Venezuela at the 2008 Summer Olympics explained

Noc:VEN
Nocname:Venezuelan Olympic Committee
Games:Summer Olympics
Year:2008
Website: 
Location:Beijing
Competitors:108
Sports:21
Flagbearer:María Soto (opening)
Dalia Contreras (closing)
Rank:80
Gold:0
Silver:0
Bronze:1
Appearances:auto
App Begin Year:1948

Venezuela competed in the 2008 Summer Olympics which was held in Beijing, People's Republic of China from August 8 to August 24, 2008.

Archery

See main article: article and Archery at the 2008 Summer Olympics.

Athletics

See main article: article and Athletics at the 2008 Summer Olympics.

Key
Men
AthleteEventHeatQuarterfinalSemifinalFinal
ResultRankResultRankResultRankResultRank
José Acevedo200 m21.065Did not advance
Luis FonsecaMarathon
Edward Villanueva800 m1:47.646Did not advance
Women

Boxing

See main article: article and Boxing at the 2008 Summer Olympics. Venezuela qualified six boxers for the Olympic boxing tournament. Manzanilla and Blanco were the first to qualify, earning spots at the 2007 World Championships.[1] Bermúdez, Sánchez, and González qualified at the first American qualifying tournament.[2] Payares was the last to qualify, doing so at the second qualifier.[3]

The team's record in Beijing was 3–6, with only Héctor Manzanilla winning more than one bout. Both Manzanilla and Alfonso Blanco made the quarterfinals, but neither won their bout.

AthleteEventRound of 32Round of 16QuarterfinalsSemifinalsFinal
Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Rank
Eduard BermúdezLight flyweight
L 2–11		Did not advance
Héctor ManzanillaBantamweight
W 13–10
W 17–6
L 9–13		Did not advance
Jonny SánchezLight welterweight
L 3–22		Did not advance
Alfonso BlancoMiddleweight
W 18–7
L 1–11		Did not advance
Luis GonzálezLight heavyweight
L 		Did not advance
José PayaresSuper heavyweight
L 5-7		Did not advance

Canoeing

See main article: article and Canoeing at the 2008 Summer Olympics.

Sprint

Both Venezuelan boats progressed to the semifinals, but finished last and did not advance to the final.

AthleteEventHeatsSemifinalsFinal
TimeRankTimeRankTimeRank
José Giovanni Ramos
Gabriel Rodríguez		Men's K-2 500 m1:34.2208 QS1:37.2859Did not advance
Zulmarys SánchezWomen's K-1 500 m1:57.7287 QS2:02.7649Did not advance
Qualification Legend: QS = Qualify to semi-final; QF = Qualify directly to final

Cycling

See main article: article and Cycling at the 2008 Summer Olympics.

Road

The top finish from a Venezuelan road racer was the 30th place from Jackson Rodríguez in the men's race. Neither woman finished within ten minutes of the leader.

AthleteEventTimeRank
Jackson RodríguezMen's road race6:26:1730
Danielys Garcíaalign=left rowspan=2Women's road race3:43:2554
Angie González3:43:2557

BMX

Venezuela sent former cruiser (22") world champion Jonathan Suárez to compete in BMX. He finished 8th in seeding, but finished 8th in the first of three quarterfinal races and could not advance.

Diving

See main article: article and Diving at the 2008 Summer Olympics. Ramón Fumadó was in position to qualify for the semifinals after the first two dives, but fell behind and finished ten points short.

Men

Equestrian

See main article: article.

Show jumping

Fencing

See main article: article and Fencing at the 2008 Summer Olympics. Venezuela sent a seven-person fencing team to Beijing, but they combined to win just two matches. Considering the team included the #1 ranked men's épée fencer, Silvio Fernández, this was somewhat of a disappointment. Fernandez won his opening match, but then lost to a Hungarian opponent in the second round. The other win came from the men's épée team, who lost their quarterfinal, but won a placement match against Korea before ending up in 6th place overall.

Men
AthleteEventRound of 64Round of 32Round of 16QuarterfinalSemifinalFinal /
Opposition
Score		Opposition
Score		Opposition
Score		Opposition
Score		Opposition
Score		Opposition
Score		Rank
Silvio Fernándezalign=left rowspan=3Individual épée
W 15–11
L 9–15		Did not advance
Rubén Limardo
L 13–15		Did not advance
Wolfgang Mejías
L 11–12		Did not advance
Silvio Fernández
Francisco Limardo
Rubén Limardo
Wolfgang Mejías		Team épée
L 33–45		Classification semi-final

W 45–38		5th place final

L 25–40		6
Carlos BravoIndividual sabre
L 10–15		Did not advance
Women
AthleteEventRound of 64Round of 32Round of 16QuarterfinalSemifinalFinal /
Opposition
Score		Opposition
Score		Opposition
Score		Opposition
Score		Opposition
Score		Opposition
Score		Rank
María MartínezIndividual épée
L 9–15		Did not advance
Mariana GonzálezIndividual foil
L 2–15		Did not advance
Alejandra BenítezIndividual sabre
L 11–15		Did not advance

Gymnastics

See main article: article and Gymnastics at the 2008 Summer Olympics.

