Weltklasse Zürich (English: World Class Zurich ) is an annual, invitation-only, world-class track and field meeting at the Letzigrund in Zürich , Switzerland , generally held at the end of August or beginning of September. Previously one of the IAAF Golden League events, it now serves as a final of the Wanda Diamond League , alongside Memorial Van Damme between 2010 and 2019. In 2021 and 2022, Weltklasse Zürich served as the sole final of the Diamond League, and this is also planned for 2025 and 2027.
106-595: One of the first large-scale international athletics events (outside the Summer Olympics ), it is sometimes referred to as the one-day Olympics . Weltklasse Zürich first took place on 12 August 1928 . In the beginning, the meeting was nicknamed by the public the "Nurmi meeting" after the most admired and celebrated participant at the time, Paavo Nurmi . On 21 June 1960, on the Letzigrund track, Armin Hary became
212-648: A leap year , and were instead hosted on a non-leap year . Unlike previous Olympics, these Games took place without spectators due to concerns over COVID-19 and a state of emergency imposed in the host city. Nevertheless, the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games featured many memorable moments and feats of technical excellence. One star of the Games, U.S. gymnast Simone Biles , gracefully bowed out to focus on her mental health, but later returned to claim an individual bronze medal. Norway's Karsten Warholm smashed his own world record in
318-469: A 51–50 victory. Ultimately the U.S. team refused to accept their silver medals. There was no such tragedy at the 1976 Montreal Games , but bad planning and fraud led to the cost of these Games far exceeding the budget. Costing $ 1.5 billion (equivalent to $ 7.58 billion in 2023), the 1976 Summer Games were the most expensive in Olympic history (until the 2014 Winter Olympics ) and it seemed, for
424-507: A Summer Olympics, and equaled the inaugural record set by Eric Heiden at the 1980 Winter Olympics . By then the process of choosing a location for the Games had become a commercial concern; there were widespread allegations of corruption potentially affecting the IOC's decision process. At the Atlanta 1996 Summer Olympics , the highlight was 200 meters runner Michael Johnson annihilating
530-670: A boycott of the Los Angeles Olympics, in retaliation for the U.S.-led boycott of the Moscow Olympics four years earlier (over the Soviet Union's invasion of Afghanistan in 1979 ). The pretexts for the 1984 Soviet-led boycott were concerns over security, "chauvinistic sentiments" and "an anti-Soviet hysteria ... being whipped up" in the United States. However, a handful of communist countries disregarded
636-469: A bronze medal, became the most decorated weightlifter of all time with four Olympic medals, three gold and one bronze. Although unfounded reports of potential terrorism drove crowds away from the preliminary competitions at the first weekend of the Olympics (14–15 August 2004), attendance picked up as the Games progressed. A third of the tickets failed to sell, but ticket sales still topped figures from
742-553: A great success. The Games had the largest international participation of any sporting event to that date. Panathinaiko Stadium , the first big stadium in the modern world, overflowed with the largest crowd ever to watch a sporting event. The highlight for the Greeks was the Marathon victory by their compatriot Spiridon Louis , a water carrier. He won in 2 hours, 58 minutes and 50 seconds, setting off wild celebrations at
848-551: A historic backflip off the high bar . In the final of the men's basketball , the United States lost to the Soviet Union in what is widely considered as the most controversial game in international basketball history. In a close-fought match, the U.S. team appeared to have won by a score of 50–49. However, the final three seconds of the game were replayed three times by judges until the Soviet team came out on top and claimed
954-422: A less publicised and less competitive affair, which was dominated by the host country. According to British journalist Andrew Jennings , a KGB colonel stated that the agency's officers had posed as anti-doping authorities from the IOC to undermine doping tests and that Soviet athletes were "rescued with [these] tremendous efforts". On the topic of the 1980 Summer Olympics , a 1989 Australian study said "There
