Turkey competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 5 to 21 August 2016. Since the nation's debut in 1908, Turkish athletes have appeared in every edition of the Summer Olympic Games, except for three occasions. Turkey failed to register any athletes at the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp, did not attend the 1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles during the worldwide Great Depression, and also joined the United States-led boycott, when Moscow hosted the 1980 Summer Olympics. The Turkish team consisted of 103 athletes, 55 men and 48 women, across twenty-one sports.
Turkey returned home from Rio de Janeiro with eight medals (one gold, three silver, and four bronze), a vast improvement on the nation's overall medal count from the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. Five of these medals were awarded to the wrestlers, including a sole golden glory from double world champion Taha Akgül in the men's super heavyweight freestyle (125 kg), and a runner-up feat from reigning world and multiple-time European champion Rıza Kayaalp in the Greco-Roman discipline, despite his failed attempt to avert a historic golden "three-peat" set forth by his Cuban rival Mijaín López.
Apart from the wrestlers, three Turkish athletes collected the rest of the country's medals in their respective individual sports. Among them were Cuban-born track sprinter Yasmani Copello in the men's 400 m hurdles, taekwondo fighter Nur Tatar in the women's welterweight division (67 kg), and Turkmen-born weightlifter Daniyar İsmayilov, who ended the country's momentary medal drought in his signature sport with a scintillating silver in the men's 69 kg category.
Medalists
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Medal Name Sport Event Date Wrestling Men's freestyle 125 kg Weightlifting Men's 69 kg Wrestling Men's Greco-Roman 130 kg Wrestling Men's freestyle 86 kg Wrestling Men's Greco-Roman 98 kg Athletics Men's 400 m hurdles Wrestling Men's freestyle 74 kg Taekwondo Women's 67 kg
| width=22% align=left valign=top | Medals by sportSport TotalWrestling1225Weightlifting0101Athletics0011Taekwondo0011 Total 1 3 4 8
Medals by genderGender TotalMale1337Female0011Total 1 3 4 8
Competitors The Turkish Olympic Committee () fielded a roster of 103 athletes, 55 men and 48 women, to compete across twenty-one different sports at these Games; it was the nation's second-largest delegation sent to the Olympics, relatively smaller by eleven athletes than in London four years earlier. Women's basketball was the only collective sport in which Turkey qualified for the Games, having returned to the Olympic scene for the second straight time. These Games also witnessed several Turkish athletes compete for the first time in the women's modern pentathlon, as well as in equestrian jumping (1960) and fencing (1984) after long years of absence.
Track and field accounted for the most number of athletes on the Turkish team by an individual-based sport, with 31 entries (20 men and 11 women). There was only a single competitor each in badminton, sprint kayaking, equestrian jumping, fencing, modern pentathlon, and tennis.
The Turkish roster featured all three medalists returning from London 2012, namely taekwondo fighters Nur Tatar (women's 67 kg) and defending titleholder Servet Tazegül (men's 68 kg), and Greco-Roman wrestler Rıza Kayaalp, who entered his third straight Games as the reigning world champion, a multiple-time European champion, and a top medal favorite in the super heavyweight category. Because of his sporting successes, Kayaalp was nominated by TMOK to become the country's flag bearer in the opening ceremony.
Nearly a quarter of the Turkish athletes representing at these Games were born in the overseas, with several of them coming from Africa and former Soviet nations. Among the foreign-born athletes were track sprinters Jak Ali Harvey (Jamaica) and Ramil Guliyev (Azerbaijan), track hurdler Yasmani Copello (Cuba), breaststroke swimmer and four-time world junior champion Zeynep Güneş (Ukraine), three-time Olympians Melek Hu (table tennis player, China) and Karin Melis Mey (long jumper, South Africa), and world-ranked weightlifter Daniyar İsmayilov (Turkmenistan).
