# Great Britain at the 2008 Summer Olympics

Great Britain competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China. The United Kingdom was represented by the British Olympic Association (BOA), and the team of selected athletes was officially known as Team GB. Britain is one of only five NOCs to have competed in every modern Summer Olympic Games since 1896. The delegation of 547 people included 311 competitors – 168 men, 143 women – and 236 officials. The team was made up of athletes from the whole United Kingdom including Northern Ireland (whose people may elect to hold Irish citizenship and are able to be selected to represent either Great Britain or Ireland at the Olympics). Additionally some British overseas territories compete separately from Britain in Olympic competition.
Great Britain's medal performance at the 2008 Summer Olympics was its best in a century; at the close of the Games, the total medal count, 47, was also the fourth highest Great Britain had ever achieved. Only its performance at the 1908 Summer Olympics, which Britain hosted in London, resulted in more gold medals being awarded. Following retests of doping samples in 2016 in connection with the Russian doping scandal, four further medals, all bronze, were awarded in athletics, retrospectively increasing the total gained to 51. As of 1 July 2020, the award of the bronze medals to both the Men's and Women's 4 × 400 metres relay teams and the upgrade of Goldie Sayers to bronze in the Women's javelin, confirmed by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), brought the official medal total to 50, after which the confirmation of Kelly Sotherton receiving her second reallocated bronze medal in the Women's Heptathlon (having been part of the Women's 4 × 400 metre team) took the total number of medals won to 51.
Great Britain finished 4th overall in the medal tables, a target previously set by UK Sport, the public body responsible for distributing funding to elite sport, for the 2012 Games. UK Sport considered whether to target 3rd place in the 2012 Games, which was hosted by the United Kingdom in London.
The outstanding individual achievement for a British athlete at the Games was when cyclist Chris Hoy became the first British athlete in 100 years to win three gold medals at a single Olympic Games.
Because London was to be host city of the 2012 Summer Olympics, a British segment featuring football star David Beckham was performed during the closing ceremony.

## Medallists

The following British competitors won medals at the Games, all dates are August 2008. In the 'by discipline' sections below, medallists' names are in bold.
| Medal | Name | Sport | Event | Date |
| Gold | Nicole Cooke | Cycling | Women's road race | August 10 |
| Gold | Rebecca Adlington | Swimming | Women's 400 m freestyle | August 11 |
| Gold | Chris Hoy Jason Kenny Jamie Staff | Cycling | Men's team sprint | August 15 |
| Gold | Rebecca Adlington | Swimming | Women's 800 m freestyle | August 16 |
| Gold | Tom James Andy Hodge Pete Reed Steve Williams | Rowing | Men's coxless four | August 16 |
| Gold | Bradley Wiggins | Cycling | Men's individual pursuit | August 16 |
| Gold | Chris Hoy | Cycling | Men's keirin | August 16 |
| Gold | Sarah Ayton Sarah Webb Pippa Wilson | Sailing | Yngling class | August 17 |
| Gold | Mark Hunter Zac Purchase | Rowing | Men's lightweight double sculls | August 17 |
| Gold | Ben Ainslie | Sailing | Finn class | August 17 |
| Gold | Rebecca Romero | Cycling | Women's individual pursuit | August 17 |
| Gold | Ed Clancy Paul Manning Geraint Thomas Bradley Wiggins | Cycling | Men's team pursuit | August 18 |
| Gold | Paul Goodison | Sailing | Men's Laser class | August 19 |
| Gold | Victoria Pendleton | Cycling | Women's sprint | August 19 |
| Gold | Chris Hoy | Cycling | Men's sprint | August 19 |
| Gold | Christine Ohuruogu | Athletics | Women's 400 m | August 19 |
| Gold | Iain Percy Andrew Simpson | Sailing | Men's Star class | August 21 |
| Gold | Tim Brabants | Canoeing | Men's K-1 1000 m | August 22 |
| Gold | James DeGale | Boxing | Middleweight | August 23 |
| Silver | David Florence | Canoeing | Men's slalom C-1 | August 12 |
| Silver | Emma Pooley | Cycling | Women's road time trial | August 13 |
| Silver | Ross Edgar | Cycling | Men's keirin | August 16 |
| Silver | Debbie Flood Katherine Grainger Frances Houghton Annie Vernon | Rowing | Women's quadruple sculls | August 17 |
| Silver | Wendy Houvenaghel | Cycling | Women's individual pursuit | August 17 |
| Silver | Richard Egington Alastair Heathcote Matt Langridge Tom Lucy Acer Nethercott (cox) Alex Partridge Colin Smith Tom Stallard Josh West | Rowing | Men's eight | August 17 |
| Silver | Jonathan Glanfield Nick Rogers | Sailing | Men's 470 | August 18 |
| Silver | Jason Kenny | Cycling | Men's sprint | August 19 |
| Silver | Germaine Mason | Athletics | Men's high jump | August 19 |
| Silver | Keri-Anne Payne | Swimming | Women's 10 km open water | August 20 |
| Silver | David Davies | Swimming | Men's 10 km open water | August 21 |
| Silver | Phillips Idowu | Athletics | Men's triple jump | August 21 |
| Silver | Heather Fell | Modern pentathlon | Women's modern pentathlon | August 22 |
| Bronze | Joanne Jackson | Swimming | Women's 400 m freestyle | August 11 |
| Bronze | Tina Cook Daisy Dick William Fox-Pitt Sharon Hunt Mary King | Equestrian | Team eventing | August 12 |
| Bronze | Tina Cook | Equestrian | Individual eventing | August 12 |
| Bronze | Anna Bebington Elise Laverick | Rowing | Women's double sculls | August 16 |
| Bronze | Stephen Rowbotham Matthew Wells | Rowing | Men's double sculls | August 16 |
| Bronze | Chris Newton | Cycling | Men's points race | August 16 |
| Bronze | Steven Burke | Cycling | Men's individual pursuit | August 16 |
| Bronze | Kelly Sotherton | Athletics | Women's heptathlon | August 16 |
| Bronze | Louis Smith | Gymnastics | Men's pommel horse | August 17 |
| Bronze | Cassandra Patten | Swimming | Women's 10 km open water | August 20 |
| Bronze | Bryony Shaw | Sailing | Women's RS:X | August 20 |
| Bronze | Tasha Danvers | Athletics | Women's 400 m hurdles | August 20 |
| Bronze | Goldie Sayers | Athletics | Women's javelin throw | August 21 |
| Bronze | Tony Jeffries | Boxing | Light heavyweight | August 22 |
| Bronze | David Price | Boxing | Super heavyweight | August 22 |
| Bronze | Tim Brabants | Canoeing | Men's K-1 500 m | August 23 |
| Bronze | Michael Bingham Andrew Steele Robert Tobin Martyn Rooney | Athletics | Men's 4 x 400-metre relay | August 23 |
| Bronze | Sarah Stevenson | Taekwondo | Women's +67 kg | August 23 |
| Bronze | Christine Ohuruogu Kelly Sotherton Marilyn Okoro Nicola Sanders | Athletics | Women's 4 x 400-metre relay | August 23 |
Medals by discipline :
| Discipline | | | | Total |
| Cycling | 8 | 4 | 2 | 14 |
| Sailing | 4 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
| Rowing | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
| Swimming | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
| Athletics | 1 | 2 | 5 | 8 |
| Canoeing | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Boxing | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| Modern pentathlon | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Equestrian | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Gymnastics | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Taekwondo | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Total | 19 | 13 | 19 | 51 |
Medals by date :
| Day | Date | | | | Total |
| 1 | 9 Aug | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2 | 10 Aug | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 3 | 11 Aug | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 4 | 12 Aug | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 5 | 13 Aug | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 6 | 14 Aug | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 7 | 15 Aug | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 8 | 16 Aug | 4 | 1 | 5 | 10 |
| 9 | 17 Aug | 4 | 3 | 1 | 8 |
| 10 | 18 Aug | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 11 | 19 Aug | 4 | 2 | 0 | 6 |
| 12 | 20 Aug | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| 13 | 21 Aug | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 |
| 14 | 22 Aug | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| 15 | 23 Aug | 1 | 0 | 4 | 5 |
| 16 | 24 Aug | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 19 | 13 | 19 | 51 |

### Multiple medallists

The following Team GB competitors won multiple medals at the 2008 Olympic Games.
| Name | Medal | Sport | Event |
| Chris Hoy | Gold Gold Gold | Cycling | Men's team sprint Men's sprint Men's keirin |
| Bradley Wiggins | Gold Gold | Cycling | Men's team pursuit Men's individual pursuit |
| Rebecca Adlington | Gold Gold | Swimming | Women's 400 m freestyle Women's 800 m freestyle |
| Jason Kenny | Gold Silver | Cycling | Men's team sprint Men's sprint |
| Tim Brabants | Gold Bronze | Canoeing | Men's K-1 1000 m Men's K-1 500 m |
| Christine Ohuruogu | Gold Bronze | Athletics | Women's 400 metres Women's 4 × 400 metres relay |
| Tina Cook | Bronze Bronze | Equestrian | Team eventing Individual eventing |
| Kelly Sotherton | Bronze Bronze | Athletics | Women's 4 × 400 metres relay Women's heptathlon |

