Switzerland competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 5 to 21 August 2016. Swiss athletes have appeared in every edition of the Summer Olympic Games in the modern era, except for a partial boycott of the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne as a protest to the Soviet invasion of Hungary. The Swiss team consisted of 104 athletes, 59 men and 45 women, across seventeen sports.
Switzerland returned home from Rio de Janeiro with seven medals (three golds, two silver, and two bronze), which matched its overall tally from the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta and the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. Two of these medals were awarded to the Swiss team in cycling, with one each in artistic gymnastics, rowing, shooting, tennis, and triathlon.
Among the nation's winners were professional road cyclist Fabian Cancellara, who saved the best race of his storied career for last by reclaiming his men's time trial title for the second time (the first did so in Beijing 2008), and mountain biker Nino Schurter, who completed a full set of medals in his career hardware by striking the gold at his third attempt in the men's cross country race. Entering the Games as the reigning world and double European champions, the lightweight four crew of Mario Gyr, Simon Niepmann, Simon Schürch, and Lucas Tramèr propelled their way ahead of their Danish and French rivals to take the country's first ever Olympic title in rowing after two decades.
On the women's side, pistol shooter Heidi Diethelm Gerber, all-around gymnast Giulia Steingruber, and former world-number-one tennis player Martina Hingis, along with her doubles partner Timea Bacsinszky, accomplished their historic feats as the first ever Swiss females to stand on the podium in their respective sporting disciplines. Meanwhile, Nicola Spirig Hug picked up a silver in the women's triathlon to become the first in Olympic history to collect more than a single medal, bowing out her title defense to the world-ranked American challenger Gwen Jorgensen.
Medalists
| width=78% align=left valign=top | Medal Name Sport Event Date Fabian Cancellara Cycling Men's time trial Mario GyrSimon NiepmannSimon SchürchLucas Tramèr Rowing Lightweight four Nino Schurter Cycling Men's cross country Timea BacsinszkyMartina Hingis Tennis Women's doubles Nicola Spirig Hug Triathlon Women's Heidi Diethelm Gerber Shooting Women's 25 m pistol Giulia Steingruber Gymnastics Women's vault
|width=22% align=left valign=top | Medals by sport Sport Total Cycling 2 0 0 2 Gymnastics 0 0 1 1 Rowing 1 0 0 1 Shooting 0 0 1 1 Tennis 0 1 0 1 Triathlon 0 1 0 1 Total 3 2 2 7
Competitors The Swiss Olympic Association selected a roster of 104 athletes, 59 men and 45 women, to compete across seventeen different sports at these Games; it was the nation's largest delegation ever sent to the Summer Olympics since 1984, without any association to the traditional team-based sports. Moreover, the Swiss team featured the largest share of women in its Summer Olympic history, constituting about 43 percent of the total. Roughly three quarters of the nation's roster made their Olympic debut in Rio de Janeiro, with the remainder having attended at least a single edition.
These Games also witnessed the Swiss male gymnasts compete for the first time in the team all-around tournament since 1992. Athletics and cycling accounted for the largest number of competitors on the Swiss roster, with 16 entries each, respectively.
Three of the nation's medalists from London 2012 returned, with equestrian show jumper Steve Guerdat and triathlete Nicola Spirig Hug looking to defend their titles in Rio de Janeiro, and with mountain biker Nino Schurter hoping to complete his collection of Olympic medals for gold at his third attempt. Professional road cyclist and 2008 time trial champion Fabian Cancellara joined an exclusive club of Swiss athletes, along with Guerdat, Spirig Hug, and 2004 bronze medalist Sven Riederer (men's triathlon), who earned four consecutive trips to the Games, aiming to close out his stellar sporting career with another golden finish in the same event.
