[[Image:1920 olympics poster.jpg|thumb|240px|Poster for the [[1920 Summer Olympics]] in [[Antwerp]].]]
The '''Summer Olympic Games''' or the '''Games of the Olympiad''' are an [[international]] [[multi-sport event]] held every four years, organised by the [[International Olympic Committee]]. The Olympics are the most prestigious of such events in the world. Olympic victory is widely considered to be the most prestigious achievement in sports. Medals are awarded in each event, with [[gold medal]]s for first place, [[silver medal|silver]] for second and [[bronze medal|bronze]] for third, a tradition which started in 1904.
The Games have expanded from a 43-event competition with fewer than 250 men competing to including over 10,000 competitors of both genders from 202 nations. Organisers for the [[2008 Summer Olympics]] in [[Beijing]] expect approximately 10,500 athletes to take part in the 302 events on the programme for the Games.[{{cite news |url = http://olympic.org/uk/news/olympic_news/full_story_uk.asp?id=1797 |title = Beijing 2008: Games Programme Finalised |publisher = International Olympic Committee |date = [[2006-04-27]] |accessdate = 2006-05-10}}] The [[2004 Summer Olympics]], for which organisers had also expected 10,500 competitors, drew a total of 11,099 in the 301 events offered.
Competitors are entered by a [[National Olympic Committee]] (NOC) to represent their [[country]] of citizenship. [[National anthem]]s and [[flag]]s accompany the medal ceremonies, and tables showing the number of medals won by each country are widely used. In general only recognised nations are represented, but a few sovereign-disputed countries are allowed to take part. The country of the [[Republic of China]] ([[Taiwan]]) has been required by the [[International Olympic Committee]] to compete using the name "[[Chinese Taipei]]" in order to avoid provoking the [[People's Republic of China]] ([[PRC]]).
==Qualification==
Qualification rules for each of the Olympic sports are set by the [[sport governing body|International Federation]] (IF) that governs that sport's international competition.
For individual sports, competitors typically qualify through attaining a certain place in a major international event or on the IF's ranking list. National Olympic Committees may enter a limited number of qualified competitors in each event (3 is a common number), and the NOC decides which qualified competitors to select as representatives in each event if more have attained the benchmark than can be entered. Many events provide for a certain number of wildcard entries, given to athletes from developing nations.
Nations qualify teams for team sports through continental qualifying tournaments, in which each continental association is given a certain number of spots in the Olympic tournament. The host nation is generally given an automatic qualification.
==History==
===The early years===
[[Image:1896 Olympic opening ceremony.jpg|thumb|The opening ceremony of the first Olympic Games in the [[Panathenaic Stadium]].]]
The modern [[Olympic Games]] were founded in 1894 when [[Pierre de Coubertin|Pierre Fredi, Baron de Coubertin]] sought to promote international understanding through sporting competition. He based his Olympics on the [[Wenlock Olympian Society Annual Games]], which had been contested in [[Much Wenlock]] since 1850[{{cite news |first=Ben |last=Jeffrey |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/shropshire/features/2004/08/william_penny_brookes.shtml |title=Father of the modern Olympics |publisher=British Broadcasting Corporation |accessdate=2006-05-06}}]. The first edition of de Coubertin's games, held in [[1896 Summer Olympics|Athens in 1896]], attracted just 245 competitors, of whom more than 200 were Greek, and only 14 countries were represented. Nevertheless, no international events of this magnitude had been organised before. Female athletes were not allowed to compete, though one woman, [[Stamata Revithi]], ran the marathon course on her own, saying "[i]f the committee doesn’t let me compete I will go after them regardless" [{{cite journal | author = Tarasouleas, Athanasios | year = 1993 | month = Summer | title = The Female Spiridon Loues | journal = Citius, Altius, Fortius | volume = 1 | issue = 3 | pages = 11-12 | url = http://www.aafla.org/SportsLibrary/JOH/JOHv1n3/JOHv1n3e.pdf}}].
Four years later the [[1900 Summer Olympics]] in [[Paris]] attracted more than four times as many athletes, including 11 women, who were allowed to officially compete for the first time, in [[croquet]], [[golf]], [[sailing]], and [[tennis]]. The Games were integrated with the Paris [[World's Fair]] and lasted over 5 months. It is still disputed which events exactly were ''Olympic'', since few or maybe even none of the events were advertised as such at the time.