## Targets

In June 2008, UK Sport, which distributes National Lottery funding to elite sport, published its expectations for the Games. It identified 41 potential medals to target and expected to win 35 of them, including 10 to 12 gold medals and to finish 8th in the overall medal table. Team GB exceeded the gold medal expectations on 19 August when Paul Goodison earned Britain's 13th gold medal in the men's Laser class. The minimum medal target, of 35 medals, was passed on 20 August when they claimed their 36th medal – a bronze in the women's RS:X, won by Bryony Shaw. The total medal target was equalled when canoeist Tim Brabants took gold in the men's 1000 m K-1 claiming Britain's 41st physical medal (three further medals were guaranteed in boxing at the time). They later exceeded the total number of targeted medals when Heather Fell secured the silver in women's modern pentathlon.
The medals claimed were not all ones that had been targeted, with Team GB falling short of targets in some disciplines whilst exceeding them in others. Nine out of seventeen disciplines met their targets. The British cyclists, for example doubled their medal target on 19 August when Victoria Pendleton won Britain's 12th cycling medal, a gold in the women's sprint. A further two medals were already guaranteed at this stage in the men's individual sprint, where gold and silver were soon won by Chris Hoy and Jason Kenny respectively. In all Team GB won seven of the ten gold medals up for grabs at the velodrome. The swimmers also managed to double the targeted number of medals in their sport when David Davies won the team's sixth swimming medal – a silver medal in the men's 10 km open water marathon on 21 August. Despite the men's and women's archery teams having come second and third respectively at the 2007 world championships, British archers were unable to win either of their targeted medals. This led to criticism of the tactics used by head coach Peter Suk from members of the team.
| Sport | Target | Won | Target met |
| Archery | 2 | 0 | N |
| Athletics | 5 | 8 | Y |
| Badminton | 1 | 0 | N |
| Boxing | 2 | 3 | Y |
| Canoeing | 2 | 3 | Y |
| Cycling | 6 | 14 | Y |
| Diving | 1 | 0 | N |
| Equestrian | 3 | 2 | N |
| Gymnastics (artistic) | 1 | 1 | Y |
| Judo | 2 | 0 | N |
| Modern pentathlon | 1 | 1 | Y |
| Rowing | 4 | 6 | Y |
| Sailing | 4 | 6 | Y |
| Shooting | 2 | 0 | N |
| Swimming | 3 | 6 | Y |
| Taekwondo | 1 | 1 | Y |
| Triathlon | 1 | 0 | N |
| Total | 41 | 51 | Y |
| Total expected | 35 | 51 | Y |
| Total gold | 12 | 19 | Y |

## Archery

At the 2007 World Outdoor Target Championships, Great Britain's men's team placed second and its women's team placed third. This qualified the nation to send full teams of three men and three women to the Olympics.

### Men

| Athlete | Event | Ranking round | Ranking round | Round of 64 | Round of 32 | Round of 16 | Quarterfinals | Semi-finals | Final / BM | Final / BM |
| Athlete | Event | Score | Seed | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Rank |
| Laurence Godfrey | Individual | 657 | 34 | Badënov (RUS) (31) L 109–114 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Simon Terry | Individual | 670 | 7 | Hatava (FIN) (58) L 104–105 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Alan Wills | Individual | 661 | 21 | Nespoli (ITA) (44) W 103–98 | Galiazzo (ITA) (12) W 110–109 | Stevens (CUB) (28) L 104–108 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Laurence Godfrey Simon Terry Alan Wills | Team | 1998 | 5 | — | — | China (CHN) (12) L 210–214 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |

### Women

| Athlete | Event | Ranking round | Ranking round | Round of 64 | Round of 32 | Round of 16 | Quarterfinals | Semi-finals | Final / BM | Final / BM |
| Athlete | Event | Score | Seed | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Rank |
| Charlotte Burgess | Individual | 623 | 40 | Guo D (CHN) (25) W 106–104 | Folkard (GBR) (8) L 96–110 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Naomi Folkard | Individual | 651 | 8 | Abed Elaal (EGY) (57) W 107–95 | Burgess (GBR) (40) W 110–96 | Hayakawa (JPN) (9) L 97–106 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Alison Williamson | Individual | 651 | 7 | Wei P-H (TPE) (58) W 108–99 | Lorig (USA) (26) L 108–112 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Charlotte Burgess Naomi Folkard Alison Williamson | Team | 1925 | 2 | — | — | Bye | Japan (JPN) (7) W 201–196 | China (CHN) (3) L 202–208 | France (FRA) (5) L 201–203 | 4 |

## Athletics

The initial squad was selected for the British team on 14 July; however, the final team was not confirmed until the outcome of a court case involving Dwain Chambers. Under the rules of the BOA, Chambers had been banned from future Games after testing positive for the steroid THG in 2003. His appeal to overturn that ban, on the grounds that it was an unfair restraint of trade, failed and he was omitted from the squad. The team included former Olympic medal winners Marlon Devonish and Kelly Sotherton, as well as former Olympic individual finalists Joanne Pavey, Paula Radcliffe, Helen Clitheroe and Tasha Danvers. Women's marathon world record holder Paula Radcliffe faced a battle to be fit for the Games due to a stress fracture in her left thigh. She eventually proved fit enough to start the race but struggled to finish in 23rd position.
A total of four medals were won, one gold, two silver and one bronze. UK Athletics performance director Dave Collins stood down after the Games. This was due in part to the team's failure to meet the UK Sport target of winning five medals. Ironically, a series of retests ordered in the wake of the Russian doping scandal in 2015 and 2016 found that Great Britain athletes had been deprived of medals in a further four events by athletes later confirmed to have doped – the women's heptathlon (Kelly Sotherton), the men's and women's 4 x 400-metre relay teams and women's javelin (Goldie Sayers). When these medals are redistributed, Great Britain's 2008 athletics total of eight medals will be its most successful since the second world war, and 75% over target.

### Key

* Note–Ranks given for track events are within the athlete's heat only
* Q = Qualified for the next round
* q = Qualified for the next round as a fastest loser or, in field events, by position without achieving the qualifying target
* NR = National record
* N/A = Round not applicable for the event
* Bye = Athlete not required to compete in round

### Track & road events

| Athlete | Event | Heat | Heat | Quarter-final | Quarter-final | Semi-final | Semi-final | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Event | Result | Rank | Result | Rank | Result | Rank | Result | Rank |
| Tyrone Edgar | 100 m | 10.13 | 1 Q | 10.10 | 3 Q | 10.18 | 7 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Craig Pickering | 100 m | 10.21 | 3 Q | 10.18 | 5 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Simeon Williamson | 100 m | 10.42 | 3 Q | 10.32 | 4 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Marlon Devonish | 200 m | 20.49 | 1 Q | 20.43 | 4 Q | 20.57 | 7 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Christian Malcolm | 200 m | 20.42 | 2 Q | 20.30 | 4 Q | 20.25 | 4 Q | 20.40 | 5 |
| Alex Nelson | 200 m | Withdrew due to hamstring injury | Withdrew due to hamstring injury | Withdrew due to hamstring injury | Withdrew due to hamstring injury | Withdrew due to hamstring injury | Withdrew due to hamstring injury | Withdrew due to hamstring injury | Withdrew due to hamstring injury |
| Martyn Rooney | 400 m | 45.00 | 1 Q | — | — | 44.60 | 2 Q | 45.12 | 6 |
| Andrew Steele | 400 m | 44.94 | 1 Q | — | — | 45.59 | 7 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Michael Rimmer | 800 m | 1:47.61 | 1 Q | — | — | 1:48.07 | 6 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Andrew Baddeley | 1500 m | 3:36.47 | 3 Q | — | — | 3:37.47 | 3 Q | 3:35.37 | 8 |
| Thomas Lancashire | 1500 m | 3:43.40 | 7 | — | — | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Mo Farah | 5000 m | 13:50.95 | 6 | — | — | — | — | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Allan Scott | 110 m hurdles | 13.56 | 3 Q | 13.66 | 6 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Andy Turner | 110 m hurdles | 13.56 | 2 Q | 13.53 | 5 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Andrew Lemoncello | 3000 m steeplechase | 8:36.06 | 10 | — | — | — | — | did not advance | did not advance |
| Marlon Devonish Tyrone Edgar Craig Pickering Simeon Williamson | 4 × 100 m relay | DSQ | DSQ | — | — | — | — | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Michael Bingham Richard Buck* Dale Garland* Martyn Rooney Andrew Steele Rob Tobin | 4 × 400 m relay | 2:59.33 | 1 Q | — | — | — | — | 2:58.81 | |
| Dan Robinson | Marathon | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2:16:14 | 24 |
* Qualified for the team, but did not compete in any of the rounds

### Field events

| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Qualification | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Event | Distance | Position | Distance | Position |
| Greg Rutherford | Long jump | 8.16 | 3 Q | 7.84 | 10 |
| Chris Tomlinson | Long jump | 7.70 | 27 | did not advance | did not advance |
| Larry Achike | Triple jump | 17.18 | 7 Q | 17.17 | 7 |
| Nathan Douglas | Triple jump | 16.72 | 20 | did not advance | did not advance |
| Phillips Idowu | Triple jump | 17.44 | 1 Q | 17.62 | |
| Martyn Bernard | High jump | 2.29 | =6 Q | 2.25 | 9 |
| Germaine Mason | High jump | 2.29 | =1 Q | 2.34 | |
| Tom Parsons | High jump | 2.25 | 12 Q | 2.25 | 8 |
| Steve Lewis | Pole vault | NM | — | did not advance | did not advance |

