China at the 2012 Summer Olympics

China at the 2012 Summer Olympics
The People's Republic of China competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, the United Kingdom, between 27 July and 12 August 2012. This was the nation's ninth appearance at the Summer Olympics since its debut in 1952. A total of 396 Chinese athletes, 171 men and 225 women, were selected by the Chinese Olympic Committee to compete in 23 sports. For the fourth time in its Olympic history, China was represented by more female than male athletes.
China left London with a total of 91 medals – 39 gold, 31 silver, and 22 bronze – finishing second only to the United States in the global medal standings. The Chinese delegation proved particularly successful in several sports, winning twelve medals in gymnastics, ten in diving and swimming, eight in badminton, seven in weightlifting and shooting, and six in table tennis. Chinese athletes dominated in badminton and table tennis, where they each won gold medals in all sporting events. Eleven Chinese athletes managed to defend their titles from the 2008 Olympics, which China hosted; 18 of them won more than one Olympic medal in London. China also won its first ever Olympic medal in modern pentathlon.
Among the nation's medalists were Sun Yang and Ye Shiwen, who emerged as China's first swimmers to win two gold medals in their events; Sun and Ye broke a world record and an Olympic record, respectively. Sun also dominated the nation's Olympic medal standings, winning four medals. Gymnast Zou Kai, who won two golds and one bronze in London, became the most successful Chinese athlete in history with a total of six Olympic medals. Springboard diver Wu Minxia became the first Chinese athlete to win a gold medal in a single event at three consecutive Olympic Games. Meanwhile, Chen Ruolin became the second diver in Chinese history to defend two Olympic titles at a single games, after Guo Jingjing did so in two springboard events in 2008.
Medalists
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By chronological order
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Multiple medalists
Repeat medalists
Successful defending champions are marked in bold.
Medal distribution
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By sport
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By date
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By gender
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By dominance
Won all gold medals in one sport – 2
Badminton – 5 golds
Table tennis – 4 golds
Won all medals in one event (Podium Sweep) – 1
Athletics – Women's 20 kilometres walk
Won gold and silver medals in one event – 7
Badminton – Women's singles, also with fourth place
Badminton – Mixed doubles
Diving – Women's 3 metre springboard
Gymnastics – Women's balance beam
Table tennis – Men's singles
Table tennis – Women's singles
Weightlifting – Men's 77 kg
Won gold and bronze medals in one event – 5
Athletics – Men's 20 kilometres walk, also with fourth place
Badminton – Men's singles
Gymnastics – Men's trampoline
Shooting – Women's 10 metre air rifle
Swimming – Women's 400 metre individual medley
Won gold medals in both men's and women's events – 6
Badminton – Singles
Badminton – Doubles
Diving – Synchronized 3 metre springboard
Diving – Synchronized 10 metre platform
Table tennis – Team
Table tennis – Singles
Competitors
The Chinese Olympic Committee selected a team of 396 athletes, 171 men and 225 women, to compete in 23 sports. Equestrian, football, and handball were the only sports in which China had no representation in 2012.
The Chinese team featured 29 defending champions from the Beijing games, including springboard diver Wu Minxia, light flyweight boxer Zou Shiming, gymnasts Zou Kai and Chen Yibing, and badminton player Lin Dan. Pistol shooter and former Olympic medalist Tan Zongliang, the oldest male member of the contingent, aged 41, competed at his fifth Olympic Games. Meanwhile, fencer Li Na and basketball player Wang Zhizhi each made their fourth Olympic appearance. Trap shooter Liu Yingzi was the oldest athlete of the team, aged 41, while relay swimmer Qiu Yuhan was the youngest, aged 14. Basketballer Yi Jianlian, who had previously played for the NBA's Dallas Mavericks, was the nation's flag bearer at the opening ceremony.
The following table lists the number of Chinese competitors who participated in each Olympic sport. Note that swimming, synchronized swimming, diving, and water polo are technically considered as one sport, aquatics. However, due to their significant practical differences, they are listed separately by tradition.
Archery
China qualified 3 archers for the men's individual event, 3 archers for the women's individual event, a team for the men's team event, and a team for the women's team event.