1060-489: A medal in that event, then they would be given a free menu item: a Big Mac for a gold medal, an order of french fries for a silver medal, and a Coca-Cola for a bronze medal. The promotion became more popular than expected due to the Soviet boycott which led to the U.S. winning far more Olympic medals than expected. This promotion was parodied in The Simpsons episode " Lisa's First Word ", where Krusty Burger runs
1166-485: A protest against a recent tour of apartheid -run South Africa by the New Zealand national rugby union team . Romanian gymnast Nadia Comăneci made history when she won the women's individual all-around gold medal with two of four possible perfect scores. She won two other individual events, with two perfect scores in the balance beam and all perfect scores in the uneven bars. Lasse Virén repeated his double gold in
SECTION 10
#17327795417541272-536: A record for gold medals at a single Games with eight, and tied the record of most gold medals by a single competitor previously held by both Eric Heiden and Vitaly Scherbo. Another notable star of the Games was Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt , who became the first male athlete ever to set world records in the finals of both the 100 and 200 metres in the same Games. Equestrian events were held in Hong Kong. London held
1378-432: A record number at the time. The United States won the most gold and overall medals, followed by Romania and West Germany . The 1984 Summer Olympics are widely considered to be the most financially successful modern Olympics, serving as an example on how to run an Olympic Games. As a result of low construction costs, due to the use of existing sport infrastructure, coupled with a reliance on private corporate funding,
1484-523: A similar offer. The promotion was intended to be rigged so that prizes would only be offered in events dominated by the Eastern Bloc , but the Soviet-led boycott causes Krusty to personally lose $ 44 million. He vehemently promises "to spit in every fiftieth burger," to which Homer retorts "I like those odds!" Chief Wiggum also exclaims that he could kiss Carl Lewis , who won four gold medals at
1590-456: A stand for civil rights by raising their black-gloved fists and wearing black socks in lieu of shoes. The two athletes were subsequently expelled from the Games by the IOC. Věra Čáslavská , in protest against the 1968 Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia , and the controversial decision by the judges on the balance beam and floor , turned her head down and away from the Soviet flag while
1696-715: A time, that the Olympics might no longer be a viable financial proposition. In retrospect, it is believed that contractors (suspected of being members of the Montreal Mafia) skimmed large sums of money from all levels of contracts while also profiting from the substitution of cheaper building materials of lesser quality, which may have contributed to the delays, poor construction, and excessive costs. In 1988, one such contractor, Giuseppe Zappia "was cleared of fraud charges that resulted from his work on Olympic facilities after two key witnesses died before testifying at his trial". The 1976 Games were boycotted by many African nations as
1802-645: Is hardly a medal winner at the Moscow Games, certainly not a gold medal winner, who is not on one sort of drug or another: usually several kinds. The Moscow Games might as well have been called the Chemists' Games." Documents obtained in 2016 revealed the Soviet Union's plans for a statewide doping system in track and field in preparation for the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. Dated prior to
1908-411: The 1912 Games , and hosting the equestrian events at the 1956 Summer Olympics (which they are credited as jointly hosting with Melbourne , Australia). Amsterdam , Netherlands, has also hosted events at two Summer Olympic Games, having been sole host of the 1928 Games and previously hosting two of the sailing races at the 1920 Summer Olympics . At the 2008 Summer Olympics , Hong Kong provided
2014-451: The 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow , Russia , in protest of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan ; Romania was the only Soviet-aligned state that opted to attend the Games. Albania, Iran and Libya also chose to boycott the Games, but for unrelated reasons. Despite the field being depleted in certain sports due to the boycott, 140 National Olympic Committees took part in the 1984 Games,
2120-511: The 1988 Winter Olympics . California was the home state of the incumbent U.S. President Ronald Reagan , who officially opened the Games. These were the first Summer Olympic Games under the IOC presidency of Juan Antonio Samaranch . The 1984 Games were boycotted by fourteen Eastern Bloc countries, including the Soviet Union and East Germany, in response to the American-led boycott of
