Rio 2016 Ends; Iran Finishes 25th with Eight Medals

The Rio 2016 Olympics in Brazil concluded on August 31 (September 1 in Iran) with representatives from countries, regions, and independent athletes from around the world attending the closing ceremony. Iran achieved a total of eight medals in this Olympics. Now it is time for athletes to prepare for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. In the London 2012 Olympics, Iran ranked 17th with a total of 12 medals (4 gold, 6 silver, and 2 bronze); the London Olympics was Iran's best performance in terms of medal count. The best ranking for Iran was achieved in 1956 at the Melbourne Olympics. Notably, Rio was the first Olympic host where an Iranian female athlete won a medal; Kimia Alizadeh, competing in taekwondo at 57 kg, won a bronze medal at just 18 years old. Her achievement was met with widespread reactions, and many Iranians celebrated it on social media. Additionally, Iran secured the runner-up position in freestyle wrestling with one gold, one silver, and one bronze medal from wrestlers Hossein Yazdani, Kamil Qasemi, and Hassan Rahimi. In weightlifting, Iran's Kianoush Rostami and Sohrab Moradi won two gold medals, while in Greco-Roman wrestling, two bronze medals were won by Saeed Abdoli and Ghasem Rezaei. The best results of the 2016 Summer Games in terms of medal count and ranking went to the United States, which secured 121 medals (46 gold) and ranked first. Following the U.S., Britain (67 medals, 27 gold), China (70 medals, 26 gold), and Russia (56 medals, 19 gold) followed. The host country, Brazil, ranked 19th with 19 medals, including seven gold. Among Asian countries, after China, Japan ranked sixth and South Korea eighth. Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Iran achieved the best results in the vast continent after them. The next host of the Summer Games will be Japan, with the 2020 Olympics taking place in Tokyo.