Libya at the Olympics
The Libyan Olympic Committee was established to represent the country in 1962 and was officially recognized by the International Olympic Committee the very next year and the year after that; they participated in the Summer Games for the very first time.
The very first Libyan Olympian was Suliman Fighi Hassan who represented the country in the 1964 Summer Games held in Tokyo, Japan. He was set to run the marathon but was not able to actually start the race. In 1972, Libya opted to not participate in the Summer Games in Munich and in 1976; they joined the boycott initiated by many African nations of the Summer Games in Montreal, Canada.
They showed up in Moscow for the 1980 with the largest delegation that they ever had with 32 athletes and then joined the boycott of the 1984 Summer Games in Los Angeles, California, USA. They came back in 1988 and from then on have never missed a single Summer Games meet but all of their appearances have never come close to the size of their 1980 Olympic team.
Since their debut in the Summer Games, Libya is yet to win their first-ever Olympic medal and they have also never participated in the Winter Games like most of the African nations.
Trivia
- Libya marched in the opening ceremony of the 1964 Games, but then withdrew from the competition.
Related Pages
- List of all countries that have participated at the Olympic Games.
- About sport in Libya
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