### Combined events – Decathlon

| Athlete | Event | 100 m | LJ | SP | HJ | 400 m | 110H | DT | PV | JT | 1500 m | Final | Rank |
| Daniel Awde | Result | 11.06 | 7.12 | 12.03 | 1.78 | 47.16 | 14.69 | 37.12 | 4.90 | 53.10 | 4:44.80 | 7516 | 20 |
| Daniel Awde | Points | 847 | 842 | 608 | 610 | 950 | 887 | 606 | 880 | 636 | 650 | 7516 | 20 |

### Track & road events

| Athlete | Event | Heat | Heat | Quarter-final | Quarter-final | Semi-final | Semi-final | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Event | Result | Rank | Result | Rank | Result | Rank | Result | Rank |
| Montell Douglas | 100 m | 11.36 | 2 Q | 11.38 | 4 | did not advance | did not advance | did not advance | did not advance |
| Jeanette Kwakye | 100 m | 11.30 | 2 Q | 11.18 | 3 Q | 11.19 | 3 Q | 11.14 | 6 |
| Laura Turner | 100 m | 11.65 | 4 | did not advance | did not advance | did not advance | did not advance | did not advance | did not advance |
| Emily Freeman | 200 m | 22.95 | 2 Q | 22.95 | 3 Q | 22.83 | 7 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Lee McConnell | 400 m | 51.87 | 3 Q | — | — | 52.11 | 6 | did not advance | did not advance |
| Christine Ohuruogu | 400 m | 51.00 | 1 Q | — | — | 50.14 | 1 Q | 49.62 | |
| Nicola Sanders | 400 m | 51.81 | 2 Q | — | — | 50.71 | 4 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Jennifer Meadows | 800 m | 2:00.33 | 3 Q | — | — | 1:59.43 | 6 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Marilyn Okoro | 800 m | 1:59.01 | 2 Q | — | — | 1:59.53 | 6 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Jemma Simpson | 800 m | 2:02.16 | 4 | — | — | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Lisa Dobriskey | 1500 m | 4:03.22 | 3 Q | — | — | — | — | 4:02.10 | 4 |
| Susan Scott | 1500 m | 4:14.66 | 4 | — | — | — | — | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Stephanie Twell | 1500 m | 4:06.68 | 6 | — | — | — | — | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Jo Pavey | 5000 m | Withdrew due to fatigue | Withdrew due to fatigue | Withdrew due to fatigue | Withdrew due to fatigue | Withdrew due to fatigue | Withdrew due to fatigue | Withdrew due to fatigue | Withdrew due to fatigue |
| Jo Pavey | 10000 m | — | — | — | — | — | — | 31:12.30 | 12 |
| Kate Reed | 10000 m | — | — | — | — | — | — | 32:26.69 | 23 |
| Sarah Claxton | 100 m hurdles | 12.97 | 3 Q | — | — | 12.84 | 4 Q | 12.94 | 8 |
| Tasha Danvers | 400 m hurdles | 55.19 | 1 Q | — | — | 54.31 | 2 Q | 53.84 | |
| Helen Clitheroe | 3000 m steeplechase | 9:29.14 NR | 6 | — | — | — | — | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Barbara Parker | 3000 m steeplechase | 9:51.93 | 12 | — | — | — | — | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Emma Ania Montell Douglas Emily Freeman Jeanette Kwakye Ashleigh Nelson* Anyika Onuora* Laura Turner* | 4 × 100 m relay | 43.02 | 2 Q | — | — | — | — | DNF | DNF |
| Vicki Barr* Donna Fraser* Lee McConnell* Christine Ohuruogu Marilyn Okoro Nicola Sanders Kelly Sotherton | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:25.48 | 3 Q | — | — | — | — | 3:22.68 | |
| Paula Radcliffe | Marathon | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2:32:38 | 23 |
| Mara Yamauchi | Marathon | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2:27:29 | 6 |
| Liz Yelling | Marathon | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2:33:12 | 26 |
| Johanna Jackson | 20 km walk | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1:31:33 NR | 22 |
* Qualified for the team, but did not compete in any of the rounds

### Field events

| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Qualification | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Event | Distance | Position | Distance | Position |
| Jade Johnson | Long jump | 6.61 | 11 q | 6.64 | 7 |
| Kate Dennison | Pole vault | 4.40 | 15 | did not advance | did not advance |
| Philippa Roles | Discus throw | 57.44 | 27 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Zoe Derham | Hammer throw | 64.74 | 35 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Goldie Sayers | Javelin throw | 62.99 | 5 Q | 65.75 NR | |

### Combined events – Heptathlon

| Athlete | Event | 100H | HJ | SP | 200 m | LJ | JT | 800 m | Final | Rank |
| Julie Hollman | Result | 14.43 | 1.77 | 12.45 | 25.41 | 6.13 | 39.08 | 2:22.54 | 5729 | 31* |
| Julie Hollman | Points | 918 | 941 | 691 | 850 | 890 | 650 | 789 | 5729 | 31* |
| Kelly Sotherton | Result | 13.18 | 1.83 | 13.87 | 23.39 | 6.33 | 37.66 | 2:07.34 | 6517 | |
| Kelly Sotherton | Points | 1097 | 1016 | 785 | 1040 | 953 | 622 | 1004 | 6517 | |
* The athlete who finished in second place, Lyudmila Blonska of Ukraine, tested positive for a banned substance. Both the A and the B tests were positive, therefore Blonska was stripped of her silver medal, and both British heptathletes moved up a position.

## Badminton

Six British badminton players went to the Games, competing in four out of the five badminton events. They did not win any medals, thus failing to reach the one medal target set by UK Sport. The mixed doubles pairing of Gail Emms and Nathan Robertson, who won silver in the 2004 tournament, progressed furthest amongst the British athletes, reaching the quarterfinals.
| Athlete | Event | Round of 64 | Round of 32 | Round of 16 | Quarterfinal | Semi-final | Final / BM | Final / BM |
| Athlete | Event | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Rank |
| Andrew Smith | Men's singles | Koukal (CZE) W 10–21, 21–12, 21–15 | Zwiebler (GER) L 16–21, 21–13, 21–17 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Tracey Hallam | Women's singles | Yip P Y (HKG) W 21–15, 21–17 | Ludíková (CZE) W 21–18, 21–13 | Xu Hw (GER) L 7–21, 10–21 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Gail Emms Donna Kellogg | Women's doubles | — | — | Chien Y C / Cheng W H (TPE) L 19–21, 13–21 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Anthony Clark Donna Kellogg | Mixed doubles | — | — | He Hb / Yu Y (CHN) L 15–21, 8–21 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Gail Emms Nathan Robertson | Mixed doubles | — | — | Zheng B / Gao L (CHN) W 21–16, 16–21, 21–19 | Lee Y-d / Lee H-j (KOR) L 19–21, 12–21 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |

## Boxing

A total of eight boxers qualified. David Price and Tony Jeffries both won bronze medals in the super heavyweight and light heavyweight divisions respectively. Middleweight James DeGale won a gold medal in the middleweight class. It was the first time that Great Britain has won more than one medal in boxing in a single games since 1972, and the best result for Great Britain in boxing since 1956.
| Athlete | Event | Round of 32 | Round of 16 | Quarterfinals | Semi-finals | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Event | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Rank |
| Khalid Yafai | Flyweight | Bye | Laffita (CUB) L 3–9 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Joe Murray | Bantamweight | Yu G (CHN) L 7–17 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Frankie Gavin | Lightweight | Withdrew – Failed to make weight | Withdrew – Failed to make weight | Withdrew – Failed to make weight | Withdrew – Failed to make weight | Withdrew – Failed to make weight | Withdrew – Failed to make weight |
| Bradley Saunders | Light welterweight | Neequaye (GHA) W 24–1 KO | Vastine (FRA) L 7–11 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Billy Joe Saunders | Welterweight | Kılıççı (TUR) W 14–3 | Banteaux (CUB) L 6–13 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| James DeGale | Middleweight | Hikal (EGY) W 13–4 | Estrada (USA) W 11–5 | Artayev (KAZ) W 8–3 | Sutherland (IRL) W 10–3 | Correa (CUB) W 16–14 | |
| Tony Jeffries | Light heavyweight | Bye | Alvarez (COL) W 5$^+$–5 | Szello (HUN) W 10–2 | Egan (IRL) L 3–10 | Did not advance | |
| David Price | Super heavyweight | — | Timurziev (RUS) W RSC | Jakšto (LTU) W 3–1 | Cammarelle (ITA) L 1–11 | Did not advance | |

## Canoeing

Seven competitors joined Team GB for the canoeing events, with four in the flatwater and three in the slalom. Anna Hemmings and Jessica Walker, in the K-2 kayaking pairs, were added later after complications with the Spanish team. Three medals were won, two by Tim Brabants, who had previously won a bronze at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney. This exceeded the target of two set by UK Sport.

