Zimbabwe aiming to send largest delegation since 1980 to Rio 2016 Olympics

Zimbabwe are hopeful of being represented by 32 athletes at Rio 2016 ©Getty Images

Zimbabwe are expected to send one of their largest delegations to a Summer Olympic Games, with a projected team size of 32 for Rio 2016 after a series of impressive qualification performances.

It would be the country’s largest team since the Moscow 1980 Olympics, when they competed as Zimbabwe for the first time and won women's hockey gold, having appeared at three Games as Rhodesia.

The country will be represented for the first time since those Games in a team sport after their women’s footballers progressed to Rio courtesy of their performance at the Confederation of African Football (CAF) Women's Olympic Qualifying Tournament.

Having reached the fourth round of the competition, they face a two-legged tie against Cameroon to seal one of two places for African teams at the Games and despite falling to a 2-1 defeat in the opening match they progressed via the away goals rule having won the second leg 1-0, with Rudo Neshamba scoring the vital goal.

Their progression marked the first time that a Zimbabwean team had qualified for an Olympics, with their gold medal winning hockey team having been specially invited to participate in the 1980 Games following several countries boycotting after the Soviet Union’s invasion of Afghanistan.

In addition to the women’s football team, which will be made up of 18 players, four individual athletes have also booked their place at Rio 2016, including Zimbabwe’s most successful Olympian Kirsty Coventry, who has won seven of the country’s eight medals.

The country's most successful Olympian Kirsty Coventry has already booked a place a the Games — The country's most successful Olympian Kirsty Coventry has already booked a place at the Games ©Getty Images

The swimmer, who won gold in the women's 200 metres backstroke at Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008, will be competing at her fourth Olympics and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Athletes’ Commission member will swim in the 100 and 200m backstroke events.

Coventry and the women's hockey team remain the only athletes to have stood on an Olympic podium for the country.

Men's marathon runner Wirimayi Juwawo has also claimed a Rio 2016 berth and he will be joined by two rowers, Micheen Thornycroft and Peter Purcell-Gilpin, taking the overall team for the Games to 22 with the football team's inclusion having a massive impact on the swelling of numbers.

It ensures a large increase on their representation at London 2012, when only seven athletes competed, and both the men’s and women’s rugby sevens team still stand a chance of qualifying having reached the Olympic qualifier play-offs.

One place will be available for the 16 teams competing, but Zimbabwe will feel confident having fallen narrowly short of sealing a guaranteed berth at the African Cup.