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Olympic Games
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References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics
Images, Videos & Interactives
Lighting the Olympic flame
How are sports chosen for the Olympics?
When were the first Olympic Games?
Olympic medals hang against a blurry background.
Ancient Olympic Games Wrestlers on an ancient Greek cup
Strange moments in Olympic history
Opening ceremony at the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympic Games Olympic Games Olympic torch relay
For Students
Olympic Games summary
Quizzes
Silhouette of hand holding sport torch behind the rings of an Olympic flag, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; February 3, 2015.
The Olympics Quiz
Marble bust of Alexander the Great, in the British Museum, London, England. Hellenistic Greek, 2nd-1st century BC. Said to be from Alexandria, Egypt. Height: 37 cm.
Ancient Greece
Former U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program bobsledder Steven Holcomb, front, is greeted at the finish line after teaming with Justin Olsen, Steve Mesler and Curtis Tomasevicz to win the first Olympic bobsleigh gold medal in 62 years for Team USA ,(cont)
The Olympic Games
Usain Bolt of Jamaica reacts after breaking the world record with a time of 19.30 to win the gold medal as Churandy Martina (left) of Netherlands Antilles and Brian Dzingai of Zimbabwe come in after him in the Men's 200m Final at the National Stadium during Day 12 of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games on August 20, 2008 in Beijing, China. (Summer Olympics, track and field, athletics)
I Am the Greatest (Athlete)
Assorted sports balls including a basketball, football, soccer ball, tennis ball, baseball and others.
American Sports Nicknames
Related Questions
Read Next
young man playing tennis
Olympics: Racket Sports
Tug-of-war at the U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, Md., 2005.
7 Canceled or Reintroduced Olympic Sports
indoor female volleyball match Italy vs Russia during the Volleyball World Cup, in Milan.
Olympics: Volleyball
Pack of cyclists racing in the evening light of the Glenelg leg of the Tour Down Under 2008, Adelaide, South Australia. 20th January 2008. Cyclist in light blue is with team Milram.
Olympics: Cycling
rugby, sport
Olympics: New Sports for 2016
Discover
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Estimated battle casualties, Normandy invasion, World War II. WWII, D-Day
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Olympic Games: Facts & Related Content

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News •

What’s big, glowing and no longer Olympic? Paris has the answer • June 13, 2025, 9:07 AM ET (AP)
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Kayla Harrison survived sex abuse to win Olympic gold. She's now a UFC champ with a mega fight ahead • June 8, 2025, 11:38 AM ET (AP)

Facts

Also Known As Olympiad
Notable Honorees Tessa Virtue • Harrison Dillard • Pablo Morales • Andreas Linger • Wolfgang Linger • Butch Reynolds • Scott Moir • Aldo Nadi • Oscar De La Hoya • Sarah Josephson • Eleanor Holm • Ben Johnson • Jacques Anquetil • Valerie Brisco-Hooks • Karen Josephson • Muhammad Ali • LeBron James • Lionel Messi • Russell Westbrook • Rafael Nadal • Bill Russell • Lisa Carrington • Kevin Durant • Brittney Griner • Jayson Tatum • Simone Biles • Yuto Horigome • Katie Ledecky • Chris Paul • Devin Booker • Carissa Moore • Allyson Felix • Sabrina Ionescu • Emma McKeon • Spencer Haywood • Stephen Curry • Anna Meares • Neeraj Chopra • Jimmy Butler • Mikaela Shiffrin • Serena Williams • Michael Phelps • Suni Lee • James Harden • Ariarne Titmus • Emma Twigg • Megan Rapinoe • Kōhei Uchimura • Alex Morgan • Kobe Bryant • Carmelo Anthony • Ryan Lochte • Joan Benoit Samuelson • Candace Parker • Grant Hill • Usain Bolt • Dwyane Wade • Caeleb Dressel • Hayley Wickenheiser • Natalie du Toit • Yulimar Rojas • Sha’Carri Richardson • Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce • Hamish Bond • Valerie Adams • Yelena Isinbayeva • Ye Shiwen • Mo Farah • Diana Taurasi • Jessica Fox • Julie Foudy • Michael Jordan • Arshad Nadeem • Andre Agassi • Magic Johnson • Lisa Fernandez • Andy Murray • Chris Hoy • Bart Conner • Meseret Defar • Nathan Adrian • Sally Pearson • Shaquille O’Neal • Quan Hongchan • Cheryl Miller • Bradley Wiggins • Jesse Owens • Laurie Hernandez • Babe Didrikson Zaharias • Nastia Liukin • Lennox Lewis • Michelle Akers • Wu Minxia • Hanyu Yuzuru • Scottie Pippen • Charles Barkley • Missy Franklin • Abby Wambach • Russell Coutts • Libby Trickett • Noureddine Morceli • Nancy Lieberman • Jackie Joyner-Kersee • Carolina Klüft • Ashton Eaton • Trinity Rodman • Fanny Blankers-Koen • Misty May-Treanor • Shi Tingmao • Guo Jingjing • Carl Lewis • Michael Johnson • Pernell Whitaker • Gabby Douglas • Kerri Walsh Jennings • Anne Donovan • Karch Kiraly • Tirunesh Dibaba • Věra Čáslavská • Joe Frazier • George Foreman • Sugar Ray Leonard • Sophia Smith • Donovan Bailey • Shirley Strickland de la Hunty • Jim Thorpe • Michelle Smith • Inge de Bruijn • Sebastian Coe • Ben Ainslie • Vasily Ivanovich Alekseyev • Dick Fosbury • Irena Szewińska • Ferenc Puskás • Sheryl Swoopes • Ian Thorpe • Rafer Johnson • Vitaly Scherbo • Peter Snell • Nadia Comăneci • Teresa Edwards • Halil Mutlu • Abhinav Bindra • Teófilo Stevenson • Floyd Patterson • Emil Zátopek • Paavo Nurmi • Dot Richardson • Naim Süleymanoğlu • Arne Borg • Bill Bradley • Tracy Caulkins • Iolanda Balas • Murray Rose • Nino Benvenuti • Gong Lijiao • Liu Shiying • Paul Elvstrøm • Tommy Kono • Caitlyn Jenner • Mia Hamm • Steven Holcomb • Sergey Bubka • Pat McCormick • Gertrude Ederle • Karl Malone • Aleksandr Karelin • Kristin Otto • Cynthia Cooper-Dyke • Mary Lou Retton • Harry Mallin • Evelyn Ashford • Oscar Robertson • Christian d’Oriola • Bob Richards • John Stockton • Ethelda Bleibtrey • Abebe Bikila • Nedo Nadi: Following in Father’s Footsteps • Suzanne Lenglen • Tommie Smith • Micheline Ostermeyer • Liu Xiang • Edwin Moses • Steven Redgrave • Steve Ovett • John J. Flanagan • Aileen Riggin • Jessica Ennis-Hill • Marie-José Pérec • Tani Ryōko • Viktor Chukarin • Eddie Eagan • Donna de Varona • Shane Gould • Irina Press • Tamara Press • Leonid Ivanovich Zhabotinsky • Bob Mathias
Related Facts And Data Tokyo - Facts

