Rio Rii

Rio Rii
Personal information
Full name	Riilio Rii
Nationality	Vanuatu
Born	22 June 1994 (age 29); Port Vila, Vanuatu
Height	1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)
Weight	79 kg (174 lb)
Sport
Country	Vanuatu
Sport	Rowing
Event	Men's Single Sculls

Riilio "Rio" Rii^[1]^[2] (born 22 June 1994) is a Ni-Van rower.^[3] He was the flagbearer of Vanuatu at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo,^[4] earning attention for his shirtless, oiled get-up compared to Tongan fighter Pita Taufatofua.^[5] In the men's single sculls race, Rii finished 30th overall.^[6]

Career

He started in the sport at 19, having taken up cricket before, and has won a gold medal at the Commonwealth Rowing Championships,^[7] as well as appearing at three World Rowing Championships.^[8]

References

^ "Rowing - RII Riilio". Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Archived from the original on 28 July 2021. Retrieved 4 September 2021.
^ "'Shirtless Tongan' makes Olympic history | NBC Olympics". nbcolympics.com. Archived from the original on 28 July 2021. Retrieved 4 September 2021.
^ "Sport: Vanuatu rower Rio Rii begins training stint in Queensland". RNZ. 14 January 2020. Archived from the original on 4 August 2021. Retrieved 19 July 2021.
^ "Rower Rillio Rio Rii to carry Vanuatu's flag at Tokyo Olympics opening ceremony". Loop Vanuatu. 9 July 2021.
^ "Vanuatu's Riilio Rii steals hearts at Tokyo Olympics as he carries country's flag". Fox News. Archived from the original on 9 August 2021. Retrieved 9 August 2021.
^ Natoga, Anasilini. "Rower Rillio Rii on his path to Tokyo 2020". Vanuatu Daily Post. Archived from the original on 29 June 2021. Retrieved 19 July 2021.
^ "Rio to Tokyo: Vanuatu rower's inspiring Olympic journey". RNZ. Archived from the original on 9 August 2021. Retrieved 9 August 2021.
^ "Rillio Rii". World Rowing. Archived from the original on 9 August 2021. Retrieved 9 August 2021.

External links

Rio Rii at World Rowing
Riilio Rii at Olympics.com
Riilio Rii at Olympedia

This biographical article relating to sports in Vanuatu is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

[1] "Rowing - RII Riilio". Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Archived from the original on 28 July 2021. Retrieved 4 September 2021.

[2] "'Shirtless Tongan' makes Olympic history | NBC Olympics". nbcolympics.com. Archived from the original on 28 July 2021. Retrieved 4 September 2021.

[3] "Sport: Vanuatu rower Rio Rii begins training stint in Queensland". RNZ. 14 January 2020. Archived from the original on 4 August 2021. Retrieved 19 July 2021.

[4] "Rower Rillio Rio Rii to carry Vanuatu's flag at Tokyo Olympics opening ceremony". Loop Vanuatu. 9 July 2021.

[5] "Vanuatu's Riilio Rii steals hearts at Tokyo Olympics as he carries country's flag". Fox News. Archived from the original on 9 August 2021. Retrieved 9 August 2021.

[6] Natoga, Anasilini. "Rower Rillio Rii on his path to Tokyo 2020". Vanuatu Daily Post. Archived from the original on 29 June 2021. Retrieved 19 July 2021.

[7] "Rio to Tokyo: Vanuatu rower's inspiring Olympic journey". RNZ. Archived from the original on 9 August 2021. Retrieved 9 August 2021.

[8] "Rillio Rii". World Rowing. Archived from the original on 9 August 2021. Retrieved 9 August 2021.