Makedonas

That's the thing, why would they choose 200m over 400m? It makes zero sense.

Obviously I'm thrilled for Vasiliou, especially since she made a long post yesterday on Instagram about not qualifying and how much she was crying and also originally she said she would retire after Tokyo (pre-covid days). However, I'm really surprised about the Namibians! Does anyone have more information about them? I'm surprised this hasn't really been discussed much.

Did Bogdan get in or she is one of the first alternates?

Yeah, ironically they entered a Greek woman with distant Armenian ancestry (she just started competing for Armenia last week) who is a triple jumper and never ran 100m in her career until last weekend

Here's another one: https://www.worldathletics.org/athletes/armenia/alexander-donigian-14423245

And now Alvertsian got a universality place in the women's 100m. She is a long/triple jumper and never ran 100m in her long career (her World Athletics profile has results from 2011). Her first (and only) 100m ever was actually last Saturday in the Balkan Championships https://www.worldathletics.org/athletes/greece/kristina-alvertsian-14459789

Does no one else find this crazy about the Armenian guy? World Athletics not posting his result until ONE MONTH LATER. This is so ridiculous and unfair. Plus he might've gotten a universality place anyways so did they really have to go pull this suspicious stunt at the last minute like that? In that case Tsiamis also qualified. His wind assisted 17.21 in May (before he got injured) was actually +2.0 and not +3.0. We couldn't just say the initial wind reported was wrong? It seems like that's what Armenia did...

Unfortunately the same thing happened to a Greek girl in the women's 400m. However she is only three out and apparently two other girls won't compete so she will be one out (thus would've made it if not for the universality places in that event)

Montenegrin girl achieved the standard after she was awarded the universality place

Sofia Kenin said she won't go to Tokyo

Too bad Chatzitsakiroglou won't be in Tokyo but this is a very good result for him. Only 21 years old so he has a bright future. I never even heard of him until a few weeks ago when he got 5th at the European Championships, so it seems like he's done really well lately.

Now it's been confirmed that Eleftherios Petrounias will join her. Personally I'd rather just have one person doing it but both are good choices.

Miller Uibo is out too?! So then Vasiliou will move up from 52 to 49 once Eid Nasser, Miller Uibo, and Ryzhykova are removed. So she'll need someone else to withdraw. If only those universality places didn't impact the quota...

Wow, so Tsiamis didn't make it He's 34th now, thanks to the last minute tricks by Armenia and Uzbekistan. Something really needs to be done about this BS. However, I still have hope that he might be able to get in because he only needs two withdrawals and there are some people ahead of him who haven't competed at all this outdoor season. He was so unlucky to miss the Greek National Championships and Balkan Championships this year due to injury. All he needed was a decent showing at one of those and he'd get a ton of placing points and make it to the Olympics. I'm so heartbroken for him. He's 39 years old and his only previous Olympic appearance was in Beijing. I don't think he'll get another chance... Also Vasiliou and Tzengko each only 4 out. I still don't understand why Tzengko didn't try to go to a last minute meet yesterday. Her fifth score in the rankings is so low, she really didn't even need to throw crazy far to get enough points but it is what it is at this point. I feel like Vasiliou might get in, especially if it's true that Ryzhykova will focus on 400H, then she'll only be three out.

https://www.worldathletics.org/athletes/armenia/levon-aghasyan-14480182 I don't remember this guy achieving the entry standard in May. I could be wrong but it seems like he was just added now to the qualifiers for an event that happened in May in Georgia with almost perfect wind and he jumped 17.16 (with 17.15 being the standard). He has never jumped close to 17m outside of Armenia. I don't want to jump to conclusions but this is very suspicious. Until now Dimitrios Tsiamis was 32 in Road to Tokyo. Now he's 33 and the Italian guy who achieved the standard was already ahead of Tsiamis by ranking so it can't be him. I looked at the men's triple jump a lot and do not remember this Armenian guy having achieved the standard so it must be him that bumped Tsiamis down to 33. Is it even possible for results from last month to be added in at the last moment like that? It doesn't sit well with me.

I didn't waste my time watching it (the time was also difficult for us) but I'm surprised it was that close. Thought Canada would win easily so I guess that's a good sign. We still have some good players on this roster, we just lack the depth that we used to have in the past (and obviously all of our injuries/absences made that situation worse).