Photos and Videos

Lighting the Olympic flame
Ancient Olympic Games
Wrestlers on an ancient Greek cup
Opening ceremony at the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympic Games
Olympic Games
Olympic torch relay
Athens 1896 Olympic Games
American Olympic team members
St. Louis 1904 Olympic swimmers
Archers at the London 1908 Olympic Games
How are sports chosen for the Olympics?
When were the first Olympic Games?
Olympic medals hang against a blurry background.
Strange moments in Olympic history
The 1936 Berlin Olympics and Nazi propaganda
See All Videos, Images and Interactives →

Related Topics and References

Topics
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Bob Knight
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Diver Sammy Lee is presented with a gold medal at the 1948 Olympics in London
Sammy Lee
American diver
Dezsö Gyarmati
Hungarian water polo player and coach
American wrestler Dan Gable
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Related Quizzes and Features

Quiz
Assorted sports balls including a basketball, football, soccer ball, tennis ball, baseball and others.
American Sports Nicknames
Silhouette of hand holding sport torch behind the rings of an Olympic flag, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; February 3, 2015.
The Olympics Quiz
A person is shooting with recurve bow on a target during an archery competition. Focus on the targets. archery
Obscure Olympic Sports
Marble bust of Alexander the Great, in the British Museum, London, England. Hellenistic Greek, 2nd-1st century BC. Said to be from Alexandria, Egypt. Height: 37 cm.
Ancient Greece
Olympic games in 1928 at Amsterdam, Holland. The finish of the 100 meter dash finals, won by Percy Williams.
Summer Olympics Host Cities
Marble bust of Alexander the Great, in the British Museum, London, England. Hellenistic Greek, 2nd-1st century BC. Said to be from Alexandria, Egypt. Height: 37 cm.
Ancient Greece
Former U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program bobsledder Steven Holcomb, front, is greeted at the finish line after teaming with Justin Olsen, Steve Mesler and Curtis Tomasevicz to win the first Olympic bobsleigh gold medal in 62 years for Team USA ,(cont)
The Olympic Games
Usain Bolt of Jamaica reacts after breaking the world record with a time of 19.30 to win the gold medal as Churandy Martina (left) of Netherlands Antilles and Brian Dzingai of Zimbabwe come in after him in the Men's 200m Final at the National Stadium during Day 12 of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games on August 20, 2008 in Beijing, China. (Summer Olympics, track and field, athletics)
I Am the Greatest (Athlete)
Rich Harden no. 40 of the Chicago Cubs pitches against the Milwaukee Brewers. July 31, 2008 at Miller Park, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The Cubs defeated the Brewers 11-4. Major League Baseball (MLB).
Sports Firsts Through the Ages Quiz
Former U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program bobsledder Steven Holcomb, left, and teammates Justin Olsen, Steve Mesler and Curt Tomasevicz bite their gold medals Saturday night at Whistler Medals Plaza after winning the Olympic four-man bobsled, 2010.
Round 1: Olympic History Quiz
Olympic games in 1928 at Amsterdam, Holland. The finish of the 100 meter dash finals, won by Percy Williams.
Round 2: Olympic History Quiz
List
Young man skeet shooting with airborne shell
6 Unusual Olympic Sports
Silhouette of hand holding sport torch behind the rings of an Olympic flag, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; February 3, 2015.
7 Significant Political Events at the Olympic Games
Gold, silver, and bronze medals in the air. Background for Rio Olympic time (Olympics, Olympic games)
8 Olympic Cheating Scandals
Tug-of-war at the U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, Md., 2005.
7 Canceled or Reintroduced Olympic Sports
Bolshoy Ice Dome during ice hockey Men's Prelim. Sochi 2014 XXII Olympic Winter Games
7 Ways Hosting the Olympics Impacts a City
Demystified
Corfu, Greece - April 23, 2016: The Olympic flame is symbolically passed from one torch to another after the official ceremonial lighting
How Does the Olympic Torch Stay Lit?
low angle view of a female swimmer preparing to dive from diving board against clear blue sky.
How Is Diving Scored?
Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games Rings.
What Do the Olympic Rings and Flame Represent?