Artistic

Venezuela sent two gymnasts to Beijing, with José Luis Fuentes managing to make the final in both the men's all-around and pommel horse events. Fuentes finished last of the finalists in the pommel horse final and 22nd of 24 in the all-around final. Jessica López did not advance to a final.

Men
AthleteEventQualificationFinal
ApparatusTotalRankApparatusTotalRank
align=left rowspan=2José Luis FuentesAll-around14.15015.52514.85015.67515.37514.75090.32515 Q14.17513.65013.90015.25015.17514.15086.30022
Pommel horse15.52515.5252 Q14.65014.6508
Women

Judo

See main article: article and Judo at the 2008 Summer Olympics. Seven judokas represented Venezuela in Beijing, putting up an overall record of 6–10. None advanced beyond the quarterfinals in the main draw, and only Flor Velázquez progressed to the repechage semifinals, but lost to a Kazakhstani opponent, falling one bout short of a chance at a medal.

Men
AthleteEventPreliminaryRound of 32Round of 16QuarterfinalsSemifinalsRepechage 1Repechage 2Repechage 3Final /
Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Rank
Javier Guédez−60 kg
W 1000–0000
W 1000–0000
L 0001–0010		Did not advance
L 0000–1000		Did not advance
Ludwig Ortíz−66 kg
L 0001–0010		Did not advance
Richard Leon−73 kg
L 0000–0001		Did not advance
José Camacho−90 kg
W 1000–0000
L 0000–1000		Did not advance
Albenis Rosales−100 kg
L 0001–1010		Did not advance
Women
AthleteEventRound of 32Round of 16QuarterfinalsSemifinalsRepechage 1Repechage 2Repechage 3Final /
Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Rank
Flor Velázquez−52 kg
L 0001–1000		Did not advance
W 0001–0000
L 0000–0010		Did not advance
Ysis Barreto−63 kg
W 1012–0000
L 0000–1000		Did not advance
W 1001–0100
L 0001–0030		Did not advance

Rowing

See main article: article and Rowing at the 2008 Summer Olympics. Venezuela had qualified 1 boat in rowing.

Men
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

Sailing

See main article: article and Sailing at the 2008 Summer Olympics. None of the three Venezuelan boats participating in Olympic sailing in Beijing qualified for a medal race, with the top finish being 26th from Johnny Bilbao in the Finn class.

Men
AthleteEventRaceNet pointsFinal rank
12345678910M*
Carlos Julio FloresRS:X32333335212227282214EL23229
José Miguel RuizLaser394023294029333224CANEL24939
Open
M = Medal race; EL = Eliminated – did not advance into the medal race; CAN = Race cancelled;

Shooting

See main article: article and Shooting at the 2008 Summer Olympics.

Women
AthleteEventQualificationFinal
PointsRankPointsRank
align=left rowspan=2Diliana Méndez10 m air rifle38643Did not advance
50 m rifle 3 positions56839Did not advance

Softball

See main article: article and Softball at the 2008 Summer Olympics. The Venezuelan women's softball team qualified for the Olympics by winning the Pan-American qualifying tournament at home Valencia. At the Olympics, they initially struggled, losing their first three games by a combined score of 21–1, but then won two straight games without conceding a run, leaving them at 2-3 and in the hunt for a medal round place. However, they lost two difficult matches against eventual medal winners to close out the round robin, and fell one loss short of a medal round spot.

Team roster
Results
width=170Teamwidth=20Wwidth=20Lwidth=20RSwidth=20RAwidth=20WIN%width=20GBwidth=120Tiebreaker
705311.000--
612313.8571-
523011.7142-
341723.4294-
251023.28652-0 vs. CHN/VEN
251921.28651-1 vs. TPE/VEN
251535.28650-2 vs. CHN/TPE
16848.1436-

Swimming

See main article: article and Swimming at the 2008 Summer Olympics. Venezuela sent a thirteen-person swimming team to compete in eighteen events in Beijing. In the pool, only two progressed to a semifinal, and none made a final. The best finishes for the team came in the two open water events, as Erwin Maldonado finished 10th in the men's race, and Andreina Pinto finished 9th in the women's race.

Men
AthleteEventHeatSemifinalFinal
TimeRankTimeRankTimeRank
Crox Acuña200 m freestyle1:50.5242Did not advance
Octavio Alesi100 m butterfly53.5838Did not advance
align=left rowspan=2Leopoldo Andara200 m breaststroke2:17.7750Did not advance
200 m individual medley2:05.7143Did not advance
Jonathan Camacho50 m freestyle22.8747Did not advance
Erwin Maldonado10 km open water1:52:13.610
Alexis Márquez200 m butterfly2:01.2536Did not advance
Ricardo Monasterio1500 m freestyle15:45.9835Did not advance
align=left rowspan=2Albert Subirats100 m freestyle48.9721Did not advance
100 m butterfly51.718 Q51.8211Did not advance
Daniele Tirabassi400 m freestyle3:53.2631Did not advance
Qualifiers for the latter rounds of all events are decided on a time only basis, therefore positions shown are overall results versus competitors in all heats.
Women
AthleteEventHeatSemifinalFinal
TimeRankTimeRankTimeRank
align=left rowspan=2Andreína Pinto800 m freestyle8:30:3024Did not advance
10 km open water1:59:40.09
Yanel Pinto400 m freestyle4:18.0932Did not advance
align=left rowspan=2Arlene Semeco50 m freestyle24.9810 Q25.0515Did not advance
100 m freestyle55.7030Did not advance
align=left rowspan=2Erin Volcán100 m backstroke1:03.9042Did not advance
200 m backstroke2:15.5832Did not advance
Qualifiers for the latter rounds of all events are decided on a time only basis, therefore positions shown are overall results versus competitors in all heats.