For the popular answer would be Katerina Stefanidi in the women's pole vault as she won gold in Rio, but honestly I don't think she is our best chance in Tokyo. I think it is Miltiadis Tentoglou in the men's long jump. He is the world leader this year and has competed in four competitions so far in 2021 and his best jumps from each were 8.60, 8.27, 8.38, and 8.48 and in some of these he wasn't even giving full effort and just wanted to complete a few jumps and then stop or stopped once he knew it was almost impossible for anyone to beat him.

Does that mean Greece will qualify in 96kg?

Exactly my thoughts about Anna Korakaki's recent struggles. Shooting is such an unpredictable sport, often with random results. It's very difficult to win medals consistently so better to struggle at World Cup events than in the Olympics.

Assuming we don't qualify in men's basketball (which would add the Antetokounmpo brothers and Calathes to this list), or more tennis players, here is the official Greek team for 2020 with origins from other countries. Everyone on this list was born in Greece unless I say otherwise. We don't have any suspicious naturalizations like some other countries do, which is something I'm proud of because everyone who represents us actually was born and/or raised in our country (with the exception of Stamatia Scarvelis who has two Greek parents so she has the ancestral connection). Artistic Swimming: Maria Alzigkouzi Kominea - father Andriana Misikevych - origins, not sure where she was born or any details like that Athletics: Konstantinos Douvalidis - father (uses mother's surname) Emmanouil Karalis - mother Eleni Polak - father and mother Stamatia Scarvelis - born in to Greek parents Judo: Alexios Ntanatsidis - born in to Greek parents and moved to Greece at 4 years old Rowing: Christina Bourmpou - mother Sailing: Byron Kokkalanis - mother Swimming: Kristian Gkolomeev - born in but moved to Greece as an infant Tennis: Stefanos Tsitsipas - mother

I'm not surprised Tsitsipas lost. He played a lot lately so he clearly needs a break, and Tiafoe is a good opponent. Tsitsipas also hasn't really proven himself on grass courts yet. Sakkari won easily 6-1 6-1 in 51 minutes. I hope she can go far here. Also Serena Williams retired during her first round match so that's another big name on the WTA side out. I'm sure the semifinals will be something random as always like Kontaveit vs Putintseva and Pegula vs Martic

For Greece we have 4 confirmed so far. In addition to gold medalists Christina Bourmpou (rowing) and Maria Kyridou (rowing) and bronze medalist Fani Tzeli (taekwondo), we also have 5th placed Katerina Divari (sailing). Gold medalist Elina Tzengko (javelin throw) will go up in the Road to Tokyo rankings and will be close but will need 3-4 withdrawals or so in order to make it to Tokyo. From our 2010 YOG team, we have Alexios Ntanatsidis (judo) making his Olympic debut in Tokyo, while Panagiotis Samilidis (swimming) won't be in Tokyo but was in London and Rio. From our 2014 YOG team, we have Theodora Gkountoura (fencing) making her Olympic debut in Tokyo, with silver medalist Apostolos Christou (swimming) and Anna Korakaki (shooting) going to Tokyo after making their Olympic debuts in Rio. Aikaterini Kontochristopoulou (fencing) won't be in Tokyo but she was in Rio. So in Tokyo it seems that we will have 4 athletes from the 2018 Youth Olympics and 8 athletes total from any Youth Olympics.

Here is the team, they are leaving tomorrow for Tokyo which is very early.

I read on a Greek sports site that Stefanos Tsitsipas said he might play doubles at the Olympics with his brother, and that Maria Sakkari might play with Valentini Grammatikopoulou or Despina Papamichail. The reason given was that if the quotas per gender (86 I think) are met in tennis, then countries with singles players that don't have doubles players will get to use one of their singles players and invite a doubles player to come, rather than have other countries bringing two new doubles players and increasing the athlete quotas. I don't know how accurate this is and even the article said that we won't know for certain until tomorrow, but the Greek tennis federation is hoping that we can get this and they are preparing in case it happens.

I guess everything will be more clear tomorrow when the official lists come out. Apparently as there have been a lot of withdrawals, Greece is hoping to get in for men's doubles and women's doubles. At least that is the rumour. I'll believe it when I see it.