Men
Women
Athletics
Prior to the 2012 Olympics, Chinese athletes achieved qualifying standards in the following athletics events (up to a maximum of 3 athletes in each event at the 'A' Standard, and 1 at the 'B' Standard):
Men
Track & road events
Field events
Women
Track & road events
Field events
On 1 May 2013, the IOC stripped Russian discus thrower Darya Pishchalnikova of her silver medal in the women's discus throw after testing positive for Oxandrolone (an anabolic steroid). China's Li Yanfeng was elevated to silver.
Badminton
China won 12 quotas with 17 athletes for the 2012 Olympics.
Men
Women
Mixed
Basketball
China's male and female basketball teams both qualified for the 2012 Olympic Games.
Men's team event – 1 team of 12 players
Women's team event – 1 team of 12 players
Men's tournament
Roster
Group play
Women's tournament
Roster
Group play
Quarter-final
Boxing
China qualified boxers for the following events in 2012:
Men
Women
Canoeing
Slalom
China qualified boats for the following slalom events:
Sprint
China qualified boats for the following sprint events:
Men
Women
Qualification Legend: FA = Qualify to final (medal); FB = Qualify to final B (non-medal)
Cycling
China qualified the following cyclists for the 2012 Games:
Road
Track
Sprint
Team sprint
Pursuit
Keirin
Omnium
Mountain biking
Diving
The Chinese diving team qualified 12 divers across all diving events at the 2012 Olympics through the 2011 World Aquatics Championships.
Men
Women
Fencing
China qualified 13 fencers for nine events at the 2012 Olympics.
Men
Women
Field hockey
The Chinese women's hockey team qualified a team of 16 players for the 2012 Olympics, by virtue of winning the 2010 Asian Games hockey title.
Women's tournament
Roster
Group play
5th/6th place
Gymnastics
A total of 15 Chinese gymnasts competed at the 2012 Olympics.
Artistic
Men's team
Men's individual finals
Women's team
Women's individual finals
Rhythmic
Trampoline
Judo
Eight Chinese athletes – one man and seven women – competed in the Olympic judo events.
Men
Women
Modern pentathlon
Based on their results at the 2011 Asian/Oceania Championships, four Chinese pentathletes qualified for the 2012 games. Cao Zhongrong and Wang Guan earned places in the men's event, while Chen Qian and Miao Yihua earned places in the women's event.
Rowing
Men
Women
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
China qualified one boat for each of the following events:
Men
Women
M = Medal race; EL = Eliminated – did not advance into the medal race
Shooting
The following 23 quota places were qualified for the Chinese shooting squad at the 2012 Games:
Men
Women
Swimming
Chinese swimmers achieved qualifying standards in the following Olympic events (up to a maximum of 2 swimmers in each event at the Olympic Qualifying Time (OQT), and one at the Olympic Selection Time (OST)):
Men
Women
Synchronized swimming
China qualified a duet and a team. The team consisted of 9 athletes, 8 in action and 1 in reserve.
Table tennis
China qualified four athletes for the singles table tennis events at the 2012 Olympics. Wang Hao and Zhang Jike qualified for the men's event, while Li Xiaoxia and Ding Ning qualified for the women's event.
Men
Women
Taekwondo
China ensured berths in the following taekwondo events by reaching the top 3 of the 2011 WTF World Qualification Tournament:
Tennis
Triathlon
China qualified the following triathletes for the 2012 Olympics:
Volleyball
Beach
Indoor
China qualified a 12-person women's team for the indoor volleyball tournament.
Women's tournament
Team roster
Group play
Quarter-final
Water polo
China qualified a 13-member women's water polo team.
Women's tournament
Team roster
Group play
Quarterfinals
5th-8th Place
5th-6th Place
Weightlifting
China qualified 6 men and 4 women for the Olympic weightlifting competition.
Men
Women
Wrestling
China qualified 8 quota places for wrestling at the 2012 games.
Men's freestyle
Men's Greco-Roman
Women's freestyle
See also
China at the 2012 Summer Paralympics
Olympic competitors for China
Sports in China
References
External links
China – London2012.com (schedules, athletes, medals, profiles and photos)
Official homepage of the Chinese Olympic Committee and English version
Official CCTV-5 Olympics coverage and English version
Nations at the 2012 Summer Olympics
2012
Summer Olympics