Morocco at the 2014 Winter Olympics
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Arabic: اللجنة الأولمبية الوطنية المغربية
| Morocco at the 2014 Winter Olympics | |
|---|---|
 | |
| IOC code | MAR |
| NOC | Moroccan Olympic Committee Arabic: اللجنة الأولمبية الوطنية المغربية |
| Website | www |
| in Sochi | |
| Competitors | 2 in 1 sport |
| Flag bearers | Adam Lamhamedi (opening and closing) |
| Medals |
|
| Winter Olympics appearances (overview) | |
Morocco competed at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. The country's participation at Sochi marked its sixth appearance at a Winter Olympics since its debut at the 1968 Games; no athlete has ever won any medals. Sochi 2014 marked the first time the Moroccan Olympic team competed in Russia as Morocco and 63 other Western nations took part in the US-led boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow due the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. The 2014 delegation consisted of two athletes competing in alpine skiing, Adam Lamhamedi and Kenza Tazi, who were accompanied by Adam's brother Sami and four officials. Adam Lamhamedi was also the nation's flag bearer in the Parade of Nations, and at the closing ceremony. Neither skier finished on a medal podium.
Morocco participated in six Winter Olympics between its debut at the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France, and the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. By the 2014 Games, no Moroccan athlete had ever won a medal at a Winter Games, excluding the Youth Games.[1][2]
According to the final quota allocation released on 20 January 2014, Morocco had two athletes in qualification position.[3] Mustapha Nait Lhou, the president of the Moroccan Ski Association, said that this made Morocco "the most represented among African Arab nations."[4] Adam Lamhamedi was the sole male athlete in the Moroccan delegation at the 2014 Winter Games. Lamhamedi was seventeen at the time of the Sochi Games, having been eligible to represent the country through his Moroccan father. Lamhamedi had represented the country at the inaugural Winter Youth Olympics in 2012, held in Innsbruck, Austria.[2]
At those Games, Lamhamedi won the gold medal in the boy's super-G competition. At the time, he said "I wanted to prove that Moroccans can ski well, and I proved it. This represents that in life you can do everything, never give up." This achievement meant that he was the first African competitor to win a medal of any colour at a Winter Olympics event. During the ski season prior to the Sochi Games, Lamhamedi qualified to compete at the Olympics by receiving the required number of points.[2]
Boston born Kenza Tazi was the sole female athlete competing for Morocco at the 2014 Winter Olympics. She had skied from the age of three onwards, and said her hero was American skier Bode Miller. At the time of the start of the 2014 Games, she was also 17; she celebrated her 18th birthday while in Sochi.[4] She chose to represent Morocco over the United States as the Moroccan Ski Association offered to fund her training.[5] Tazi qualified for the Sochi Olympics after competing successfully at a number of qualification events, despite injury problems.[6] Also accompanying the two athletes was a third skier, Sami Lamhamedi, the brother of Adam. However, Sami did not compete in events, and was only there as a potential substitute. These athletes were also accompanied by four officials.[7]