Numbers declined again for the [[1904 Summer Olympics|1904 Games]] in [[St. Louis, Missouri|St. Louis]], [[Missouri]], [[United States|USA]], due in part to the lengthy transatlantic boat trip required of the European competitors, and the integration with the [[Louisiana Purchase Exposition]] [[World's Fair]], which again spread the event out over an extended period. In contrast with Paris 1900, the word Olympic was used for practically every contest, including those exclusively for school boys or for Irish-Americans.
[[1906 Summer Olympics|A series of smaller games]] were held in Athens in 1906. These were to be the first of an alternating series of games to be held in Athens, but the series failed to materialise. The games were held in 1906 to celebrate the "tenth birthday" of the games. The IOC does not currently recognise these games as being official Olympic Games, although many historians do. The 1906 Athens games, which had over 900 athletes competing, were more successful than the 1900 and 1904 games and contributed positively to the success of future games.
[[Image:Dorando Pietri.jpg|left|thumb|Dorando Pietri finishes the first modern marathon.]]
The [[1908 Summer Olympics|1908 London Games]] saw numbers rise again, as well as the first running of the [[marathon (sport)|marathon]] over its now-standard distance of 42.195 km (26 miles 385 yards). This distance was chosen to ensure that the race finished in front of the box occupied by the British royal family. The marathon had been 40 km for the first games in 1896, but was subsequently varied by up to 2 km due to local conditions such as street and stadium layout. At the six Olympic games between 1900 and 1920, the marathon was raced over six different distances.
At the end of the 1908 marathon the [[Italy|Italian]] runner Dorando Pietri was first to enter the stadium, but he was clearly in distress, and collapsed of exhaustion before he could complete the event. He was helped over the finish line by concerned race officials, but later he was disqualified and the gold medal was awarded to John Hayes, who had trailed him by around 30 seconds.
The Games continued to grow, attracting 2,500 competitors to [[1912 Summer Olympics|Stockholm in 1912]], including the great all-rounder [[Jim Thorpe]], who won both the decathlon and pentathlon. Thorpe had previously played a few games of baseball for a fee, and saw his medals stripped for this breach of [[amateurism]]. They were reinstated in 1983, 30 years after his death.
The scheduled [[Berlin]] Games of 1916 were cancelled following the onset of [[World War I]].
===The interwar era===
The 1920 [[Antwerp]] games in war-ravaged [[Belgium]] were a subdued affair, but again drew a record number of competitors. This record only stood until 1924, when the [[Paris]] Games would involve 3,000 competitors, the greatest of whom was Finnish runner [[Paavo Nurmi]]. "[[Flying Finn (athlete)|The Flying Finn]]", won three team gold medals and the individual 1,500 and 5,000 metre runs, the latter two on the same day.
The 1928 [[Amsterdam]] games were notable for being the first games which allowed females to compete at track & field athletics, and benefited greatly from the general prosperity of the times alongside the first appearance of [[sponsor]]ship of the games, from [[Coca-Cola]]. This was in stark contrast to 1932 when the [[Los Angeles]] games were affected by the [[Great Depression]], which contributed to the fewest competitors since the St. Louis games.
The [[1936 Berlin Games]] were seen by the German government as a golden opportunity to promote their ideology. The ruling [[Nazism|Nazi]] Party commissioned film-maker [[Leni Riefenstahl]] to film the games. The result, ''[[Olympia (film)|Olympia]]'', was a masterpiece, despite [[Hitler]]'s theories of Aryan racial superiority being repeatedly shown up by non-Aryan athletes. In particular, African-American sprinter and long jumper [[Jesse Owens]] won 4 gold medals. The tale of Hitler snubbing Owens at the ensuing medal ceremony is a fabrication.[{{cite web| url=http://german.about.com/library/blgermyth10.htm |title=German Myth: Hitler and Jesse Owens |work=[http://german.about.com/library/weekly/aa021024a.htm German Misnomers, Myths and Mistakes] |publisher=About, Inc |accessdate=2006-05-06}}]
Due to [[World War II]], the Games of 1940 (due to be held in [[Tokyo]] and temporarily relocated to [[Helsinki]] upon the outbreak of war) were cancelled; no Games were planned for 1944.
