Solomon Islands at the 2008 Summer Olympics

The Solomon Islands send a team to compete at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China. The country's delegation consisted of three athletes competing in two sports across three distinct events; Francis Manioru and Pauline Kwalea represented the Solomon Islands in track, while Wendy Hale competed in weightlifting. The arrival of the Solomon Islander delegation in Beijing marked its seventh appearance since its debut at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. The track athletes did not advance past the first rounds in their events. There were no medalists from the Solomon Islander athletes in these Games. Wendy Hale was the Solomon Islands' flagbearer during the Games' opening ceremony.

Background

The Solomon Islands are a group consisting of approximately a thousand islands that serves as home to almost 600,000 people. The island chain was designated a protectorate of the United Kingdom in the 1890s, and remained under British control during World War II, where the island chain was the center of some of the war's worst fighting. In 1976, the Solomon Islands won the right to self-government from the British, and declared independence in 1978. The nation fell into a period of civil instability between then and 2003, when Australia led a military force to restore law and order in the country.

The first Solomon Islander delegation to the Olympics arrived some six years after the nation's independence for the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California, and was composed of three male athletes competing in two sports. The island nation continued to send delegations to the Olympics throughout its era of civil disorder; delegations from the Solomon Islands appeared at all seven Summer Olympic games prior to (and including) the Beijing games of 2008. The first women represented the Solomon Islands at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia. The largest delegations from the Solomon Islands included four athletes and appeared in 1988 and 1996. Up to and including the Beijing games, there had not been a Solomon Islander who had won a medal at the Olympics.

During the 2008 Summer Olympics, three athletes (one male and two female) participated across two sports in three distinct events. Pauline Kwalea, the year's female sprinter, was the youngest member of the delegation at 20 years old. Male sprinter Francis Manioru, at 26 years old, was the oldest. Weighlifter Wendy Hale bore the flag of the Solomon Islands at the ceremonies.

Athletics

Sprinter Francis Manioru represented the Solomon Islands at Beijing in the men's 100 meters dash as its only male track and field athlete. Born in September 1981, Manioru was 22 years old when he first competed in the men's 100 meters dash at the 2004 Olympics in Athens. He ranked seventh in his heat and did not advance past the qualification round. However, Manioru returned as a 26-year-old to participate in the 2008 Olympics. During the qualification round of the event, which took place on 14 August, Manioru was placed in the first heat against seven other athletes. He finished the race in 11.09 seconds, placing behind ni-Vanuatu sprinter Moses Kamut (10.81 seconds), who in turn placed behind Surinamese sprinter Jurgen Themen

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