### Slalom

| Athlete | Event | Preliminary | Preliminary | Preliminary | Preliminary | Preliminary | Preliminary | Semi-final | Semi-final | Final | Final | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Event | Run 1 | Rank | Run 2 | Rank | Total | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Total | Rank |
| David Florence | Men's C-1 | 89.47 | 7 | 82.16 | 1 | 171.63 | 3 Q | 90.46 | 4 Q | 89.43 | 2 | 178.61 | |
| Campbell Walsh | Men's K-1 | 86.72 | 14 | 85.72 | 8 | 172.44 | 9 Q | 95.74 | 16 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Fiona Pennie | Women's K-1 | 160.06 | 19 | 99.00 | 7 | 259.06 | 17 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |

### Sprint

| Athlete | Event | Heats | Heats | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Event | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank |
| Tim Brabants | Men's K-1 500 m | 1:36.338 | 1 QS | 1:42.530 | 3 Q | 1:37.671 | |
| Tim Brabants | Men's K-1 1000 m | 3:27.828 | 1 QF | Bye | Bye | 3:26.323 | |
| Lucy Wainwright | Women's K-1 500 m | 1:50.103 | 3 QS | 1:52.580 | 2 Q | 1:53.102 | 7 |
| Anna Hemmings Jessica Walker | Women's K-2 500 m | 1:47.435 | 9 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
Qualification Legend: QS = Qualify to semi-final; QF = Qualify directly to final

## Cycling

Team GB's cycling squad for Beijing totalled twenty five entrants in the four disciplines. Included were two reigning Olympic track cycling champions, Chris Hoy and Bradley Wiggins, plus a further two medal winners from 2004, as well as several reigning track world champions. Great Britain won fourteen cycling medals (eight gold, four silver and two bronze) in total to top the cycling medal table. The Cycling team won the BBC Sports team of the year award and was nominated for Laureus World team of the year.
On the track Mark Cavendish was the only member of the squad of fourteen not to win at least one medal. Chris Hoy became Scotland's most successful Olympic competitor ever, and the first Briton to win three gold medals at a single Olympic Games since Henry Taylor in 1908. His success resulted in the velodrome for the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow being named in his honour. Rebecca Romero became the first British woman to win a medal in two different Olympic sports by following her silver medal in the quadruple sculls rowing in 2004 with gold in the women's individual pursuit.
In the debut appearance of BMX events at the Olympics, world champion Shanaze Reade finished out of the medals after crashing out of the women's final. Reade had been unbeaten all year and was the favourite to win the women's title.
On the road Nicole Cooke's win in the women's road race provided the first Olympic gold for an athlete from Wales since Richard Meade in 1972.

### Road
#### Men

| Athlete | Event | Time | Rank |
| Jonathan Bellis | Road race | Did not finish | Did not finish |
| Steve Cummings | Road race | Did not finish | Did not finish |
| Steve Cummings | Time trial | 1:05:07 | 11 |
| Roger Hammond | Road race | Did not finish | Did not finish |
| Ben Swift | Road race | Did not finish | Did not finish |

#### Women

| Athlete | Event | Time | Rank |
| Nicole Cooke | Road race | 3:32:24 | |
| Nicole Cooke | Time trial | 37:14.25 | 15 |
| Sharon Laws | Road race | 3:33:17 | 35 |
| Emma Pooley | Road race | 3:32:55 | 23 |
| Emma Pooley | Time trial | 35:16.01 | |

### Track
#### Sprint

| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Qualification | Round 1 | Round 2 | Quarterfinals | Semi-finals | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Event | Time Speed (km/h) | Rank | Opposition Time Speed (km/h) | Opposition Time Speed (km/h) | Opposition Time Speed (km/h) | Opposition Time Speed (km/h) | Opposition Time Speed (km/h) | Rank |
| Chris Hoy | Men's sprint | 9.815 OR 73.357 | 1 Q | Dmitriev (RUS) W 10.607 67.879 | Watanabe (JPN) W 10.636 67.694 | Awang (MAS) W 10.820, W 10.302 | Bourgain (FRA) W 10.260, W 10.358 | Kenny (GBR) W 12.228, W 10.216 | |
| Jason Kenny | Men's sprint | 9.857 73.044 | 2 Q | Kwiatkowski (POL) W 10.672 67.466 | Awang (MAS) W 10.531 68.369 | Sireau (FRA) W 10.546, W 10.595 | Levy (GER) W 10.594, W 10.335 | Hoy (GBR) L, L | |
| Victoria Pendleton | Women's sprint | 10.963 OR 65.675 | 1 Q | Tsukuda (JPN) W 11.736 61.349 | — | Krupeckaitė (LTU) W 11.839, W 11.672 | Kanis (NED) W 11.537, W 11.885 | Meares (AUS) W 11.363, W 11.118 | |
| Chris Hoy Jason Kenny Jamie Staff | Men's team sprint | 42.950 62.863 | 1 Q | United States (USA) W 43.034 62.741 | — | — | — | France (FRA) W 43.128 62.604 | |

#### Pursuit

| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Qualification | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Finals | Finals |
| Athlete | Event | Time | Rank | Opponent Results | Rank | Opponent Results | Rank |
| Steven Burke | Men's individual pursuit | 4:22.260 | 5 Q | Dyudya (UKR) 4:21.558 | 3 Q | Markov (RUS) 4:20.947 | |
| Bradley Wiggins | Men's individual pursuit | 4:15.031 OR | 1 Q | Serov (RUS) 4:16.571 | 1 Q | Roulston (NZL) 4:16.977 | |
| Wendy Houvenaghel | Women's individual pursuit | 3:28.443 NR | 1 Q | Kozlíková (CZE) 3:27.829 | 2 Q | Romero (GBR) 3:30.395 | |
| Rebecca Romero | Women's individual pursuit | 3:28.641 | 2 Q | Mactier (AUS) 3:27.703 NR | 1 Q | Houvenaghel (GBR) 3:28.321 | |
| Ed Clancy Paul Manning Geraint Thomas Bradley Wiggins | Men's team pursuit | 3:57.101 | 1 Q | Russia (RUS) 3:55.202 WR | 1 Q | Denmark (DEN) 3:53.314 WR | |

#### Keirin

| Athlete | Event | 1st round | Repechage | 2nd round | Finals |
| Athlete | Event | Rank | Rank | Rank | Rank |
| Ross Edgar | Men's keirin | 1 Q | Bye | 1 Q | |
| Chris Hoy | Men's keirin | 1 Q | Bye | 1 Q | |

#### Omnium

| Athlete | Event | Points | Laps | Rank |
| Chris Newton | Men's points race | 56 | 2 | |
| Rebecca Romero | Women's points race | 3 | 0 | 11 |
| Mark Cavendish Bradley Wiggins | Men's madison | 6 | −1 | 9 |

### Mountain biking

| Athlete | Event | Time | Rank |
| Oli Beckingsale | Men's cross-country | 2:01:25 | 12 |
| Liam Killeen | Men's cross-country | 2:00:14 | 7 |

### BMX

| Athlete | Event | Seeding | Seeding | Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Event | Result | Rank | Points | Rank | Points | Rank | Result | Rank |
| Liam Phillips | Men's BMX | 37.392 | 28 | 18 | 7 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Shanaze Reade | Women's BMX | 36.882 | 2 | — | — | 10 | 5 | REL | 8 |

## Diving

A total of ten divers were part of Team GB in the individual and synchronised diving events, including 14-year-old Tom Daley, the 2008 European 10 m champion and one of the youngest athletes to ever compete for Great Britain at an Olympics.

### Men

| Athlete | Events | Preliminaries | Preliminaries | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Events | Points | Rank | Points | Rank | Points | Rank |
| Ben Swain | 3 m springboard | 390.30 | 26 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Tom Daley | 10 m platform | 440.40 | 12 Q | 458.60 | 8 Q | 463.55 | 7 |
| Peter Waterfield | 10 m platform | 497.65 | 4 Q | 430.95 | 13 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Nick Robinson-Baker Ben Swain | 3 m synchronised springboard | — | — | — | — | 402.36 | 7 |
| Blake Aldridge Tom Daley | 10 m synchronised platform | — | — | — | — | 408.48 | 8 |

### Women

| Athlete | Events | Preliminaries | Preliminaries | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Events | Points | Rank | Points | Rank | Points | Rank |
| Rebecca Gallantree | 3 m springboard | 232.75 | 25 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Tonia Couch | 10 m platform | 320.40 | 12 Q | 297.20 | 12 Q | 328.70 | 8 |
| Stacie Powell | 10 m platform | 313.90 | 14 Q | 301.75 | 11 Q | 303.50 | 10 |
| Tandi Gerrard Hayley Sage | 3 m synchronised springboard | — | — | — | — | 278.25 | 8 |
| Tonia Couch Stacie Powell | 10 m synchronised platform | — | — | — | — | 303.48 | 8 |

## Equestrian

A total of twelve entrants competed for Team GB in the three equestrian disciplines that took place in Hong Kong. Zara Phillips, the reigning world eventing champion and granddaughter of Queen Elizabeth II, had been included in the squad until her horse, Toytown, sustained an injury, which meant she missed her second successive Olympics.

### Dressage

| Athlete | Horse | Event | Grand Prix | Grand Prix | Grand Prix Special | Grand Prix Special | Grand Prix Freestyle | Grand Prix Freestyle | Overall | Overall |
| Athlete | Horse | Event | Score | Rank | Score | Rank | Score | Rank | Score | Rank |
| Laura Bechtolsheimer | Mistral Hojris | Individual | 65.917 | 24 Q | 67.160 | 18 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Jane Gregory | Lucky Star | Individual | 63.375 | 31 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Emma Hindle | Lancet 2 | Individual | 71.125 | 4 Q | 70.440 | 9 Q | 74.250 | 6 | 72.345 | 7 |
| Laura Bechtolsheimer Jane Gregory Emma Hindle | See above | Team | 66.805 | 7 | — | — | — | — | 66.805 | 6 |
(Total scores are the average of qualifying round 2 and freestyle final for the individual competition, and average of individual round 1 scores for the team competition.)