===After WWII===
The first post-war Games were held in 1948 in [[London]], with both [[Germany]] and [[Japan]] excluded. [[Netherlands|Dutch]] sprinter [[Fanny Blankers-Koen]] won four gold medals on the track, emulating Owens' achievement in Berlin.
At the 1952 Games in [[Helsinki]] the [[USSR at the Summer Olympics|USSR team]] competed for the first time and at once became one of the dominant teams. Finland made a legend of an amiable Czech army lieutenant named [[Emil Zátopek]], who was intent on improving on his single gold and silver medals from 1948. Having first won both the 10,000 and 5,000 metre races, he also entered the marathon, despite having never previously raced at that distance. Pacing himself by chatting with the other leaders, Zátopek led from about half way, slowly dropping the remaining contenders to win by two and a half minutes, and completed a trio of wins.
The 1956 [[Melbourne]] Games were largely successful, barring a [[water polo]] match between [[Hungary]] and the Soviet Union, which political tensions caused to end as a pitched battle between the teams.
The 1960 [[Rome]] Games saw the arrival on the world scene of a young light-heavyweight boxer named Cassius Clay, later known as [[Muhammad Ali]], who would later throw his gold medal away in disgust after being refused service in a [[Jim Crow laws|whites-only]] restaurant in his home town{{citation needed}}. Soviet women's [[artistic gymnastics]] team members won 15 of 16 possible medals. Other performers of note in 1960 included [[Wilma Rudolph]], a gold medallist in the 100 metres, 200 metres and 4x100 metre relay events.
The 1964 Games held in [[Tokyo]] are notable for heralding the modern age of telecommunications. These games were the first to be broadcast worldwide on television, enabled by the recent advent of communication satellites. The 1964 Games were thus a turning point in the global visibility and popularity of the Olympics.
Performances at the 1968 [[Mexico City]] games were affected by the altitude of the host city.[{{cite web|url=http://www.olympic.org/uk/games/past/index_uk.asp?OLGT=1&OLGY=1968 |title=Games of the XIX Olympiad |work=[http://www.olympic.org/uk/games/index_uk.asp Olympic Games] |publisher=International Olympic Committee | language=British English |accessdate=2006-05-06}}] No event was affected more than the long jump. [[United States|American]] athlete [[Bob Beamon]] jumped 8.90 metres, setting a new world record and, in the words of fellow competitor and then-reigning champion [[Lynn Davies]], "making the rest of us look silly{{citation needed}}." Beamon's world record would stand for 23 years. The 1968 Games also saw the introduction of the now-universal [[Fosbury flop]], a technique which won American high jumper [[Dick Fosbury]] the gold medal. Politics took centre stage in the medal ceremony for the men's 200 metre dash, where [[Tommie C. Smith|Tommie Smith]] and [[John Carlos]] made a protest gesture on the podium against the segregation in the United States; their political act was condemned within the Olympic Movement, but was praised in the [[American Civil Rights Movement]].
[[Image:Ap munich905 t.jpg|thumb|180px|right|A Black September terrorist on a balcony in the Olympic Village in September 1972, during what became known as the [[Munich Massacre]], in which 11 Israeli athletes were kidnapped and killed.]]
Politics again intervened at [[Munich]] in 1972, with lethal consequences. A Palestinian terrorist group named [[Black September (group)|Black September]] invaded the Olympic village and broke into the apartment of the Israeli delegation. They killed two Israelis and held 9 others as hostages. The terrorists demanded that Israel release numerous prisoners. When the Israeli government refused their demand, a tense stand-off ensued while negotiations continued. Eventually the captors, still holding their hostages, were offered safe passage and taken to an airport, where they were ambushed by German security forces. In the firefight that followed, 15 people, including the nine Israeli athletes and five of the terrorists, were killed. After much debate, it was decided that the Games would continue, but proceedings were obviously dominated by these events.[{{cite web|url=http://www.olympic.org/uk/games/past/index_uk.asp?OLGT=1&OLGY=1972 |title=Games of the XX Olympiad |work=[http://www.olympic.org/uk/games/index_uk.asp Olympic Games] |publisher=International Olympic Committee | language=British English |accessdate=2006-05-06}}] Some memorable athletic achievements did occur during these Games, notably the winning of a record seven gold medals by [[United States]] swimmer [[Mark Spitz]], and the winning of three gold medals by 16-year-old Soviet gymnast [[Olga Korbut]], who, however failed to win the all-around to her teammate Ludmilla Tourischeva.