2226-687: The 1996 Games were held in Atlanta , Georgia . The 2028 Games in Los Angeles will mark the fifth occasion on which the Summer Games have been hosted by the U.S. In 2012 , London hosted its third Summer Olympic Games and became the first city ever to have hosted the Summer Olympic Games three times, which then followed by Paris in 2024 . The cities of Los Angeles, Tokyo and Athens (excluding 1906 ) have each hosted two Summer Olympic Games. In 2028, Los Angeles will in turn become
SECTION 20
#17327795417542332-530: The 2012 Summer Olympics , becoming the first city to host the Olympic Games three times. In his closing address, Jacques Rogge described the Games as "Happy and glorious". The host nation won 29 gold medals, the best haul for Great Britain since the 1908 Games in London. The United States returned to the top of the medal table after China dominated in 2008. The IOC had removed baseball and softball from
2438-653: The Games of the XXIII Olympiad and commonly known as Los Angeles 1984 ) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles , California , United States. It marked the second time that Los Angeles had hosted the Games, the first being in 1932 . This was the first of two consecutive Olympic Games to be held in North America with Calgary , Alberta , Canada hosting
2544-593: The LA84 Foundation for promoting youth sports in Southern California, educating coaches and maintaining a sports library. The games were the subject of the 1983–84 United States commemorative coin series . American fast food chain McDonald's ran a promotion titled, "When the U.S. Wins, You Win" where customers scratched off a ticket with the name of an Olympic event on it. If the U.S. won
2650-694: The Letzigrund on a dirt track on 12 August 1928 as the Internationales Leichtathletik-Meeting in Zürich . Since 1935 it also became known as the "American Meeting", similar to the Bislett Games , and this continued into the 1950s. A notable hiatus occurred after the 1952 meeting until the rebuilt Letzigrund Stadium opened in 1958, although a meeting had still been planned for August 1954. The name "Weltklasse Zürich"
2756-696: The Los Angeles Olympics in 1932 , the previous time only a single bid had been issued for the Summer Olympics. The 1984 Olympic Torch Relay began in New York City and ended in Los Angeles, traversing 33 states and the District of Columbia. Unlike later torch relays, the torch was continuously carried by runners on foot. The route covered more than 9,320 mi (15,000 km) and involved 3,636 runners. Noted athlete O. J. Simpson
2862-625: The Russo–Japanese War and the difficulty of getting to St. Louis may have contributed to the fact that very few top-ranked athletes from outside the US and Canada took part in the 1904 Games , the first Games held outside Europe. The " Second International Olympic Games in Athens ", as they were called at the time, were held in 1906. The IOC does not currently recognise these games as being official Olympic Games, although many historians do and credit
2968-602: The United Arab Emirates . Zaire had previously competed at the 1968 Summer Olympics as Congo-Kinshasa . The People's Republic of China made its first appearance in a Summer Olympics since 1952 , while for the first time the Republic of China team participated under the politically contrived name of Chinese Taipei . The Soviet Union led the Warsaw Pact members and other Communist countries in
3074-970: The United States ( 1904 , 1932 , 1984 , and 1996 ), three times in Great Britain ( 1908 , 1948 , and 2012 ) and in France ( 1900 , 1924 , and 2024 ), twice each in Greece ( 1896 and 2004 ), Germany ( 1936 and 1972 ), Australia ( 1956 and 2000 ), and Japan ( 1964 and 2020 ), and once each in Sweden ( 1912 ), Belgium ( 1920 ), the Netherlands ( 1928 ), Finland ( 1952 ), Italy ( 1960 ), Mexico ( 1968 ), Canada ( 1976 ), Russia ( 1980 ), South Korea ( 1988 ), Spain ( 1992 ), China ( 2008 ), and Brazil ( 2016 ). London and Paris have hosted three times, Los Angeles , Athens, and Tokyo have each hosted twice; Los Angeles will host
3180-768: The national anthem was played during the medal ceremony. She returned home as a heroine of the Czechoslovak people but was made an outcast by the Soviet-dominated government. Politics again intervened at the 1972 Games in Munich, but this time with lethal consequences . A Palestinian terrorist group named Black September invaded the Olympic village and broke into the apartment of the Israeli delegation . They killed two Israelis and held nine others as hostages, demanding that Israel release numerous prisoners. When