### Eventing

| Athlete | Horse | Event | Dressage | Dressage | Cross-country | Cross-country | Cross-country | Jumping | Jumping | Jumping | Jumping | Jumping | Jumping | Total | Total |
| Athlete | Horse | Event | Dressage | Dressage | Cross-country | Cross-country | Cross-country | Qualifier | Qualifier | Qualifier | Final | Final | Final | | | Total | Total |
| Athlete | Horse | Event | Penalties | Rank | Penalties | Total | Rank | Penalties | Total | Rank | Penalties | Total | Rank | Penalties | Rank |
| Tina Cook | Miners Frolic | Individual | 40.20 | 13 | 17.20 | 57.40 | 10 | 0.00 | 57.40 | 6 Q | 0.00 | 57.40 | 3 | 57.40 | |
| Daisy Dick | Spring Along | Individual | 51.70 # | 37 | 17.20 | 68.90 # | 24 | 11.00 | 79.90 # | 24 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | 79.90 | 24 |
| William Fox-Pitt | Parkmore Ed | Individual | 50.20 # | 34 | 10.00 | 60.20 | 14 | 4.00 | 64.20 | 14 Q | 4.00 | 68.20 | 12 | 68.20 | 12 |
| Sharon Hunt | Tankers Town | Individual | 43.50 | 18 | 47.60 | 91.10 # | 38 | 4.00 | 95.90 # | 35 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | 95.90 | 35 |
| Mary King | Call Again Cavalier | Individual | 38.10 | 9 | 18.00 | 56.10 | 5 | 8.00 | 64.10 | 13 Q | 4.00 | 68.10 | 11 | 68.10 | 11 |
| Tina Cook Daisy Dick William Fox-Pitt Sharon Hunt Mary King | See above | Team | 121.80 | 4 | 51.90 | 173.70 | 3 | 12.00 | 185.70 | 3 | — | — | — | 185.70 | |
# – Indicates that points do not count in team total

### Show jumping

| Athlete | Horse | Event | Qualification | Qualification | Qualification | Qualification | Qualification | Qualification | Qualification | Qualification | Final | Final | Final | Final | Final | Total | Total |
| Athlete | Horse | Event | Round 1 | Round 1 | Round 2 | Round 2 | Round 2 | Round 3 | Round 3 | Round 3 | Round A | Round A | Round B | Round B | Round B | | | Total | Total |
| Athlete | Horse | Event | Penalties | Rank | Penalties | Total | Rank | Penalties | Total | Rank | Penalties | Rank | Penalties | Total | Rank | Penalties | Rank |
| Ben Maher | Rolette | Individual | 1 | =14 | 4 | 5 | =13 Q | 0 | 5 | 6 Q | 0 | =1 Q | 20 | 20 | =20 | 20 | =20 |
| Nick Skelton | Russel | Individual | 1 | =14 | 8 | 9 | =22 Q | 13 | 22 | =31 Q | 12 | 29 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | 12 | 29 |
| Tim Stockdale | Fresh Direct Corlato | Individual | 4 | =30 | 4 | 8 | =16 Q | 8 | 16 | =18 Q | 0 | =1 Q | 16 | 16 | =17 | 16 | =16 |
| John Whitaker | Peppermill | Individual | 5 | =39 | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse |
| Michael Whitaker | Suncal Portofino 63 | Individual | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse | Withdrew – Lame horse |
| Ben Maher Nick Skelton Tim Stockdale John Whitaker | See above | Team | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 16 | =4 | 21 | 37 | 7 | 37 | 6* |
* On 21 August, four horses from Brazil, Germany, Ireland and Norway tested positive for a banned substance. The riders were subsequently disqualified from the individual competition and if the B samples test positive then Brazil, Germany and Norway will be disqualified from the team competition and Great Britain will move into 5th place.

## Fencing

Great Britain qualified three fencers for the fencing competition. Two of these came from the re-allocation of places by the Fédération Internationale d'Escrime (FIE), the governing body for Olympic fencing, after the withdrawal of other fencers.

### Men

| Athlete | Event | Round of 64 | Round of 32 | Round of 16 | Quarterfinal | Semi-final | Final / BM | Final / BM |
| Athlete | Event | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Rank |
| Richard Kruse | Individual foil | — | Saliscan (ROU) W 15–6 | Joppich (GER) L 9–10 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Alex O'Connell | Individual sabre | Kovalev (RUS) L 14–15 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |

### Women

| Athlete | Event | Round of 64 | Round of 32 | Round of 16 | Quarterfinal | Semi-final | Final / BM | Final / BM |
| Athlete | Event | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Rank |
| Martina Emanuel | Individual foil | Smart (USA) L 7–15 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |

## Field hockey
### Men's tournament

The Great Britain men's team qualified for the men's Olympic field hockey tournament after a must-win game against India in the final of the Olympic qualifying event. Great Britain was drawn in Group B of the Olympic tournament based on world rankings on 18 April 2008. Having finished 3rd in the pool the team went on to finish 5th overall, beating South Korea in the 5th vs. 6th place playoff. Matt Daly was the top scorer for the team with three goals.

#### Team roster

The following is the British roster in the men's field hockey tournament of the 2008 Summer Olympics.
Head Coach: Jason Lee
* Alistair McGregor (GK)
* Glenn Kirkham
* Richard Alexander
* Richard Mantell
* Ashley Jackson
* Simon Mantell
* Stephen Dick
* Matt Daly
* Jonty Clarke
* Rob Moore
* Ben Hawes (c)
* Alastair Wilson
* Barry Middleton
* James Tindall
* Jon Bleby
* Ben Marsden
Reserve:
* Niall Stott
* James Fair (GK)

#### Group play

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Netherlands | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 16 | 6 | +10 | 13 | Semi-finals |
| 2 | Australia | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 24 | 7 | +17 | 11 | Semi-finals |
| 3 | Great Britain | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 7 | +3 | 8 | Fifth place game |
| 4 | Pakistan | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 11 | 13 | −2 | 6 | Seventh place game |
| 5 | Canada | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 10 | 17 | −7 | 4 | Ninth place game |
| 6 | South Africa | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 25 | −21 | 0 | Eleventh place game |
* 11 August 2008 10:30
| Pakistan | 2–4 | Great Britain |
| Abbasi 45' Waqas 59' | Report | Tindall 2' Moore 14' Jackson 29' Daly 62' |
* Umpires: John Wright (RSA) Amarjit Singh (MAS)
* 13 August 2008 21:00
| Netherlands | 1–0 | Great Britain |
| Taekema 63' | Report | |
* Umpires: Murray Grime (AUS) Gary Simmonds (RSA)
* 15 August 2008 21:00
| South Africa | 0–2 | Great Britain |
| | Report | Tindall 20' Daly 66' |
* Umpires: Christian Blasch (GER) Rob ten Cate (NED)
* 17 August 2008 08:30
| Great Britain | 1–1 | Canada |
| Daly 67' | Report | Pereira 47' |
* Umpires: Roel van Eert (NED) Gary Simmonds (RSA)
* 19 August 2008 20:30
| Australia | 3–3 | Great Britain |
| George 40' Dwyer 45' Ockenden 68' | Report | Middleton 34' R. Mantell 47' Moore 55' |
* Umpires: Christian Blasch (GER) Xavier Adell (ESP)

#### Classification match for 5th/6th place

* 23 August 2008 11:00
| South Korea | 2–5 | Great Britain |
| Jang Jong-hyun 48' Hyun Hye-sung 67' | Report | Middleton 44' Jackson 49' Clarke 54', 63' Kirkham 70' |
* Umpires: Murray Grime (AUS) Roel van Eert (NED)

### Women's tournament

The Great Britain Women's team qualified for the women's Olympic field hockey tournament during the 2007 Women's EuroHockey Nations Championship. Great Britain was drawn in Group B of the Olympic tournament based on world rankings on 5 May 2008. Having finished 3rd in the pool and proceeded to the 5th and 6th place classification match where they lost to Australia. Crista Cullen was the team's top scorer in the tournament with 3 goals.

#### Team roster

The following is the British roster in the women's field hockey tournament of the 2008 Summer Olympics.
Head Coach: Danny Kerry
* Beth Storry (GK)
* Lisa Wooding
* Anne Panter
* Crista Cullen
* Melanie Clewlow
* Charlotte Craddock
* Helen Richardson
* Joanne Ellis
* Lucilla Wright
* Kate Walsh (c)
* Chloe Rogers
* Jennie Bimson
* Rachel Walker
* Alex Danson
* Sarah Thomas
* Jo Ellis
Reserve:
* Katy Roberts (GK)
* Laura Barlett

#### Group play

| Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| Germany | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 8 | +4 | 12 | Advanced to semifinals |
| Argentina | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 13 | 7 | +6 | 11 | Advanced to semifinals |
| Great Britain | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 9 | −2 | 8 | |
| United States | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 9 | 8 | +1 | 6 | |
| Japan | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 7 | −2 | 4 | |
| New Zealand | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 6 | 13 | −7 | 0 | |
* 10 August 2008 21:00
| Germany | 5–1 | Great Britain |
| Rinne 26', 52' Hoffmann 31', 49' Rodewald 60' | Report | Cullen 29' |
* Umpires: Sarah Garnett (NZL) Miao Lin (CHN)
* 12 August 2008 08:30
| Argentina | 2–2 | Great Britain |
| García 10' Gulla 27' | Report | Thomas 49' Clewlow 51' |
* Umpires: Marelize de Klerk (RSA) Stella Bartlema (NED)
* 14 August 2008 21:00
| New Zealand | 1–2 | Great Britain |
| Flynn 28' | Report | Danson 31' Cullen 50' |
* Umpires: Julie Ashton-Lucy (AUS) Carolina de la Fuente (ARG)
* 16 August 2008 20:30
| Great Britain | 2–1 | Japan |
| Panter 32' Cullen 70' | Report | Miura 58' |
* Umpires: Minka Woolley (AUS) Carol Metchette (IRL)
* 18 August 2008 18:00
| Great Britain | 0–0 | United States |
| | Report | |
* Umpires: Ute Conen (GER) Lisa Roach (AUS)

#### Classification match for 5th/6th place

* 22 August 2008 11:00
| Australia | 2–0 | Great Britain |
| Blyth 29' Munro 68' | Report | |
* Umpires: Sarah Garnett (NZL) Miao Lin (CHN)

## Gymnastics

Team GB entered nine gymnasts into the artistic and trampoline events. Louis Smith, in winning the bronze medal in the men's pommel horse, became the first ever British gymnast to win an individual apparatus medal in gymnastics, and the first Briton to win any individual gymnastics medal since Walter Tysall won men's all-around medal in 1908. Laura Jones was originally chosen for the artistic gymnastics but, due to a slipped disc in her back, she was replaced by the reserve Imogen Cairns.