There was no such tragedy in [[Montreal]] in 1976, but bad planning led to the Games' cost far exceeding the budget. The Montreal Games are the most expensive in Olympic history, costing over $5 billion (equivalent to $20 billion in 2006). For a time, it seemed that the Olympics might no longer be a viable financial proposition. There was also a boycott by African nations to protest against a recent tour of [[apartheid]]-run [[South Africa]] by a [[New Zealand]] rugby side. The Romanian gymnast [[Nadia Comaneci]] won the women's individual all around gold medal with two of four possible perfect scores, thus giving birth to a gymnastics dynasty in Romania. Another female gymnast to earn the perfect score and three gold medals there was [[Nellie Kim]] of the USSR.
=== 1980s and beyond ===
[[Image:1980 Summer Olympics Closing Ceremony.jpg|thumb|179px|right|Closing Ceremony of the [[1980 Summer Olympics]]. Bear Cub [[Misha]], the mascot, flying into the sky.]]
Following the [[Soviet Union]]'s invasion of [[Afghanistan]], 66 nations, including the United States, Canada, West Germany and Japan, boycotted the 1980 games held in [[Moscow]]. Notably, Greece, Great Britain and Australia did not withdraw, and remain the only nations to have competed in all summer games. The boycott contributed to the 1980 Games being a less publicised and less competitive affair, which was dominated by the host country.
In 1984 the Soviet Union, and 14 [[Eastern Bloc]] countries, reciprocated by boycotting the [[Los Angeles, California|Los Angeles]] games. These games were perhaps the first games of a new era to make a profit. The games were again viable, but had become more commercial.
The 1988 [[Seoul]] games were very well planned but the games were sadly tainted when many of the athletes failed mandatory [[drug test]]s. Despite splendid drug-free performances by many individuals, the number of people who failed screenings for performance-enhancing chemicals overshadowed the games. The outcry reached its zenith when [[Ben Johnson (athlete)|Ben Johnson]], the [[Canada|Canadian]] winner of the men's 100 metre sprint, was discovered to be a steroid user and disqualified.
On the bright side, drug testing and regulation authorities were catching up with the cheating that had been endemic in athletics for some years. The 1992 [[Barcelona]] Games were cleaner, although not without incident. In evidence there was increased professionalism amongst Olympic athletes, exemplified by US basketball's "[[Dream Team (basketball)|Dream Team]]". 1992 also saw the reintroduction to the Games of several smaller European states which had been incorporated into the [[Soviet Union]] since World War II.
By then the process of choosing a location for the Games had itself become a commercial concern; allegations of corruption rocked the International Olympic Committee, in particular with reference to [[Salt Lake City]]'s bid to host the [[2002 Winter Olympics]]. It was also widely rumoured that the [[Coca-Cola]] company was highly influential in the [[1996 Summer Olympics]] being hosted by their home city of [[Atlanta, Georgia]]{{citation needed}}. In the stadium in 1996, the highlight was [[Sprint (race)|200 metres]] runner [[Michael Johnson (athlete)|Michael Johnson]] annihilating the world record in front of a home crowd. [[Canada|Canadians]] savoured [[Donovan Bailey]]'s record-breaking gold medal run in the 100-metre dash. This was popularly felt to be an appropriate recompense for the previous national disgrace involving Ben Johnson. There were also emotional scenes, such as when [[Muhammad Ali]], clearly affected by [[Parkinson's disease]], lit the Olympic torch and received a replacement medal for the one he had discarded in 1960. The latter event took place not at the boxing ring but in the basketball arena, at the demand of US television. The atmosphere at the Games was marred however when a [[Centennial Olympic Park bombing|bomb exploded]] during the celebration in Centennial Park. In June 2003, the principal suspect in this bombing, [[Eric Robert Rudolph]], was captured.
