The Latvian roster featured two returning Olympic medalists from London, namely beach volleyball player Jānis Šmēdiņš and two-time defending BMX champion Maris Strombergs.

Hunting for his third consecutive gold medal in Rio de Janeiro, Strombergs was selected to lead the Latvian delegation as the flag bearer in the opening ceremony.

Other notable Latvian athletes included heptathlete and 2015 world bronze medalist Laura Ikauniece-Admidiņa, reigning European javelin throw champion Zigismunds Sirmais, and world-ranked freestyle wrestler Anastasija Grigorjeva.

Koha, Ikauniece-Admidiņa, and sprint kayaker Aleksejs Rumjancevs produced the strongest results for the Latvians at these Games, finishing among the top five in their respective sporting events.

Two-time defending BMX champion Māris Štrombergs and London 2012 Olympian Edžus Treimanis were selected to the Latvian team.

Following the exclusion of the Russian athletes as a response to their previous doping cases, Ukrainian-born Ruslans Nakoņečnijs received a spare berth as the next highest-ranked eligible modern pentathlete, not yet qualified, in the UIPM World Rankings.