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Africa's 2016 Olympic winners

23 August 2016

Africa returns home from the Rio Olympics this week with an impressive medal tally, including 10 golds and 19 silvers. Apart from high profile wins by South Africa's Wayde van Niekerk and Caster Semenya, and outstanding track event performances by Kenya and Ethiopia, countries such as Niger, Côte d'Ivoire and Burundi also claimed medals.

Here is an overview of Africans who won medals in their various sporting disciplines.

South Africa

Flag bearers inside the Maracana Stadium with Caster Semenya proudly carrying our flag #teamSArise pic.twitter.com/EHb9OQyU60

— TeamSouthAfrica (@teamsa16) August 21, 2016

While Wayde van Niekerk and Caster Semenya grabbed headlines with their outstanding gold medal wins (Van Niekerk also broke a world record and Semenya silenced her critics with a breath-taking performance), South Africa also scooped six silver medals.

Swimmers Cameron van der Burgh and Chad le Clos picked up three silvers, with le Clos standing out with two silvers in the much-anticipated show-down with American swimmer Michael Phelps in both the 200m freestyle and 100m butterfly. Van der Burgh won his medal in the 100m breaststroke.

Sunette Viljoen won silver in the women's javelin throw, improving on her 4th place in London in 2012. Luvo Manyonga silver in long jump rounded out an impressive track and field performance by South Africa.

Rowers Shaun Keeling and Lawrence Brittain won silver in the coxless double.

South Africa's two bronze medals were won by the rugby sevens team and triathlete Henri Schoeman.

Kenya

Amazing performance! Congratulations Vivian Cheruiyot for winning 5k Olympics Gold and Hellen Obiri Silver. #Rio2016 pic.twitter.com/WEvFqMoo7J

— AMB:Amina Mohamed (@AMB_A_Mohammed) August 20, 2016

As always Kenya shone on the track, where they collected 13 medals, including Vivian Cheruiyot's gold and silver in the 5 000m and 10 000m respectively. Eliud Kipchoge won the men's marathon, and Jemima Jelagat Sumgong won gold in the women's marathon. Other gold medals included David Rudisha (men's 800m) and Faith Kipyegon (women's 1 500m).

Kenya's medal haul included six silvers and a single bronze for Margaret Wambui who battled Caster Semenya in the women's 800m final.

Ethiopia

World honouring Ethiopian Olympian Almaz Ayana for slashing astonishing 14 seconds off 10,000m world record in Rio. pic.twitter.com/jrVlkkJ1MY

— James Hall (@hallaboutafrica) August 13, 2016

Another outstanding track performance by the Ethiopians saw Almaz Ayana win the women's 10 000m and bronze in the women's 5 000m. Genzebe Dibaba won silver (women's 1 500m) and Feyisa Lilesa came second in the men's marathon. The country also won five bronze medals.

Côte d'Ivoire

Cheick Sallah Cisse becomes the first Athlete from Cote D'Ivoire win an Olympic Gold ever. #Rio2016 pic.twitter.com/xRgfEbbFuv

— Zaman Alferoz (@ZamanX90) August 20, 2016

Côte d'Ivoire surprised in Rio with gold and one bronze in the Taekwondo tournament.

Cheick Sallah Cisse won the men's 80kg final (the country's first Olympic gold medal) and Ruth Gbagbi won bronze in women's 67kg division. Cisse beat world number four Lutalo Muhammad from Great Britain with a dramatic last minute double reverse kick to win 8 points to 6.

Algeria

ICYMI #ALG had Taoufik Makhloufi pick up a silver medal in the Men's 1500m race at #Rio2016 #AfricaRocks pic.twitter.com/JbpGBhfGCW

— TransAfricaRadio (@TransAfrica872) August 21, 2016

Taoufik Makhloufi won double silver in both the men's 1 500m and 800m.

Other silver medals

Congrats to these inspirational women #CasterSemenya, #FrancineNiyonsaba #MargaretWambui #ItsPossible #Rio2016 pic.twitter.com/SWBF4IFqiy

— Epyk Living (@Epykliving) August 21, 2016

Burundi won its first Olympic medal since 1996 with a silver for Francine Niyonsaba in the women's 800m behind South Africa's Caster Semenya.

Niger had not won an Olympic medal since 1972. Issoufou Abdoul Razak broke Niger’s 46 year Olympic medal drought with a silver in the taekwondo men's 80kg final, losing to Radik Isaev from Azerbaijan.

Bronze medal winners

Egypt and Tunisia both won 3 bronze medals, while Morocco and Nigeria both come home with one bronze each.

Egypt earned two weightlifting medals, Sara Ahmed in the women's 69kg category and Mohamed Ihab in the men's 77kg event. Hedaya Wahba won bronze for taekwondo.

Tunisia won bronze medals in wrestling, fencing and taekwondo. Wrestler Marwa Amri become the first African woman to win a wrestling medal.

Marwa AMRI #TUN won Africa's first-ever medal in women’s #wrestling, also first- ever medal for Tunisia in wrestling pic.twitter.com/rLljMVQwHT

— World Wrestling (@wrestling) August 17, 2016

Morocco earned one bronze in the boxing tournament, while Nigeria, despite fielding a diverse array of Olympic sports including weightlifting, table tennis and rowing, could only make the medal podium once, bronze in the men's football tournament, beating Honduras and losing out to Brazil (gold) and Germany (silver).

Source: Sascoc

SouthAfrica.info reporter

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