===A new millennium===
The 2000 Games were held in [[Sydney]], [[Australia]], and showcased individual performances by local favourite [[Ian Thorpe]] in the pool, Briton [[Steve Redgrave]] who won a rowing gold medal in an unprecedented fifth consecutive Olympics, and [[Cathy Freeman]], whose triumph in the [[Sprint (race)|400 metres]] united a packed stadium and provided a bridge between white and aboriginal Australians. [[Eric Moussambani|Eric "the Eel" Moussambani]], a swimmer from [[Equatorial Guinea]], had a memorably slow 100 metre freestyle swim that showed that, even in the commercial world of the twentieth century, some of de Coubertin's original vision still remained{{citation needed}}.
2004 saw the Games return to their birthplace in [[Athens]], [[Greece]]. Many doubted the city would be ready to host the games in time. Greece spent at least $7.2 billion on the Games, including $1.5 billion on security alone—an enormous sum that will take many years, if not decades, to pay off. Yet, none of those fears became a reality. The games were praised and appreciated for their excellent quality in terms of organization, hospitality, symbolism, the level of the competition and athleticism, and the overall image transmitted worldwide. Although unfounded and wildly sensationalized reports of terrorism drove crowds away from the preliminary competitions of first weekend of the games (August 14-15), attendance picked up soon thereafter as the games progressed, the competitions got underway, and the terrorist attacks and security glitches failed to materialize. The Athens Games witnessed all NOCs participate for the first time since 1996, and the largest ever - with 202 NOCs and over 11,000 participants.
The [[2008 Summer Olympics]] are to be held in [[Beijing]], [[China]]. Several new events, including the new discipline of BMX for both men and women, are to be held. For the first time, women will compete in the [[steeplechase (athletics)|steeplechase]]. The Fencing programme will be expanded to include all six events for both men and women, the latter of which had not previously been able to compete in team foil or sabre events. Marathon swimming events, over the distance of 10 kilometres, will be added. In addition, the doubles events in table tennis will be replaced by team events.[
[[London]], [[United Kingdom]] will hold the [[2012 Summer Olympics|2012 Games]], making London the first city to hold the Olympics three times. The International Olympic Committee has removed [[baseball]] and [[softball]] from the programme, effective beginning with the 2012 Olympic Games.
==List of Olympic sports==
{{main|Olympic sports}}
42 different sports, spanning 56 different disciplines, have been part of the Olympic programme at one point or another. 28 sports have comprised the schedule for the [[2000 Summer Olympics|2000]], [[2004 Summer Olympics|2004]], and [[2008 Summer Olympics]], though baseball and softball have been removed to give a list of 26 for the [[2012 Summer Olympics|2012 Games]]][{{cite news | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/olympics_2012/4658925.stm | title = Fewer sports for London Olympics | work = BBC Sport |publisher = British Broadcasting Corporation | date = [[2005-07-08]] | accessdate = 2006-05-05}}].
{| class=wikitable
! Sport || Years ||width=50 rowspan=23 | || Sport || Years
|-
| [[Archery at the Summer Olympics|Archery]] || 1900-1912, since 1972 || [[Modern pentathlon at the Summer Olympics|Modern pentathlon]] || since 1912
|-
| [[Athletics at the Summer Olympics|Athletics]] || all || [[Polo at the Summer Olympics|Polo]] || 1900, 1908, 1920, 1924, 1936
|-
| [[Badminton at the Summer Olympics|Badminton]] || since 1992 || [[Rackets at the Summer Olympics|Rackets]] || 1908