Other notable athletes on the Swiss team included the rowing quartet of Mario Gyr, Simon Niepmann, Simon Schürch, and Lucas Tramèr, who entered the Games as the defending world and two-time European champions in the men's lightweight four; former single-handed sailor Nathalie Brugger and her Argentine-born partner Matías Bühler in the inaugural Nacra 17 catamaran; pole vaulter Nicole Büchler; European Games champion Heidi Diethelm Gerber in the women's pistol shooting; and former world-number-one tennis player Martina Hingis, who returned to the Olympic scene from her 20-year absence to compete alongside her partner Timea Bacsinszky in the women's doubles. Artistic gymnast and 2015 European all-around champion Giulia Steingruber was selected by the association to carry the Swiss flag in the opening ceremony, the first by a female since 1988 and third overall in Summer Olympic history.
New York-based golfer Albane Valenzuela (aged 18) was Switzerland's youngest competitor of the Games, with lone dressage rider Marcela Krinke-Susmelj rounding out the lineup as the oldest member (aged 50).
| width=78% align=left valign=top | The following is the list of number of competitors in the Games. Note that reserves in fencing, field hockey, football, and handball are not counted as athletes: SportMenWomenTotalAthletics 3 13 16Badminton 0 1 1Canoeing 3 0 3Cycling 14 2 16Equestrian 5 2 7Fencing 4 1 5Golf 0 2 2Gymnastics 5 1 6Judo 2 1 3Rowing 10 1 11Sailing 6 3 9Shooting 1 3 4Swimming 3 5 8Synchronized swimming — 2 2Tennis 0 2 2Triathlon 2 2 4Volleyball 0 4 4 Total 59 45 104
Athletics
Swiss athletes have so far achieved qualifying standards in the following athletics events (up to a maximum of 3 athletes in each event):
On May 5, 2016, the Swiss Olympic Association had selected three marathon runners (Abraham, Kreienbühl, and Neuenschwander), who achieved the federation's entry standards, for the Olympics. Fourteen more athletes (one man and thirteen women) rounded out the Swiss track and field team for the Games at the end of the qualifying period on July 11, 2016.
Track & road events Men AthleteEventHeat SemifinalFinalResultRankResultRankResultRankTadesse AbrahamMarathoncolspan=4 2:11:427Kariem Hussein400 m hurdles49.805Did not advanceChristian KreienbühlMarathoncolspan=4 2:21:1376
Women AthleteEventHeat QuarterfinalSemifinalFinalResultRankResultRankResultRankResultRankSelina Büchel800 m1:59.001 Qcolspan=2 1:59.353Did not advancePetra Fontanive400 m hurdles56.806colspan=2 Did not advanceMujinga Kambundji100 mcolspan=2 11.193 q11.166Did not advance200 m22.783 qcolspan=2 22.836Did not advanceMaja NeuenschwanderMarathoncolspan=6 2:34:2729Clélia Reuse100 m hurdles12.914 qcolspan=2 12.965Did not advanceFabienne Schlumpf3000 m steeplechase9:30.546 qcolspan=4 9:59.3018Léa Sprunger400 m hurdles56.584colspan=2 Did not advanceSarah AtchoAjla del PonteMujinga KambundjiSalomé KoraMarisa LavanchyEllen Sprunger4 × 100 m relay43.125colspan=4 Did not advance
Field events AthleteEventQualificationFinalDistancePositionDistancePositionNicole BüchlerWomen's pole vault4.55=8 q4.706Angelica Moser4.4523Did not advance
Badminton
Switzerland has qualified one badminton player for the women's singles into the Olympic tournament. London 2012 Olympian Sabrina Jaquet picked up one of the spare athlete berths from the doubles as the next highest-ranked eligible player in the BWF World Rankings as of 5 May 2016.
AthleteEventGroup StageEliminationQuarterfinalSemifinalFinal / OppositionScoreOppositionScoreRankOppositionScoreOppositionScoreOppositionScoreOppositionScoreRankSabrina JaquetWomen's singlesL (15–21, 17–21)L (15–21, 17–21)3Did not advance
Canoeing
Slalom Switzerland has qualified a pair of canoeists in the men's C-2 class by obtaining a top finish and an outright Olympic berth at the 2016 European Canoe Slalom Championships in Liptovský Mikuláš, Slovakia. The slalom canoeists were named to the Swiss team on May 26, 2016.