### Artistic
#### Men

| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Qualification | Qualification | Qualification | Qualification | Qualification | Qualification | Qualification | Final | Final | Final | Final | Final | Final | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Event | Apparatus | Apparatus | Apparatus | Apparatus | Apparatus | Apparatus | Total | Rank | Apparatus | Apparatus | Apparatus | Apparatus | Apparatus | Apparatus | Total | Rank |
| Athlete | Event | F | PH | R | V | PB | HB | Total | Rank | F | PH | R | V | PB | HB | Total | Rank |
| Daniel Keatings | All-around | 14.900 | 15.175 | 13.775 | 15.625 | 14.900 | 14.575 | 88.950 | 25 Q | 14.850 | 15.700 | 14.000 | 15.800 | 14.425 | 14.225 | 89.000 | 20 |
| Louis Smith | All-around | 13.700 | 15.325 | 13.325 | 15.375 | 13.425 | 14.175 | 85.325 | 41 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Louis Smith | Pommel horse | — | 15.325 | — | — | — | — | 15.325 | 5 Q | — | 15.725 | — | — | — | — | 15.725 | |

#### Team

| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Qualification | Qualification | Qualification | Qualification | Qualification | Final | Final | Final | Final | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Event | Apparatus | Apparatus | Apparatus | Apparatus | Total | Rank | Apparatus | Apparatus | Apparatus | Apparatus | Total | Rank |
| Athlete | Event | F | V | UB | BB | Total | Rank | F | V | UB | BB | Total | Rank |
| Imogen Cairns | Team | 14.855 | 14.850 | 13.475 | 14.175 | 57.050 | 33 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Beckie Downie | Team | 14.150 | 15.050 | 14.650 | 14.225 | 58.075 | 24 Q | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Marissa King | Team | 13.750 | 14.875 | 13.475 | 14.325 | 56.425 | 42 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Beth Tweddle | Team | 14.950 | — | 15.650 Q | — | — | — | | | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Hannah Whelan | Team | 14.125 | 13.500 | — | 14.325 | — | — | | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Rebecca Wing | Team | — | 14.550 | 14.575 | 14.575 | — | — | | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Total | Team | 57.775 | 59.325 | 57.875 | 57.450 | 232.425 | 9 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |

#### Individual finals

| Athlete | Event | Apparatus | Apparatus | Apparatus | Apparatus | Total | Rank |
| Athlete | Event | F | V | UB | BB | Total | Rank |
| Beckie Downie | All-around | 14.100 | 15.025 | 15.625 | 14.700 | 59.450 | 12 |
| Beth Tweddle | Uneven bars | — | — | 16.625 | — | 16.625 | 4 |
The result of the uneven bars final, in which Britain's Beth Tweddle placed 4th, was called into question after documents were found that seemed to say that Chinese gymnasts He Kexin and Yang Yilin were only 14, and therefore under the age required to compete, at the time of the games. An investigation into their ages was launched by the IOC to determine whether it was necessary to disqualify them, thus Tweddle's standing could have been changed to 2nd, giving her a silver medal. After a five-and-a-half-week investigation the Chinese athletes were cleared and the original results allowed to stand.

### Trampoline

* Claire Wright was the only British competitor on the trampoline.
| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Qualification | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Event | Score | Rank | Score | Rank |
| Claire Wright | Women's | 63.10 | 10 | Did not advance | Did not advance |

## Judo

Team GB was represented by seven athletes in the Judo events. No British Judoka made it past the quarterfinal stages of competition or through to the medal match of the repechage, meaning the team failed to meet the two medal target set by UK Sport.

### Men

| Athlete | Event | Preliminary | Round of 32 | Round of 16 | Quarterfinals | Semi-finals | Repechage 1 | Repechage 2 | Repechage 3 | Final / BM | Final / BM |
| Athlete | Event | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Rank |
| Craig Fallon | −60 kg | Bye | Siccardi (MON) W 1010–0000 | Paischer (AUT) L 0001–0002 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Ahamdi (MAR) W 0011–0000 | Kim K-J (PRK) W 0100–0001 | Yekutiel (ISR) L 0101–0200 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Euan Burton | −81 kg | Bye | Lucenti (ARG) W 0010–0001 | Attaf (MAR) W 0010–0001 | Gontiuk (UKR) L 0010–0121 | Did not advance | Bye | Valles (COL) W 0110–0001 | Camilo (BRA) L 0010–0100 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Winston Gordon | −90 kg | — | Nabiev (UZB) L 0020–0100 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Peter Cousins | −100 kg | — | Zhorzholiani (GEO) L 0000–0010 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |

### Women

| Athlete | Event | Round of 32 | Round of 16 | Quarterfinals | Semi-finals | Repechage 1 | Repechage 2 | Repechage 3 | Final / BM | Final / BM |
| Athlete | Event | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Rank |
| Sarah Clark | −63 kg | Heill (AUT) L 0100–1011 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Michelle Rogers | −78 kg | Bye | Jeong G-M (KOR) L 0000–0001 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Karina Bryant | +78 kg | Bye | Zambotti (MEX) L 0001–0021 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |

## Modern pentathlon

Team GB sent the maximum allowance of four competitors for the modern pentathlon events in Beijing. For the first time since 1996, the team had entrants in the men's competition.
| Athlete | Event | Shooting (10 m air pistol) | Shooting (10 m air pistol) | Shooting (10 m air pistol) | Fencing (épée one touch) | Fencing (épée one touch) | Fencing (épée one touch) | Swimming (200 m freestyle) | Swimming (200 m freestyle) | Swimming (200 m freestyle) | Riding (show jumping) | Riding (show jumping) | Riding (show jumping) | Running (3000 m) | Running (3000 m) | Running (3000 m) | Total points | Final rank |
| Athlete | Event | Points | Rank | MP Points | Results | Rank | MP points | Time | Rank | MP points | Penalties | Rank | MP points | Time | Rank | MP Points | Total points | Final rank |
| Sam Weale | Men's | 177 | 25 | 1060 | 18–17 | 13 | 832 | 2:02.87 | 8 | 1328 | 164 | 18 | 1036 | 9:21.18 | 8 | 1156 | 5412 | 10 |
| Nick Woodbridge | Men's | 160 | 35 | 856 | 14–21 | 29 | 736 | 1:55.96 | 2 | 1412 | 140 | 12 | 1060 | 9:34.46 | 20 | 1104 | 5168 | 25 |
| Heather Fell | Women's | 185 | 6 | 1156 | 20–15 | =11 | 880 | 2:12.77 | 3 | 1328 | 56 | 11 | 1144 | 10:19.28 | 5 | 1244 | 5752 | |
| Katy Livingston | Women's | 178 | 18 | 1072 | 17–18 | =18 | 808 | 2:15.68 | 7 | 1292 | 28 | 6 | 1172 | 10:29.47 | 10 | 1204 | 5548 | 7 |

## Rowing

There were 43 rowers in Team GB, the most since qualifying quotas were introduced after the 1992 Summer Olympics. Crews were fielded in 12 out of a possible 14 events making Team GB the fourth biggest team. Medals were won in 6 events, which meant that GB topped the rowing medal table. The medals won included gold in the coxless four, for the third successive games, and Zac Purchase and Mark Hunter winning Great Britain's first ever lightweight rowing Olympic medal in the men's lightweight double sculls.

