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Athens 1896
In 1892, French educator Baron Pierre de Coubertin proposes an idea of an ancient Greek competition. In 1896, his dream is realized as England, Greece, Italy, Russia, Spain, Sweden and the United States open Games. James B. Connolly wins triple jump (the first medal in modern Olympic history); American flag is raised which is the start of the tradition of the Olympic Games. -
Paris 1900
This was the first time women were allowed in the Olympics. Alvin Kraenzleinwon from U.S. won four gold medals. -
St. Louis 1904
Games are reduced to exhibiton because European athletes don't want to travel American Midwest. -
London 1908
2000 athletes competed this year. Britian rained supreme with 141 medals. -
Stockholm 1912
This is the first time they use electronic devices to time. An American Indian named Jim Thorpe won the pentathlon and decathlon. -
Berlin 1916
This year the games were not played because of WWI. -
Antwerp 1920
Austria, Bulgaria, Germany, Hungary and Turkey are not allowed to participate. For the first time they used the Olympic flag. -
Paris 1924
44 nations send 3,000 competitors. Scotland's Eric Liddell wins 400-meter race and England's Harold Abrahams wins 100-meter. -
Amsterdam 1928
Slow-motion film techniques used to judge close finishes. Women's track and field competitions held for first time. -
Los Angeles 1932
16 world records and 33 Olympic records were set. Eddie Tolan of U.S. becomes first African-American to win Olympic gold. -
Berlin 1936
Jesse Owens wins 4 gold medals and he is one of six African-American stars on team that captured 12 gold medals. Also the torch run is established. -
Tokyo 1940
Games not held because of WWII. -
London 1944
Games not held because of WWII. -
London 1948
Fanny Blankers is the first woman to win 4 gold medals in a single Games. Bob Mathias, at the age of 17, becomes the youngest American Olympic decathlon champion. -
Helsinki 1952
Soviet Union comes back to the games after being gone for almost 40 years. Mathias wins his second decatholon gold. -
Melbourne 1956
11 world records and 36 Olympic records. Australian swimmers capture 8 of 13 golds in men's and women's freestyle events. -
Rome 1960
83 nations and 5,000 athletes. Cassius Clay wins boxing title and becomes a boxing legend. -
Tokyo 1964
Japan spends about $3 billion dollars to prep for the games. Native-American Billy Miles wins 10,000 meter run. Broadcasts through via-satellite. -
Mexico City 1968
American Bob Beamon leaps 29-feet-21/2 inches. Vera Caslavska of Czechoslovakia is first woman to win 4 individual golds in a Summer Games. -
Munich 1972
Mark Spitz wins 7 gold medals in swimming and sets 7 world records. There was an assasination that happened during these games. Arab terrorists assasinated 9 athletes from the Israeli team. -
Montreal 1976
Edwin Moses of U. S. wins gold in 400 hurdles; American Bruce Jenner wins decathlon; Sugar Ray Leonard takes light welterweight boxing championship. -
Moscow 1980
U.S. leads 50-nation boycott to protest Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. USSR gymnast Alexander Dityatin wins record 8 medals. -
Los Angeles 1984
Record number of athletes and nations, 6 million spectators, and largest TV audience in history. Carl Lewis wins 4 golds in track and field, matching Jesse Owens' long-standing record. -
Seoul 1988
Ben Johnson of Canada and 10 other competitors disqualified for using performance-enhancing drugs. Matt Biondi wins 7 gold medals in swimming. Greg Louganis earns golds in platform and springboard diving. -
Barcelona 1992
More than 15,000 athletes, coaches and officials from 165 countries, including South Africa's first integrated team. Carl Lewis takes two more golds in track and field. -
Atlanta Games 1996
Muhammad Ali lights the cauldron at the start of the Centennial Games. A pipe bomb in Centennial Olympic Park kills one person and injures 111. -
Sydney Games 2000
North and South Korea enter under one flag. Russian gymnast Alexei Nemov takes home six medals, as he had done in Atlanta in 1996. -
Athens 2004
The Olympic Games go back to Greece. -
Beijing 2008
There was a huge preotest on whether the Olympics should be held in beijing or somewhere else. In the end the olympics went on and the most medals taen home were by the U.S, China and Russia.
