian politician and former professional water polo player who served as minister of youth and sports from 2013 to 2022. An independent politician, he is a ...
expressed disapproval, with Divac adding there would be no boycott of the games. Prior to the Rio 2016 opening ceremony, Udovičić advised Serbian athletes to withdraw themselves from any medal ceremonies if they have to share the podium with athletes from Kosovo. Some athletes from Kosovo, such as volleyball player
Milena Rašić Milena Rašić ( sr-cyr, Милена Рашић; born 25 October 1990) is a retired Serbian professional volleyball player. She played for Serbia women's national volleyball team. She won a silver medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics and also comp ...
and basketball player Marko Simonović, participated as part of the Serbian team and both of them won medals.


See also

*
Serbia at the 2016 Summer Paralympics Serbia competed at the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 7 September to 18 September 2016. The first places the team qualified were for two athletes in shooting events. Medalists Disability classifications Every partic ...


References


External links


Olympic Committee of Serbia
* {{Country at games navbox, Serbia, Olympics
Olympics The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...
Nations at the 2016 Summer Olympics
2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...