AthleteEventPreliminarySemifinalFinalRun 1RankRun 2RankBestRankTimeRankTimeRankLukas WerroSimon WerroMen's C-2158.4711 110.566110.569 Q115.409 Q111.529
Sprint Switzerland has received a spare berth from the International Canoe Federation to send one canoeist competing in the men's K-1 1000 m, as a response to the "multiple positive" cases on doping that provoked a one-year suspension for Belarus and Romania.
AthleteEventHeatsSemifinalsFinalTimeRankTimeRankTimeRankFabio WyssMen's K-1 1000 m3:41.9857Did not advance Qualification Legend: FA = Qualify to final (medal); FB = Qualify to final B (non-medal)
Cycling
Road Swiss riders qualified for the following quota places in the men's and women's Olympic road race by virtue of their top 15 final national ranking in the 2015 UCI World Tour (for men) and top 22 in the UCI World Ranking (for women). The road cycling team, led by two-time Olympic medalist Fabian Cancellara, was officially named to the Swiss cycling roster for the Games on July 1, 2016.
AthleteEventTimeRankMichael AlbasiniMen's road raceDid not finishFabian CancellaraMen's road race6:21:5434Men's time trial1:12:15.42Steve MorabitoMen's road raceDid not finishSébastien Reichenbach6:13:3619Jolanda NeffWomen's road race3:51:478
Track Following the completion of the 2016 UCI Track Cycling World Championships, Swiss riders have accumulated spots in the men's team pursuit, as well as the men's omnium. The Swiss Olympic Association announced the track cycling squad for the Olympics on March 15, 2016.
Pursuit AthleteEventQualificationSemifinalsFinalTimeRankOpponentResultsRankOpponentResultsRankOlivier BeerSilvan DillierFrank PascheThéry SchirCyrille Thièry*Men's team pursuit4:03.8457 Q4:03.58074:01.7867
Omnium AthleteEventScratch raceIndividual pursuitElimination raceTime trialFlying lapPoints raceTotal pointsRankRankPointsTimeRankPointsRankPointsTimeRankPointsTimeRankPointsPointsRankGaël SuterMen's omnium15124:36.67417178261:04.433131612.9815321319512
Mountain biking Swiss mountain bikers qualified for three men's and two women's quota places into the Olympic cross-country race, as a result of the nation's top finish for both men and women in the UCI Olympic Ranking List of May 25, 2016. The mountain biking team, highlighted by double Olympic medalist Nino Schurter, was named to the Swiss roster on June 6, 2016.
AthleteEventTimeRankLars FörsterMen's cross-countryDid not finishMathias Flückiger1:35:526Nino Schurter1:33:28Linda IndergandWomen's cross-country1:33:278Jolanda Neff1:32:436
BMX Swiss riders qualified for one men's quota place in BMX at the Olympics, as a result of the nation's ninth-place finish in the UCI Olympic Ranking List of May 31, 2016. BMX rider David Graf was selected to the Swiss team for the Olympics on June 10, 2016.
AthleteEventSeedingQuarterfinalSemifinalFinalResultRankPointsRankPointsRankResultRankDavid GrafMen's BMX34.6782144 Q227Did not advance
Equestrian
Switzerland has qualified a full squad in the team jumping competition after having achieved one of the three Olympic quota places available from the 2015 European Championships. Three more Swiss riders have formed a composite squad to compete in the Olympic team eventing by virtue of the following results in the individual FEI Olympic rankings: a top two finish from European combined ranking, and two top nine finishes from the combined overall FEI Olympic rankings.
Dressage Marcela Krinke-Susmelj and her Danish Warmblood Molberg were named to the Swiss roster on June 10, 2016.
AthleteHorseEventGrand Prix Grand Prix SpecialGrand Prix FreestyleOverallScoreRankScoreRankTechnicalArtisticScoreRankMarcela Krinke-SusmeljMolbergIndividual72.70024 Q72.88524Did not advance
Eventing