|-
| [[Baseball at the Summer Olympics|Baseball]] || 1992-2008 || [[Roque at the Summer Olympics|Roque]] || 1904
|-
| [[Basketball at the Summer Olympics|Basketball]] || since 1936 || [[Rowing at the Summer Olympics|Rowing]] || since 1900
|-
| [[Basque pelota at the 1900 Summer Olympics|Basque pelota]] || 1900 || [[Rugby union at the Summer Olympics|Rugby union]] || 1900, 1908, 1920, 1924
|-
| [[Boxing at the Summer Olympics|Boxing]] || 1904, 1908, since 1920 || [[Sailing at the Summer Olympics|Sailing]] || 1900, since 1908
|-
| [[Canoeing at the Summer Olympics|Canoeing]] || since 1936 || [[Shooting at the Summer Olympics|Shooting]] || 1896, 1900, 1908-1924, since 1932
|-
| [[Cricket at the Summer Olympics|Cricket]] || 1900 || [[Softball at the Summer Olympics|Softball]] || 1996-2008
|-
| [[Croquet at the Summer Olympics|Croquet]] || 1900 || [[Swimming at the Summer Olympics|Swimming]] || all
|-
| [[Cycling at the Summer Olympics|Cycling]] || all || [[Synchronized swimming at the Summer Olympics|Synchronized swimming]] || since 1984
|-
| [[Diving at the Summer Olympics|Diving]] || since 1904 || [[Table tennis at the Summer Olympics|Table tennis]] || since 1988
|-
| [[Equestrian at the Summer Olympics|Equestrian]] || 1900, since 1912 || [[Taekwondo at the Summer Olympics|Taekwondo]] || since 2000
|-
| [[Fencing at the Summer Olympics|Fencing]] || all || [[Tennis at the Summer Olympics|Tennis]] || 1896-1924, since 1988
|-
| [[Football at the Summer Olympics|Football]] (soccer) || 1900-1928, since 1936 || [[Triathlon at the Summer Olympics|Triathlon]] || since 2000
|-
| [[Golf at the Summer Olympics|Golf]] || 1900, 1904 || [[Tug of war at the Summer Olympics|Tug of war]] || 1900-1920
|-
| [[Gymnastics at the Summer Olympics|Gymnastics]] || all || [[Volleyball at the Summer Olympics|Volleyball]] || since 1964
|-
| [[Handball at the Summer Olympics|Handball]] || 1936, since 1972 || [[Water motorsports at the 1908 Summer Olympics|Water motorsports]] || 1908
|-
| [[Field hockey at the Summer Olympics|Hockey]] (field) || 1908, 1920, since 1928 || [[Water Polo at the Summer Olympics|Water polo]] || 1900, since 1908
|-
| [[Jeu de paume at the 1908 Summer Olympics|Jeu de paume]] || 1908 || [[Weightlifting at the Summer Olympics|Weightlifting]] || 1896, 1904, since 1920
|-
| [[Judo at the Summer Olympics|Judo]] || 1964, since 1972 || [[Wrestling at the Summer Olympics|Wrestling]] || 1896, since 1904
|-
| [[Lacrosse at the Summer Olympics|Lacrosse]] || 1904, 1908 ||colspan=2|
|}
==List of modern Summer Olympic Games==
''Note: although the games of 1916, 1940, and 1944 had been cancelled, the Olympiad Roman Numerals for those games were still used as if the games were actually played''.
[[Image:Summer olympics all cities.PNG|thumb|220px|Map of Summer Olympics locations]]
{|
|-
| • [[1896]] || [[1896 Summer Olympics|Games of the I Olympiad]] || [[Athens]], [[Greece]]
|-
| • [[1900]] || [[1900 Summer Olympics|Games of the II Olympiad]] || [[Paris]], [[France]]
|-
| • [[1904]] || [[1904 Summer Olympics|Games of the III Olympiad]] || [[St. Louis, Missouri|St. Louis]], [[Missouri]], [[United States]]
|-
| ''• [[1906]]'' || ''[[1906 Summer Olympics|Intercalated Games]]'' || ''[[Athens]], [[Greece]]''
|-
| • [[1908]] || [[1908 Summer Olympics|Games of the IV Olympiad]] || [[London]], [[United Kingdom]]
|-
| • [[1912]] || [[1912 Summer Olympics|Games of the V Olympiad]] || [[Stockholm]], [[Sweden]]
|-
| ''• [[1916]]'' || ''[[1916 Summer Olympics|Games of the VI Olympiad]]'' || ''[[Berlin]], [[Germany]] – cancelled due to [[World War I]]''
|-
| • [[1920]] || [[1920 Summer Olympics|Games of the VII Olympiad]] || [[Antwerp]], [[Belgium]]
