[1][2] All of Vanuatu's competitors made their Olympic debut in Rio de Janeiro, except for table tennis player Yoshua Shing, who attended the London Games four years earlier.

[5] Vanuatu received an invitation from the Tripartite Commission to send a male boxer competing in the bantamweight division to the Games, signifying the nation's return to the sport for the first time since 1988.

Joe Mahit earned a continental quota spot from the Oceania region as Vanuatu's top-ranked judoka outside of direct qualifying position in the IJF World Ranking List of May 30, 2016.

[9] Vanuatu has received an invitation from the Tripartite Commission to send a rower in the men's single sculls to the Rio regatta, signifying the nation's Olympic debut in the sport.

2012 Olympian Yoshua Shing picked up an unused berth freed by New Zealand to round out the top three in the men's singles at the 2016 Oceania Qualification Tournament in Bendigo, Australia.