3286-469: The steeplechase for the first time. The fencing programme was expanded to include all six events for both men and women; previously, women had not been able to compete in team foil or sabre events, although women's team épée and men's team foil were dropped for these Games. Marathon swimming events were added, over the distance of 10 km (6.2 mi). Also, the doubles events in table tennis were replaced by team events. American swimmer Michael Phelps set
Weltklasse Zürich - Misplaced Pages Continue
3392-480: The 10 from Greece. Ancient Greece was the birthplace of the Olympic Games, consequently Athens was perceived to be an appropriate choice to stage the inaugural modern Games. It was unanimously chosen as the host city during a congress organised by Pierre de Coubertin in Paris, on 23 June 1894. The IOC was also established during this congress. Despite many obstacles and setbacks, the 1896 Olympics were regarded as
3498-484: The 10,000- and 5,000-meter races, he also entered the marathon, despite having never previously raced at that distance. Pacing himself by chatting with the other race leaders, Zátopek led from about halfway, slowly dropping the remaining contenders to win by two and a half minutes, and completed a trio of wins. The 1956 Melbourne Games , the first in the Southern Hemisphere , were largely successful, with
3604-430: The 1906 games with preventing the demise of the Olympics. The 1906 Athens games were the first of an alternating series of games to be held in Athens in even non-Olympic years, but the series failed to materialise. The games were more successful than the 1900 and 1904 games, with over 850 athletes competing, and contributed positively to the success of future games. The 1908 London Games saw numbers rise again, as well as
3710-483: The 1976 and 1980 Olympics were entirely government-funded. Unlike Montreal and Moscow, Los Angeles 1984 was privately funded, with strict controls imposed on expenditure; rather than constructing new venues with overly ambitious designs, the organizers chose instead to utilize existing venues and facilities wherever possible. The main example of this was the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum , which
3816-408: The 1984 Games generated a profit of over US$ 250 million . On July 18, 2009, a 25th anniversary celebration of the 1984 Games was held at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum . The celebration included a speech by former Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee president Peter Ueberroth , as well as a re-enactment of the lighting of the Olympic cauldron. Los Angeles will host the Summer Olympics for
3922-508: The 1984 Olympics host city. In this case, the Los Angeles bid received 55 votes compared with New York's 39 votes – this is the closest that the city of New York has ever come to being selected to host the Olympic Games, coming closer in 1984 than they did in their 2012 bid (when they lost to London). Ambitious construction projects for the two previous Summer Olympics, Montreal 1976 and Moscow 1980, had burdened organizers with substantial debts as expenses greatly exceeded revenues. Furthermore,
4028-516: The 2012 programme. The London Games were successful on a commercial level because they were the first in history to completely sell out every ticket, with as many as 1 million applications for 40,000 tickets for both the Opening Ceremony and the 100m Men's Sprint Final. Such was the demand for tickets to all levels of each event that there was controversy over seats being set aside for sponsors and National Delegations which went unused in
4134-530: The 2016 Summer Olympics. In 1984, the Soviet Union and 13 Soviet allies retaliated by boycotting the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. Romania and Yugoslavia , notably are the only two countries from the Eastern Bloc that did attend the 1984 Olympics. These games were perhaps the first games of a new era to make a profit. Although a boycott led by the Soviet Union depleted the field in certain sports, 140 National Olympic Committees took part, which
4240-558: The 29 "Internationales" and Weltklasse meetings organized from 1928 til 1977. Over the course of its history, numerous world records have been set at Weltklasse Zürich. Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games , also known as the Summer Olympics or the Games of the Olympiad , is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inaugural Games took place in 1896 in Athens , Greece , and