Table tennis

See main article: article and Table tennis at the 2008 Summer Olympics. Fabiola Ramos won her preliminary round match, but lost to a North Korean opponent in the first round.

Taekwondo

See main article: article and Taekwondo at the 2008 Summer Olympics. Venezuela won their first Olympic medal in Taekwondo in Athens, and though Adriana Carmona, who won that medal, lost her first round match in Beijing, Venezuela was able to win another medal in 2008. Dalia Contreras won her first two matches to make the semifinals in the women's under 49 kg division, where she lost a tied match on a judges decision. Still, her semifinals appearance allowed her to progress directly to the bronze medal match, where she beat a Kenyan opponent to claim Venezuela's only medal of the 2008 Games. Overall, the four person Taekwondo team went 4-4, with three of the four wins from Contreras.

AthleteEventRound of 16QuarterfinalsSemifinalsRepechageBronze MedalFinal
Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Rank
Carlos VásquezMen's −80 kg
W 5–0
L 2–5		Did not advance
Juan DíazMen's +80 kg
L 		Did not advance
Dalia ContrerasWomen's −49 kg
W 4–2
W 3–2
L 2–2
W 2–0		Did not advance
Adriana CarmonaWomen's +67 kg
L 1–3		Did not advance

Tennis

See main article: article and Tennis at the 2008 Summer Olympics. Milagros Sequera was trailing by a set and a game when she retired from her first round match.

Volleyball

See main article: article and Volleyball at the 2008 Summer Olympics.

Indoor

Both Venezuelan volleyball teams won the South American Qualification tournament to earn their Olympic berths, but were less successful in Beijing. Between them, the two teams won just one out of ten matches, with the men's team beating Japan in straight sets. The men's team also forced a fifth set against both the American and Chinese teams, eventually finishing fifth in their group, while the women's team won only a single set and finished last in their group. The final ranking of the men's team was tied for 9th place, while that of the women's team was tied for 11th place.

Men's tournament

See main article: article and Volleyball at the 2008 Summer Olympics – Men's tournament.

Roster
Group playAll times are China Standard Time (UTC+8).

Women's tournament

See main article: article and Volleyball at the 2008 Summer Olympics – Women's tournament.

Roster
Group playAll times are China Standard Time (UTC+8).

Weightlifting

See main article: article and Weightlifting at the 2008 Summer Olympics. The top finish from a Venezuelan lifter in Beijing was a 9th from Judith Chacon in the 53 kg division, but this was last placed finish in a division with few entrants. The next best finish came from Israel José Rubio in the men's 69 kg division, where he finished 13th. Three of the seven Venezuelan lifters did not complete a valid lift in one of the portions of the competition, and thus did not finish with a legal total.

Men
AthleteEventSnatchClean & JerkTotalRank
ResultRankResultRank
Israel José Rubio−69 kg139101671230613
José Ocandoalign=left rowspan=2−77 kg140191821532217
Octavio Mejías14013185140
Herbys Márquez−85 kg152———
Women
AthleteEventSnatchClean & JerkTotalRank
ResultRankResultRank
Judith Chacón−53 kg80910191819
Solenny Villasmil−63 kg90121151320513
Iriner Jiménez−69 kg90812090

Wrestling

See main article: article and Wrestling at the 2008 Summer Olympics. The three Venezuelan wrestlers combined for a record of 0–4, with Luis Vivénez qualifying for the repechage, but losing his match to a Cuban athlete.

Key
Men's freestyle
Women's freestyle
AthleteEventQualificationRound of 16QuarterfinalSemifinalRepechage 1Repechage 2Final /
Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Opposition
Result		Rank
Mayelis Caripá−48 kg
L 0–3 		Did not advance14
Marcia Andrades−55 kg
L 1–3 		Did not advance11

See also

References

List of qualified athletes (Spanish)

Notes and References

  1. http://www.aiba.org/documents/site1/World%20Championships/2007/2008%20Olympic%20Qualified%20Boxers.pdf World Boxing Championships Chicago 2007
  2. http://www.aiba.org/default.aspx?pId=976 1st AIBA American Olympic Boxing Qualification Tournament
  3. http://www.aiba.org/default.aspx?pId=1305 2nd AIBA American Olympic Boxing Qualification Tournament

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