Other notable athletes on the Turkish squad included sailing brothers Ateş and Deniz Çınar in the men's 470 class, double world champion and top medal favorite Taha Akgül in the men's super heavyweight freestyle (125 kg), and hammer thrower and 2004 bronze medalist Eşref Apak, who headed the roster as the lone competitor going to his fourth straight Olympics. Seventeen-year-old gymnast Tutya Yılmaz was Turkey's youngest athlete of the Games, with pistol shooter and three-time Olympian Yusuf Dikeç rounding out the field as the oldest competitor (aged 43).
| width=78% align=left valign=top | SportMenWomenTotalArchery 1 1 2Athletics 20 11 31Badminton 0 1 1Basketball 0 12 12Boxing 6 0 6Canoeing 0 1 1Cycling 2 0 2Equestrian 1 0 1Fencing 0 1 1Gymnastics 1 1 2Judo 1 3 4Modern pentathlon 0 1 1Rowing 2 0 2Sailing 4 2 6Shooting 4 0 4Swimming 1 3 4Table tennis 1 1 2Taekwondo 1 1 2Tennis 0 1 1Weightlifting 1 3 4Wrestling 9 5 14 Total 55 48 103
Archery
One Turkish archer has qualified each for the men's and women's individual recurve at the Olympics by securing one of three available Olympic spots at the 2016 European Championships in Nottingham, Great Britain.
AthleteEventRanking roundRound of 64Round of 32Round of 16QuarterfinalsSemifinalsFinal / ScoreSeedOppositionScoreOppositionScoreOppositionScoreOppositionScoreOppositionScoreOppositionScoreRankMete GazozMen's individual66129W 6*–5L 3–7Did not advanceYasemin Ecem AnagözWomen's individual63825W 6*–5L 5–6*Did not advance
Athletics
Turkish 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 AthleteEventHeatQuarterfinalSemifinalFinalResultRankResultRankResultRankResultRankJak Ali Harvey100 mcolspan=2 10.142 Q10.034Did not advance200 m20.586colspan=2 Did not advanceRamil Guliyev200 m20.232 Qcolspan=2 20.094 q20.438İlham Tanui Özbilen1500 m3:49.0213colspan=2 Did not advanceAli Kaya5000 m14:05.3419colspan=4 Did not advanceAli Kaya10000 mcolspan=6 Polat Kemboi Arıkancolspan=6 27:35.5013Yasmani Copello400 m hurdles49.521 Qcolspan=2 48.613 q47.92Aras Kaya3000 m steeplechase8:32.358colspan=4 Did not advanceHalil Akkaş8:33.127colspan=4 Did not advanceTarık Langat Akdağcolspan=4 Did not advanceEmre Zafer BarnesUmutcan Cumali EmektaşJak Ali HarveyRamil Guliyevİzzet SaferFurkan Şen4 × 100 m relay38.304colspan=4 Did not advanceBekir KarayelMarathoncolspan=6 2:31:27126Ercan Muslucolspan=6 2:18:4051Kaan Kigen Özbilencolspan=6 2:14:1117Ersin Tacir20 km walkcolspan=6 1:22.5330Mert Atlıcolspan=6 1:31.3662
Women AthleteEventHeatFinalResultRankResultRankYasemin Can5000 m15:19.502 Q14:56.96610000 mcolspan=2 30:26.417Meryem Akda3000 m steeplechase9:50.2814Did not advanceÖzlem Kaya9:32.039Did not advanceTuğba Güvenç9:49.9314Did not advanceEsma AydemirMarathoncolspan=2 2:39.5958Sultan Haydarcolspan=2 2:53.57111Meryem Erdoğancolspan=2 2:54.04112
Field events AthleteEventQualificationFinalDistancePositionDistancePositionŞeref OsmanoğluMen's triple jump—Did not advanceEşref ApakMen's hammer throw70.0815Did not advanceKarin Melis MeyWomen's long jump6.4914Did not advanceEmel DereliWomen's shot put17.0124Did not advanceKıvılcım KayaWomen's hammer throw64.7926Did not advanceTuğçe Şahutoğlu67.0521Did not advance
Badminton
Turkey has qualified one badminton player for the women's singles into the Olympic tournament. Özge Bayrak had claimed her Olympic spot as one of top 34 individual shuttlers in the BWF World Rankings as of 5 May 2016.