4346-401: The 400m hurdles. The 2024 Summer Olympics were held in Paris, France, making it the second city after London to host the Summer Olympics three times (the other times being 1900 and 1924 , marking a centenary since the latter). This is the first of any Olympic Games after the pandemic to allow spectators to attend. In a first, the opening ceremonies were staged outside the main stadium with
Weltklasse Zürich - Misplaced Pages Continue
4452-466: The 5,000 and 10,000 meters, making him the first athlete to ever win the distance double twice. Following the Soviet Union's 1979 invasion of Afghanistan , 66 nations, including the United States, Canada, West Germany, and Japan, boycotted the 1980 Games held in Moscow. Eighty nations were represented at the Moscow Games – the smallest number since 1956. The boycott contributed to the 1980 Games being
4558-399: The Games for the third time in 2028 . Only five countries have participated in every Summer Olympic Games: Australia, France, Great Britain, Greece, and Switzerland. Australia, France, and Great Britain have won at least a medal at every edition of the Games, with Great Britain as the only one that never failed to win at least a gold medal. The United States leads the all-time medal count for
4664-405: The Games in 1964 ; it is also the largest city ever to have hosted, having grown considerably since 1964 . The other countries to have hosted the Summer Olympics are Belgium , Brazil , Canada , China , Finland , Italy , Mexico , Netherlands , South Korea , Soviet Union , Spain , and Sweden , with each of these countries having hosted the Summer Games on one occasion. Asia has hosted
4770-553: The Games started in 1896, all five inhabited continents were represented with athletes competing in the same stadium. The scheduled 1916 Summer Olympics were to be held in Berlin , cancelled following the onset of World War I . 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 involved 3,000 competitors,
4876-653: The Games, the document detailed the existing steroids operations of the program, along with suggestions for further enhancements. The communication, directed to the Soviet Union's head of track and field, was prepared by Dr. Sergei Portugalov of the Institute for Physical Culture. Portugalov was also one of the main figures involved in the implementation of the Russian doping program prior to the 2016 Summer Olympics. Filmmaker and director of 2017 movie Icarus Bryan Fogel has said that stricter doping controls might have been
4982-420: The Games. On NCIS , Tim McGee has an obsession with jet packs, stemming from having attended the 1984 Olympic ceremony as a child and having Bill Suitor fly over his head in his jet pack. This storyline is based on the real experience of executive producer and writer Jesse Stern. Pop-punk band Bowling for Soup references the games in the song " I Can't Stand LA ". During a section showing appreciation for
5088-458: The German government as a golden opportunity to promote their ideology. The ruling Nazi Party commissioned film-maker Leni Riefenstahl to film the games. The result, Olympia , was widely considered to be a masterpiece, despite the infusion of Adolf Hitler 's theories of Aryan racial superiority. Individually, African-American sprinter and long jumper Jesse Owens won four gold medals, while
5194-486: The Israeli government refused the terrorists' demands, the situation developed into a tense stand-off 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 ensuing firefight, 15 people were killed, including the nine captive Israeli athletes and five of the terrorists. After much debate,
5300-428: The Los Angeles Olympics, citing political reasons, but these countries were not a part of the Soviet-led boycott. Albania and Iran were the only two countries to boycott both the 1980 and 1984 Summer Games. Documents obtained in 2016 revealed the Soviet Union's plans for a statewide doping system in track and field in preparation for the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. Dated prior to the country's decision to boycott
5406-433: The Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in Athens , Greece, from 6 to 15 April 1896. It was the first Olympic Games held in the modern era . About 100,000 people attended for the opening of the games. The athletes came from 14 nations, with most coming from Greece. Although Greece had the most athletes, the U.S. finished with the most champions. 11 Americans placed first in their events vs.