### Men

| Athlete | Event | Heats | Heats | Repechage | Repechage | Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Event | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank |
| Alan Campbell | Single sculls | 7:14.98 | 1 QF | — | — | 6:52.74 | 2 SA/B | 7:05.24 | 2 FA | 7:04:47 | 5 |
| Robin Bourne-Taylor Tom Solesbury | Pair | 6:59.48 | 4 R | 6:41.43 | 4 FC | — | — | Bye | Bye | 6:46.83 | 13 |
| Stephen Rowbotham Matt Wells | Double sculls | 6:26.33 | 1 SA/B | Bye | Bye | — | — | 6:21.15 | 3 FA | 6:29.10 | |
| Mark Hunter Zac Purchase | Lightweight double sculls | 6:13.69 OB | 1 SA/B | Bye | Bye | — | — | 6:29.56 | 1 FA | 6:10.99 | |
| Tom James Pete Reed Andrew Triggs Hodge Steve Williams | Four | 6:00.59 | 1 SA/B | Bye | Bye | — | — | 5:54.77 | 1 FA | 6:06.57 | |
| Richard Chambers James Clarke James Lindsay-Fynn Paul Mattick | Lightweight four | 5:52.38 | 2 SA/B | Bye | Bye | — | — | 6:08.75 | 3 FA | 5:52.12 | 5 |
| Richard Egington Alastair Heathcote Matt Langridge Tom Lucy Acer Nethercott (cox) Alex Partridge Colin Smith Tom Stallard Josh West | Eight | 5:25.86 | 1 FA | Bye | Bye | — | — | — | — | 5:25.11 | |

### Women

| Athlete | Event | Heats | Heats | Repechage | Repechage | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Event | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank |
| Louisa Reeve Olivia Whitlam | Pair | 7:29.88 | 3 R | 7:34.54 | 2 FA | — | — | 7:33.61 | 6 |
| Anna Bebington Elise Laverick | Double sculls | 7:08.65 | 3 R | 6:54.76 | 1 FA | — | — | 7:07.55 | |
| Helen Casey Hester Goodsell | Lightweight double sculls | 6:55.23 | 3 R | 7:24.23 | 1 SA/B | 7:17.67 | 5 FB | 7:11.24 | 11 |
| Debbie Flood Katherine Grainger Frances Houghton Annabel Vernon | Quadruple sculls | 6:13.70 | 1 FA | Bye | Bye | — | — | 6:17.37 | |
| Carla Ashford Jess Eddie Katie Greves Natasha Howard* Alison Knowles* Caroline O'Connor (cox) Natasha Page Beth Rodford Sarah Winckless | Eight | 6:08.68 | 2 R | 6:12.10 | 3 FA | — | — | 6:13.74 | 5 |
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
* Substitutes in final because of illness: Louisa Reeve for Howard and Alice Freeman for Knowles

## Sailing

Great Britain entered crews in all 11 sailing events at the Games. The team finished top of the sailing medal table, with six medals won, thus exceeding the target of four set by UK Sport. Ben Ainslie won a gold medal for the third successive Games to become the most decorated British Olympic sailor of all time.

### Men

| Athlete | Event | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Net points | Final rank |
| Athlete | Event | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | M* | Net points | Final rank |
| Nick Dempsey | RS:X | 11 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 17 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 14 | 60 | 4 |
| Paul Goodison | Laser | 15 | 2 | 15 | 1 | 9 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 6 | CAN | 18 | 63 | |
| Jonathan Glanfield Nick Rogers | 470 | 19 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 9 | 6 | 20 | 30 OCS | 2 | 3 | 6 | 75 | |
| Iain Percy Andrew Simpson | Star | 7 | 13 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 14 | 49 | |

### Women

| Athlete | Event | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Net points | Final rank |
| Athlete | Event | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | M* | Net points | Final rank |
| Bryony Shaw | RS:X | 4 | 3 | 11 | 6 | 28 OCS | 6 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 45 | |
| Penny Clark | Laser Radial | 2 | 22 | 1 | 22 | 3 | 17 | 18 | 23 | 13 | CAN | 14 | 112 | 10 |
| Christina Bassadone Saskia Clark | 470 | 20 DSQ | 8 | 3 | 4 | 15 | 13 | 8 | 3 | 15 | 5 | 8 | 82 | 6 |
| Sarah Ayton Sarah Webb Pippa Wilson | Yngling | 2 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 5 | CAN | CAN | 2 | 24 | |

### Open

| Athlete | Event | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Net points | Final rank |
| Athlete | Event | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | M* | Net points | Final rank |
| Ben Ainslie | Finn | 10 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 2 | 2 | CAN | CAN | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | 23 | |
| Stevie Morrison Ben Rhodes | 49er | 4 | 3 | 5 | 14 | 14 | 15 | 20 OCS | 3 | 2 | 8 | 11 | 15 | CAN | CAN | CAN | 6 | 100 | 9 |
| Will Howden Leigh McMillan | Tornado | 6 | 8 | 13 | 8 | 14 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | 68 | 6 |
M = Medal race; EL = Eliminated – did not advance into the medal race; CAN = Race cancelled; OCS = On the course side of the starting line;

## Shooting

Team GB had a total of five competitors for the shooting disciplines at the 2008 Olympics, with four entered in the shotgun events and one in the rifle events.

### Men

| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Qualification | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Event | Points | Rank | Points | Rank |
| Richard Faulds | Double trap | 137 | 5 Q | 180 | 6 |
| Jon Hammond | 10 m air rifle | 589 | 29 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Jon Hammond | 50 m rifle 3 positions | 1148 | 42 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Jon Hammond | 50 m rifle prone | 589 | 34 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Steve Scott | Double trap | 134 | 14 | Did not advance | Did not advance |

### Women

| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Qualification | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Event | Points | Rank | Points | Rank |
| Elena Allen | Skeet | 66 | 14 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Charlotte Kerwood | Trap | 58 | 16 | Did not advance | Did not advance |

## Swimming

Thirty-seven athletes represented Team GB in the swimming events. Selection followed the 2008 British Olympic Swimming Trials in Sheffield in April, with open water event swimmers selected after performance in the 2008 World Open Water Swimming Championships, in Seville, Spain. In winning six medals (two gold, two silver and two bronze) the team bettered the target of three medals set by UK Sport. The most successful swimmer was Rebecca Adlington who won two gold medals. Her 400 m freestyle success was Britain's first Olympic swimming title since 1988, and the first swimming gold by a British woman since 1960. Her second gold, in the 800 m freestyle, meant she also equalled the best performance by a British woman, from any sport, at the summer Olympics and was the best swimming performance by a Briton at the Olympics for 100 years.

### Men

| Athlete | Event | Heat | Heat | Semi-final | Semi-final | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Event | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank |
| David Carry | 400 m freestyle | 3:47.17 NR | 15 | — | — | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Richard Charlesworth | 1500 m freestyle | 15:17.27 | 25 | — | — | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Chris Cook | 100 m breaststroke | 1:00.70 | 15 Q | 1:00.81 | 15 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Todd Cooper | 100 m butterfly | 52.52 | 29 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Euan Dale | 400 m individual medley | 4:18.60 | 19 | — | — | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Ross Davenport | 200 m freestyle | 1:47.13 | 11 Q | 1:47.35 | 10 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| David Davies | 1500 m freestyle | 14:46.11 | 5 Q | — | — | 14:52.11 | 6 |
| David Davies | 10 km open water | — | — | — | — | 1:51:53.1 | |
| Mark Foster | 50 m freestyle | 22.35 | 23 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Kristopher Gilchrist | 100 m breaststroke | 1:01.34 | 27 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Kristopher Gilchrist | 200 m breaststroke | 2:11.13 | 15 Q | 2:10.27 NR | 13 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| James Goddard | 200 m individual medley | 1:59.74 | 13 Q | 1:58.63 | 6 Q | 1:59.24 | 6 |
| Thomas Haffield | 400 m individual medley | 4:16.72 | 17 | — | — | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| James Kirton | 200 m breaststroke | 2:15.25 | 37 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Dean Milwain | 400 m freestyle | 3:48.77 | 21 | — | — | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Robbie Renwick | 200 m freestyle | 1:47.82 | 17 Q | 1:47.07 | 8 Q | 1:47.47 | 8 |
| Michael Rock | 100 m butterfly | 52.48 | 27 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Michael Rock | 200 m butterfly | 1:55.55 | 9 Q | 1:55.90 | 12 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Gregor Tait | 100 m backstroke | 54.62 | 16 Q | 54.37 | 12 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Gregor Tait | 200 m backstroke | 1:57.03 | 5 Q | 1:56.72 | 6 Q | 1:57.00 | 8 |
| Liam Tancock | 100 m backstroke | 53.85 | 6 Q | 53.61 | 6 Q | 53.39 NR | 6 |
| Liam Tancock | 200 m individual medley | 1:59.79 | 14 Q | 1:59.42 | 7 Q | 2:00.76 | 8 |
| Adam Brown Simon Burnett Ross Davenport Benjamin Hockin | 4 × 100 m freestyle relay | 3:13.69 NR | 8 Q | — | — | 3:12.87 NR | 8 |
| David Carry Ross Davenport Benjamin Hockin Andrew Hunter Robbie Renwick | 4 × 200 m freestyle relay | 7:07.89 NR | 4 Q | — | — | 7:05.92 NR | 6 |
| Simon Burnett Chris Cook Michael Rock Liam Tancock | 4 × 100 m medley relay | 3:33.83 NR | 5 Q | — | — | 3:33.69 NR | 6 |
Qualifiers for the latter rounds (Q) of all events were decided on a time only basis, therefore positions shown are overall results versus competitors in all heats.