|-
| • [[1924]] || [[1924 Summer Olympics|Games of the VIII Olympiad]] || [[Paris]], [[France]]
|-
| • [[1928]] || [[1928 Summer Olympics|Games of the IX Olympiad]] || [[Amsterdam]], [[Netherlands]]
|-
| • [[1932]] || [[1932 Summer Olympics|Games of the X Olympiad]] || [[Los Angeles, California|Los Angeles]], [[California]], [[United States]]
|-
| • [[1936]] || [[1936 Summer Olympics|Games of the XI Olympiad]] || [[Berlin]], [[Germany]]
|-
| ''• [[1940]]'' || ''[[1940 Summer Olympics|Games of the XII Olympiad]]'' || ''[[Helsinki]], [[Finland]] – cancelled due to [[World War II]]''
|-
| ''• [[1944]]'' || ''[[1944 Summer Olympics|Games of the XIII Olympiad]]'' || ''[[London]], [[United Kingdom]] – cancelled due to [[World War II]]''
|-
| • [[1948]] || [[1948 Summer Olympics|Games of the XIV Olympiad]] || [[London]], [[United Kingdom]]
|-
| • [[1952]] || [[1952 Summer Olympics|Games of the XV Olympiad]] || [[Helsinki]], [[Finland]]
|-
| • [[1956]] || [[1956 Summer Olympics|Games of the XVI Olympiad]] || [[Melbourne]], [[Australia]] / [[Stockholm]], [[Sweden]] ([[Equestrian at the Summer Olympics|Equestrian]] events)
|-
| • [[1960]] || [[1960 Summer Olympics|Games of the XVII Olympiad]] || [[Rome]], [[Italy]]
|-
| • [[1964]] || [[1964 Summer Olympics|Games of the XVIII Olympiad]] || [[Tokyo]], [[Japan]]
|-
| • [[1968]] || [[1968 Summer Olympics|Games of the XIX Olympiad]] || [[Mexico City]], [[Mexico]]
|-
| • [[1972]] || [[1972 Summer Olympics|Games of the XX Olympiad]] || [[Munich]], [[West Germany]] (now Munich, Germany)
|-
| • [[1976]] || [[1976 Summer Olympics|Games of the XXI Olympiad]] || [[Montreal|Montréal]], [[Quebec]], [[Canada]]
|-
| • [[1980]] || [[1980 Summer Olympics|Games of the XXII Olympiad]] || [[Moscow]], [[Soviet Union]] (now Moscow, Russia)
|-
| • [[1984]] || [[1984 Summer Olympics|Games of the XXIII Olympiad]] || [[Los Angeles]], [[California]], [[United States]]
|-
| • [[1988]] || [[1988 Summer Olympics|Games of the XXIV Olympiad]] || [[Seoul]], [[South Korea]]
|-
| • [[1992]] || [[1992 Summer Olympics|Games of the XXV Olympiad]] || [[Barcelona]], [[Spain]]
|-
| • [[1996]] || [[1996 Summer Olympics|Games of the XXVI Olympiad]] || [[Atlanta, Georgia|Atlanta]], [[Georgia (US state)|Georgia]], [[United States]]
|-
| • [[2000]] || [[2000 Summer Olympics|Games of the XXVII Olympiad]] || [[Sydney]], [[Australia]]
|-
| • [[2004]] || [[2004 Summer Olympics|Games of the XXVIII Olympiad]] || [[Athens]], [[Greece]]
|-
| ''• [[2008]]'' || ''[[2008 Summer Olympics|Games of the XXIX Olympiad]]'' || ''[[Beijing]], [[People's Republic of China|China]] / [[Hong Kong|Hong Kong, China]]'' ([[Equestrian at the Summer Olympics|Equestrian]] events)''
|-
| ''• [[2012]]'' || ''[[2012 Summer Olympics|Games of the XXX Olympiad]]'' || ''[[London]], [[United Kingdom]]''
|}
==References==
==See also==
* [[Summer Olympics medal count]]
* [[Winter Olympics medal count]]
* [[Total Olympics medal count]]
* [[Olympic Games scandals]]
* [[Winter Olympic Games]]
* [[List of sporting events]]
* [[List of countries first participation in the Summer Olympic Games]]
== External links ==
* [http://www.beijing-2008.org Official Site of the 2008 Summer Olympic Games] (in Chinese)
* [http://en.beijing2008.com/ Official Site of the 2008 Summer Olympic Games] (in English)
* [http://www.london2012.co.uk Official Site of the 2012 Summer Olympic Games]
* [http://www.olympic.org Official Site of the Olympic Movement]
* [http://www.bladesplace.id.au/olympic-games-candidates.html Candidate Cities for future Olympic Games]
* [http://aafla.org/5va/reports_frmst.htm Amateur Athletic Foundation archive of Official Reports]
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