AthleteEventGroup stageEliminationQuarterfinalSemifinalFinal / OppositionScoreOppositionScoreRankOppositionScoreOppositionScoreOppositionScoreOppositionScoreRankÖzge BayrakWomen's singlesW (21–14, 21–9)L (11–21, 7–21)2Did not advance
Basketball
Women's tournament
Turkey women's basketball team qualified for the Olympics with a quarterfinal victory at the 2016 FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Nantes, France.
Team roster
Group play
Quarter-final
Boxing
Turkey has entered five boxers to compete in the following weight classes into the Olympic boxing tournament. Onur Şipal became the first Turkish boxer to be selected to the Olympic team with a top two finish of his respective weight division in the AIBA Pro Boxing series. Meanwhile, three further boxers (Gozgec, Ünal, and Demirezen) had claimed their Olympic spots with box-off victories at the 2016 European Qualification Tournament in Samsun.
London 2012 Olympian Selçuk Eker secured an additional Olympic place on the Turkish roster at the 2016 AIBA World Qualifying Tournament in Baku, Azerbaijan, while Şipal's younger brother Önder completed the boxing lineup with his box-off triumph at the 2016 APB and WSB Olympic Qualifier in Vargas, Venezuela.
AthleteEventRound of 32Round of 16QuarterfinalsSemifinalsFinalOppositionResultOppositionResultOppositionResultOppositionResultOppositionResultRankSelçuk EkerMen's flyweightL 1–2Did not advanceBatuhan GözgeçMen's light welterweightW 3–0W 3–0L 0–3Did not advanceOnur ŞipalMen's welterweightL 0–3Did not advanceÖnder ŞipalMen's middleweightW 2–1L 0–3Did not advanceMehmet Nadir ÜnalMen's light heavyweightW L 0–3Did not advanceAli Eren DemirezenMen's super heavyweightL 0–3Did not advance
Canoeing
Sprint Turkish canoeists have qualified one boat in each of the following events through the 2015 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships.
AthleteEventHeatsSemifinalsFinalTimeRankTimeRankTimeRank Lasma LiepaWomen's K-1 200 m41.7604 Q41.8667Did not advanceWomen's K-1 500 m1:59.5815 Q2:08.4507Did not advance Qualification Legend: FA = Qualify to final (medal); FB = Qualify to final B (non-medal)
Cycling
Road Turkish riders qualified for a maximum of two quota places in the men's Olympic road race by virtue of their top 15 final national ranking in the 2015 UCI Europe Tour.
AthleteEventTimeRankOnur BalkanMen's road raceDid not finishAhmet ÖrkenMen's road raceDid not finishMen's time trial1:27:37.4134
Equestrian
Turkey has entered one jumping rider into the Olympic equestrian competition by virtue of a top national finish from Central & Eastern Europe in the individual FEI Olympic Rankings. This signified the nation's Olympic return to the sport for the first time since 1960.
Jumping AthleteHorseEventQualificationFinalTotalRound 1Round 2Round 3Round ARound BPenaltiesRankPenaltiesTotalRankPenaltiesTotalRankPenaltiesRankPenaltiesTotalRankPenaltiesRankÖmer KaraevliRoso au CrosnierIndividual1361Did not advance
Fencing
Turkey has entered one fencer into the Olympic competition, signifying the nation's sporting comeback for the first time since 1984. İrem Karamete had claimed her Olympic spot in the women's foil by finishing among the top four individuals at the European Zonal Qualifier in Prague, Czech Republic.
AthleteEventRound of 64Round of 32Round of 16QuarterfinalSemifinalFinal / OppositionScoreOppositionScoreOppositionScoreOppositionScoreOppositionScoreOppositionScoreRankİrem KarameteWomen's foilL 6–15Did not advance
Gymnastics
Artistic Turkey has entered two artistic gymnasts into the Olympic competition. Ferhat Arican and Tutya Yılmaz had claimed their Olympic spots each in the men's and women's apparatus and all-around events, respectively, at the Olympic Test Event in Rio de Janeiro.
Men AthleteEventQualificationFinalApparatusTotalRankApparatusTotalRankFerhat AricanAll-around13.13313.86613.73313.53314.73313.63382.63141Did not advance
Women AthleteEventQualificationFinalApparatusTotalRankApparatusTotalRankTutya YılmazAll-around13.73312.16614.50012.73353.13242Did not advance
Judo