### Women

| Athlete | Event | Heat | Heat | Semi-final | Semi-final | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Event | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank |
| Rebecca Adlington | 400 m freestyle | 4:02.24 | 2 Q | — | — | 4:03.22 | |
| Rebecca Adlington | 800 m freestyle | 8:18.08 OR | 1 Q | — | — | 8:14.10 WR | |
| Kirsty Balfour | 100 m breaststroke | 1:08.30 | 14 Q | 1:09.23 | 15 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Kirsty Balfour | 200 m breaststroke | 2:27.87 | 18 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Ellen Gandy | 200 m butterfly | 2:08.98 | 15 Q | 2:10.60 | 15 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Francesca Halsall | 50 m freestyle | 24.93 | 8 Q | 24.80 | 10 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Francesca Halsall | 100 m freestyle | 53.93 | 5 Q | 53.94 | 5 Q | 54.29 | 8 |
| Francesca Halsall | 100 m butterfly | 58.70 | 21 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Kate Haywood | 100 m breaststroke | 1:08.18 | 11 Q | 1:08.36 | 11 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Joanne Jackson | 200 m freestyle | 1:58.00 | 14 Q | 1:58.70 | 14 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Joanne Jackson | 400 m freestyle | 4.03.80 | 4 Q | — | — | 4:03.52 | |
| Jemma Lowe | 100 m butterfly | 58.49 | 16 Q | 57.78 NR | 6 Q | 58.06 | 6 |
| Jemma Lowe | 200 m butterfly | 2:08.07 | 10 Q | 2:07.87 | 9 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Caitlin McClatchey | 100 m freestyle | DNS | DNS | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Caitlin McClatchey | 200 m freestyle | 1:56.97 | 3 Q | 1:57.73 | 7 Q | 1:57.65 | 6 |
| Hannah Miley | 200 m individual medley | 2:11.72 | 4 Q | 2:12.35 | 11 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Hannah Miley | 400 m individual medley | 4:36.56 | 8 Q | — | — | 4:39.44 | 6 |
| Cassie Patten | 800 m freestyle | 8:25.91 | 8 Q | — | — | 8:32.35 | 8 |
| Cassie Patten | 10 km open water | — | — | — | — | 1:59:31.0 | |
| Keri-Anne Payne | 200 m individual medley | 2.12.78 | 15 Q | 2:14.14 | 16 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Keri-Anne Payne | 400 m individual medley | 4:38.69 | 15 | — | — | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Keri-Anne Payne | 10 km open water | — | — | — | — | 1:59:29.2 | |
| Elizabeth Simmonds | 100 m backstroke | 1:00.53 | 12 Q | 1:00.39 | 10 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Elizabeth Simmonds | 200 m backstroke | 2:08.66 NR | 2 Q | 2:08.96 | 7 Q | 2:08.51 NR | 6 |
| Gemma Spofforth | 100 m backstroke | 1:00.11 | 6 Q | 59.79 | 5 Q | 59.38 | 4 |
| Gemma Spofforth | 200 m backstroke | 2:10.56 | 16 Q | 2:09.19 | 9 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Julia Beckett Francesca Halsall Melanie Marshall Caitlin McClatchey Jessica Sylvester | 4 × 100 m freestyle relay | 3:39.18 NR | 8 Q | — | — | 3:38.18 NR | 7 |
| Rebecca Adlington Francesca Halsall Joanne Jackson Melanie Marshall Caitlin McClatchey Hannah Miley | 4 × 200 m freestyle relay | 7:56.16 | 9 | — | — | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Francesca Halsall Kate Haywood Jemma Lowe Gemma Spofforth | 4 × 100 m medley relay | 3:59.14 | 2 Q | — | — | 3:57.50 | 4 |
Qualifiers for the latter rounds (Q) of all events were decided on a time only basis, therefore positions shown are overall results versus competitors in all heats.

## Synchronised swimming

Team GB was represented by two athletes in synchronised swimming, competing in the duet event.
| Athlete | Event | Technical routine | Technical routine | Free routine (preliminary) | Free routine (preliminary) | Free routine (preliminary) | Free routine (final) | Free routine (final) | Free routine (final) |
| Athlete | Event | Points | Rank | Points | Total (technical + free) | Rank | Points | Total (technical + free) | Rank |
| Olivia Allison Jenna Randall | Duet | 43.917 | 14 | 44.667 | 88.584 | 14 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |

## Taekwondo

Team GB entered three athletes into the taekwondo competition in Beijing. Sarah Stevenson won Team GB's first ever medal in Olympic taekwondo – a bronze in the women's +67 kg.
| Athlete | Event | Round of 16 | Quarterfinals | Semi-finals | Repechage | Bronze medal | Final | Final |
| Athlete | Event | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Rank |
| Michael Harvey | Men's −58 kg | Pérez (MEX) L 2–3 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Nikpai (AFG) L 1–3 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Aaron Cook | Men's −80 kg | Jason (MHL) W 7–0 | Vásquez (VEN) W 5–2 | Sarmiento (ITA) L 5–6 | Bye | Zhu G (CHN) L 1–4 | Did not advance | 5 |
| Sarah Stevenson | Women's +67 kg | Dawani (JOR) W 3–2 | Chen Z (CHN) W 2–1* | Espinoza (MEX) L 1–4 | Bye | Abd Rabo (EGY) W 5–1 | Did not advance | |
* After a successful appeal by the British, judges reversed the result of the match, granting Sarah Stevenson two points for a final round kick to her opponent's head which the judges had previously missed. The reversal of the decision, after video footage was considered, is thought to be a first for the sport. Another British hopeful, Aaron Cook, was also unhappy with the judges after losing out on bronze in the men's −80 kg.

## Tennis

The Murray brothers were the sole tennis players on Team GB. Andy Murray qualified due to his world ranking and Jamie Murray was nominated for the doubles by the International Tennis Federation, the governing body of world tennis.
| Athlete | Event | Round of 64 | Round of 32 | Round of 16 | Quarterfinals | Semi-finals | Final / BM | Final / BM |
| Athlete | Event | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Rank |
| Andy Murray | Men's singles | Lu Y-H (TPE) L 6–7$^{(5–7)}$, 4–6 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Andy Murray Jamie Murray | Men's doubles | — | Nestor / Niemeyer (CAN) W 4–6, 6–3, 6–4 | Clément / Llodra (FRA) L 1–6, 3–6 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |

## Triathlon

A total of five competitors were selected by Team GB for the triathlon events in Beijing, with three in the men's event and two in the women's. Four qualified through the Olympic Qualification rankings of the International Triathlon Union, the body responsible for organising official world championship series races, while Helen Tucker qualified by winning the 2008 World Championships.
| Athlete | Event | Swim (1.5 km) | Trans 1 | Bike (40 km) | Trans 2 | Run (10 km) | Total Time | Rank |
| Alistair Brownlee | Men's | 18:11 | 0:27 | 59:05 | 0:29 | 32:07 | 1:50:19 | 12 |
| Will Clarke | Men's | 18:53 | 0:27 | 58:23 | 0:31 | 32:18 | 1:50:32 | 14 |
| Tim Don | Men's | 18:54 | 0:26 | Lapped on bike (eliminated) | Lapped on bike (eliminated) | Lapped on bike (eliminated) | Lapped on bike (eliminated) | Lapped on bike (eliminated) |
| Hollie Avil | Women's | 20:09 | 0:32 | Did not finish | Did not finish | Did not finish | Did not finish | Did not finish |
| Helen Tucker | Women's | 19:52 | 0:31 | 1:04:17 | 0:36 | 37:39 | 2:02:55 | 21 |

## Weightlifting

The only British weightlifter to qualify for the games was Michaela Breeze who competed in her second Olympic Games. She battled through a back injury to finish 15th out of 20 competitors in her event.
| Athlete | Event | Snatch | Snatch | Clean & jerk | Clean & jerk | Total | Rank |
| Athlete | Event | Result | Rank | Result | Rank | Total | Rank |
| Michaela Breeze | Women's −63 kg | 85 | 15 | 100 | 15 | 185 | 15 |

## Sports not contested in Beijing

British representatives participated in the qualifying tournaments of a number of other Olympic sports in the lead up to the 2008 games, only for events outside of the athletes' control to prevent their further participation in the games.

### Baseball

The GB baseball team finished 2nd in the 2007 European Baseball Championship behind the Netherlands, guaranteeing them a place at the Olympic qualifying tournament in Taiwan. However, a lack of funding forced the team to withdraw, with their place being taken by Germany.

### Football

The award of the 2012 Summer Olympics to London has brought the question of British participation in the football tournaments to the fore, given that there is traditionally no single United Kingdom national team. The British Olympic Association initially refused to rule out the possibility of entry for 2008, but were unable to come to an agreement with the Scottish Football Association. The 2007 European Under-21 Championship, which served as the European qualifying tournament for the men's competition, saw the England U21 team reach the semi-finals, which would have meant a place at the Olympics. Because at the Olympics the team is representative of the entire UK, England were thus prevented from taking this place, with instead a play-off taking place between Portugal and Italy. A similar situation occurred with the England Women's team who, by virtue of being one of the top three European sides at the 2007 World Cup, would have been granted a place at the Olympics. Instead, there was a play-off between Denmark and Sweden.

## Media coverage

The main rights to Olympic coverage in the United Kingdom are held by the BBC, under the Ofcom Code on Sports and Other Listed and Designated Events. An extensive range of broadcasting options was used to provide over 2,500 hours of coverage.
For the first time, Olympic coverage was broadcast in high-definition on BBC HD. Digital television viewers had access to up to six streamed channels covering the games on BBC Red Button, whilst the BBC's website permitted British broadband users to view live streams from a variety of events. Live broadcasts ran overnight and throughout the day on BBC One and BBC Two, starting at 0200 daily; a highlights programme, Games Today, was broadcast on BBC One following the close of each day's events.
The opening and closing ceremonies were anchored by Sue Barker and Huw Edwards, whilst general coverage was anchored (at various times of the day) by Adrian Chiles, Clare Balding, Gabby Logan, Jake Humphrey, Sue Barker, Hazel Irvine and John Inverdale. Former Olympic contenders – including gold medallists Michael Johnson, Shirley Robertson, Adrian Moorhouse, Steve Redgrave, Jonathan Edwards and Chris Boardman – provided analysis.
Eurosport also broadcast coverage of the Games viewable in the United Kingdom. In accordance with the ITC Code, it can show live events, provided that such events can also be broadcast by the BBC (although the BBC can choose not to do so).
Radio coverage was provided by BBC Radio 5 Live, and BBC Radio 5 Live Sports Extra on digital radio.