SECTION 50
#17327795417545512-643: The Olympic Games, along with Leo Arnaud 's " Bugler's Dream "; the latter is sometimes attached to the beginning of Olympic Fanfare and Theme. Composer Bill Conti also wrote a song to inspire the weightlifters called "Power". An album, The Official Music of the XXIII Olympiad—Los Angeles 1984 , featured those three tracks along with sports themes written for the occasion by popular musical artists including Foreigner , Toto , Loverboy , Herbie Hancock , Quincy Jones , Christopher Cross , Philip Glass , Paul Engemann and Giorgio Moroder . " Reach Out "
5618-609: The Saints Go Marching In " at the Opening Ceremony. Vicki McClure, along with the International Children's Choir of Long Beach, sang " Reach Out and Touch ". Alongside Williams and the house orchestra, 84 pianists performed an abridged version of George Gershwin 's composition Rhapsody in Blue . Lionel Richie performed a special extended 9-minute version of his hit single " All Night Long " at
5724-610: The Seoul and Barcelona Olympics ( 1988 and 1992 ). IOC President Jacques Rogge characterised Greece's organisation as outstanding and its security precautions as flawless. All 202 NOCs participated at the Athens Games with over 11,000 participants. The 2008 Summer Olympics was held in Beijing, People's Republic of China. Several new events were held, including the new discipline of BMX for both men and women. Women competed in
5830-507: The Summer Olympics , and has topped the medal table on 19 separate occasions—followed by the USSR (seven times, including the 1992 'Unified Team'), and France, Great Britain, Germany and China (once each). The United States hosted the Summer Olympic Games four times: the 1904 Games were held in St. Louis , Missouri ; the 1932 and 1984 Games were both held in Los Angeles , California , and
5936-707: The Summer Olympics four times: in Tokyo ( 1964 and 2020 ), Seoul ( 1988 ), and Beijing ( 2008 ). The 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro , Brazil, were the first Summer Olympics to be held in South America and the first that was held completely during the local " winter " season. The only two countries in the Southern Hemisphere to have hosted the Summer Olympics have been Australia ( 1956 , 2000 , and upcoming 2032 ) and Brazil ( 2016 ), with Africa having yet to host any Summer Olympics. Stockholm , Sweden, has hosted events at two Summer Olympics, having been sole host of
6042-533: The Women's Artistic Gymnastics when the vaulting horse was set to the wrong height during the All-Around Competition. In 2004 , the Olympic Games returned to their birthplace in Athens, Greece. At least $ 7.2 billion was spent on the 2004 Games, including $ 1.5 billion on security. Michael Phelps won his first Olympic medals, tallying six gold and two bronze medals. Pyrros Dimas , winning
6148-473: The advent of the state-sponsored "full-time amateur athlete". The USSR entered teams of athletes who were all nominally students, soldiers, or working in a profession, but many of whom were in reality paid by the state to train on a full-time basis, hence violating amateur rules. Finland made a legend of an amiable Czechoslovak Army lieutenant named Emil Zátopek , who was intent on improving on his single gold and silver medals from 1948. Having first won both
6254-570: The athletes parading down boats along the Seine River . Following this, the open water swimming competitions also occurred in the River. The 2028 Summer Olympics will be held in Los Angeles, California, United States, making it the third city to host the Games three times (the other times being 1932 and 1984 ), with the U.S. hosting the Summer Olympics for the fifth time. 1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially
6360-729: The bid from Tehran was withdrawn in June 1975. Hence, the selection process for the 1984 Summer Olympics consisted of a single finalized bid from Los Angeles, which the International Olympic Committee (IOC) accepted. The selection was officially made at the 80th IOC Session in Athens on May 18, 1978. Los Angeles had unsuccessfully bid for the two previous Summer Olympic Games (1976 and 1980, which went to Montreal and Moscow , respectively). The United States Olympic Committee (USOC) had submitted at least one bid for every Olympics since 1944 but had not succeeded since
6466-528: The boycott and attended the Games anyway, among them Yugoslavia (host of the 1984 Winter Olympics ), the People's Republic of China , and Romania (the only Warsaw Pact country that had opted to ignore the Soviet demands). The Romanian team received a particularly warm reception from the United States; when the Romanian athletes entered during the opening ceremonies, they were greeted by a standing ovation from
SECTION 60
#17327795417546572-401: The city, the song states, "thank you for hair metal and the '84 Olympics." Jilly Cooper 's novel Riders has a storyline set at the show jumping event at the 1984 Summer Olympics. In the Seinfeld episode "The Gymnast", Jerry dates a woman who competed in the 1984 Olympics and won a silver medal for Romania. In American Horror Story: 1984 , the characters watch it together on the TV in
