Kuwait (KUW)

Kuwait’s National Olympic Committee was formed in 1957 and recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in October 1966, at the IOC session in Baden-Baden. Until 2012, Kuwait had competed continuously at the Olympic Games since 1968. It has never competed at the Olympic Winter Games.

In January 2010, the IOC briefly suspended the Kuwaiti Olympic Committee due to alleged interference from the government, after warning it and asking it to amend government legislation that allows the Kuwaiti government to be involved in elections of sporting organizations. As a result of that suspension, Kuwait had to compete at the 2010 Asian Games under the name “Athletes from Kuwait”. However, the suspension was lifted and it competed at London 2012 as Kuwait. In October 2015, Kuwait was banned from the international sport scene, when the IOC and the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) announced the suspension of Kuwait due to government interference in the sporting entities. Therefore, it did not participate at Rio 2016, but the suspension was lifted and its athletes returned for Tokyo 2020.

Kuwait’s first two medals, both bronze, were won by Fehaid Al-Deehani in 2000 double trap shooting and in 2012 trap shooting. He would later win the gold medal in 2016 double trap shooting, but now competing as an Independent Olympic Athlete (IOA). After five participations for Kuwait, skeet shooter Abdullah Al-Rashidi won his first medal, a bronze, at Rio 2016, also as an IOA. He would return to compete for Kuwait at Tokyo 2020, repeating the bronze from five years earlier.