Ethiopia at the 2006 Winter Olympics
| Ethiopia at the 2006 Winter Olympics |
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| IOC code | ETH | ||||||||
| NOC | Ethiopian Olympic Committee | ||||||||
| Website | www |
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| in Turin | |||||||||
| Competitors | 1 in 1 sport | ||||||||
| Flag bearer | Robel Teklemariam (opening and closing) | ||||||||
| Medals |
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| Winter Olympics appearances (overview) | |||||||||
Ethiopia competed in the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy. The country's participation at the Games marked its Winter Olympics debut, although it had competed in the Summer Olympics since the 1956 Games. The delegation consisted of a single cross-country skier, Robel Teklemariam, who did not win any medals. Teklemariam would later return for his country at the 2010 Winter Olympics.
Ethiopia first competed in the Summer Olympics at the 1956 Games in Melbourne, Australia. They participated on 10 occasions prior to the 2006 Winter Olympics, where they made their Winter Olympics debut in Turin, Italy. They sent a single cross-country skier, Robel Teklemariam.
Teklemariam was born in Addis Ababa, before he left Ethiopia with his family at the age of nine. When he arrived in the United States, he was introduced to skiing while at school in Lake Placid. After leaving full time education, he decided that he wanted to compete internationally in the sport.
In seeking to compete at the Winter Olympics, he set up the Ethiopian National Skiing Federation with his three brothers so that the sport could be recognised in the country. Teklemariam explained in interviews prior to the Games that he hoped his appearance would inspire other Ethiopians living in colder climates to take up sports. He suggested that cross-country skiing could be a sport that Ethiopians could naturally be proficient at, since it was an endurance sport.
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