6678-491: The closing ceremonies. The mascot was a bald eagle named Sam the Olympic Eagle . The 1984 Summer Olympics was preceded by the 10-week-long adjunct Los Angeles Olympic Arts Festival, which opened on June 2 and ended on August 12. It provided more than 400 performances by 146 theater, dance and music companies, representing every continent and 18 countries. It was organized by then- CalArts President Robert Fitzpatrick . The 1984 Summer Olympic program featured 221 events in
6784-435: The country's decision to boycott the Games, the document detailed the existing steroids operations of the programme, along with suggestions for further enhancements. The communication, directed to the Soviet Union's head of track and field, was prepared by Dr. Sergei Portugalov of the Institute for Physical Culture. Portugalov was also one of the main figures involved in the implementation of the Russian doping programme prior to
6890-459: The decision was taken to continue the Games, but the proceedings were understandably dominated by these events. Some memorable athletic achievements did occur during these Games, notably the winning of a then-record seven gold medals by United States swimmer Mark Spitz , Finland's Lasse Virén taking back-to-back gold medals in the 5,000 meters and 10,000 meters, and the winning of three gold medals by Soviet gymnastic star Olga Korbut , who achieved
6996-493: The early days. A system of reallocation was put in place so the empty seats were filled throughout the Games. Rio de Janeiro in Brazil hosted the 2016 Summer Olympics , becoming the first South American city to host the Olympics, the second Olympic host city in Latin America, after Mexico City in 1968 , as well as the third city in the Southern Hemisphere to host the Olympics after Melbourne, Australia, in 1956 and Sydney , Australia, in 2000 . The preparation for these Games
7102-456: The exception of a water polo match between Hungary and the Soviet Union, which ended in a pitched battle between the teams on account of the Soviet invasion of Hungary . The equestrian events were held in Stockholm due to a foot-and-mouth disease outbreak in Britain at the time and the strict quarantine laws of Australia. At the 1960 Rome Games , a young light-heavyweight boxer named Cassius Clay, later known as Muhammad Ali , arrived on
7208-408: The financial success of the Los Angeles Games, cities began to show a renewed interest in bidding to become host again. The Los Angeles and Montreal Games are seen as examples of best and worst practice when organizing the Olympics and serve as valuable lessons to prospective host cities. Following the success of the 1984 Games, the Los Angeles OCOG, led by Peter Ueberroth , used the profits to create
7314-424: The first games in 1896, but was subsequently varied by up to 2 km (1.2 mi) 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 distances. The Games saw Great Britain winning 146 medals, 99 more than second-placed Americans , its best result to this day. At the end of the 1908 marathon, the Italian runner Dorando Pietri
7420-413: The first human to run the 100 m dash in 10.0 seconds. UBS has supported Weltklasse Zürich as its main sponsor since 1981. Other sponsors are Vaudoise Assurances, Migros , Le Gruyère Switzerland, Medica, Omega , Swiss , Lexus , Erdgas and Puma . The meeting was conceived in 1924 by the athletic section of the FC Zürich which became the Leichtathletik Club Zürich in 1934, and was first held at
7526-418: The first person of African descent to light the cauldron in Olympic history. The flame then passed up to the cauldron atop the peristyle and remained aflame for the duration of the Games. John Williams composed the theme for the Olympiad, "Los Angeles Olympic Theme" later also known as " Olympic Fanfare and Theme ". This piece won a Grammy for Williams and became one of the most well-known musical themes of
7632-459: The first running of the marathon over its now-standard distance of 42.195 km (26 miles 385 yards). The first Olympic Marathon in 1896 (a male-only race) was raced at a distance of 40 km (24 miles 85 yards). The new marathon distance was chosen to ensure that the race finished in front of the box occupied by the British royal family. Thus the marathon had been 40 km (24.9 mi) for
7738-498: The first time these contracts would prove to be a significant source of revenue. Adjusted for inflation, the Los Angeles Games secured twice the amount of income received by the 1980 Moscow Summer Olympics and four times that of the 1976 Montreal Summer Olympics . The low level of interest among potential host cities for the 1984 Games had been viewed as a major threat to the future of the Olympic Games. However, after
7844-452: The first to be held in Asia and to be broadcast worldwide on television, enabled by the recent advent of communication satellites. These Games marked a turning point in the global visibility and popularity of the Olympics and are credited for heralding the modern age of telecommunications. Judo debuted as an official sport, and Dutch judoka Anton Geesink caused a stir when he won the final of
7950-490: The following 21 sports: These are the top ten nations that won medals at the 1984 Games. Athletes from 140 states competed at the 1984 Summer Olympics. Eighteen states made their Olympic debut: Bahrain , Bangladesh , Bhutan , British Virgin Islands , Djibouti , Equatorial Guinea , The Gambia , Grenada , Mauritania , Mauritius , North Yemen , Oman , Qatar , Rwanda , Western Samoa , Solomon Islands , Tonga , and
8056-564: The games, from the Coca-Cola Company . The 1928 games saw the introduction of a standard medal design with the IOC, choosing Giuseppe Cassioli 's depiction of Greek goddess Nike with a winner being carried by a crowd of people. This design was used up until 1972. The 1932 Los Angeles Games were affected by the Great Depression , which contributed to the low number of competitors. The 1936 Berlin Games were seen by
8162-571: The games. The 1992 Barcelona Games featured the admittance of players from one of the North American top leagues, the NBA , exemplified by but not limited to US basketball's " Dream Team ". The 1992 games also saw the reintroduction to the Games of several smaller European states which had been annexed into the Soviet Union during World War II. At these games, gymnast Vitaly Scherbo set an inaugural medal record of five individual gold medals at
8268-410: 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 after complaints from Avery Brundage . They were reinstated in 1983, 30 years after his death. The Games at Stockholm were the first to fulfil Pierre de Coubertin's original idea. For the first time since
8374-427: The greatest of whom was Finnish runner Paavo Nurmi . The " Flying Finn " won three team gold medals and the individual 1,500 and 5,000 meter runs, the latter two on the same day. The 1928 Amsterdam Games was 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 sponsorship of
8480-405: The heat as both his opponents had been disqualified for false starts. His female compatriot Paula Barila Bolopa also received media attention for her record-slow and struggling but courageous performance. The Sydney Games also saw the first appearance of a joint North and South Korean contingent at the opening ceremonies, though they competed in all events as different teams. Controversy occurred in
8586-463: The host nation won the most gold and overall medals. The 1936 Berlin Games also saw the introduction of the Torch Relay. Due to World War II, the 1940 Games (due to be held in Tokyo and temporarily relocated to Helsinki upon the outbreak of the war ) were cancelled. The 1944 Games were due to be held in London but were also cancelled; instead, London hosted the first games after the end of
8692-562: The main reason for the Soviet boycott. Following the news of the massive financial losses of the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal , the only two cities to express a genuine interest in hosting the 1984 Games were Los Angeles and New York . Given that only one city per country is allowed to bid for any one Games, the USOC vote for the American bid city was effectively the deciding vote for
8798-403: The marathon course on her own, saying, "If the committee doesn't let me compete, I will go after them regardless". Women first participated officially in the 1900 Paris Games, with 22 women competing in five sports. Female participation has increased dramatically since then, with nearly half of the athletes in recent Games being women. The 1896 Summer Olympics , officially known as the Games of
8904-499: The most recent was held in 2024 in Paris , France . This was the first international multi-sport event of its kind, organized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) founded by Pierre de Coubertin . The tradition of awarding medals began in 1904 ; in each Olympic event, gold medals are awarded for first place, silver medals for second place, and bronze medals for third place. The Winter Olympic Games were created out of
9010-555: The one he had discarded in 1960. The latter event took place in the basketball arena. The atmosphere at the Games was marred, however, when a bomb exploded during the celebration in Centennial Olympic Park. In June 2003, the principal suspect in this bombing, Eric Robert Rudolph , was arrested. The 2000 Summer Olympics , held in Sydney, Australia, showcased individual performances by locals favorites Ian Thorpe in
9116-535: The open weight division, defeating Akio Kaminaga in front of his home crowd. Performances at the 1968 Games in Mexico City were affected by the altitude of the host city. These Games introduced the now-universal Fosbury flop , a technique which won American high jumper Dick Fosbury the gold medal. In the medal award ceremony for the men's 200-meter race, black American athletes Tommie Smith (gold medal winner) and John Carlos (bronze medal winner) took
9222-476: The pool and Cathy Freeman , an Indigenous Australian whose triumph in the 400 meters united a packed stadium., Briton Steve Redgrave who won a rowing gold medal in an unprecedented fifth consecutive Olympics, and Eric "the Eel" Moussambani , a swimmer from Equatorial Guinea, received wide media coverage when he completed the 100 meter freestyle swim in by far the slowest time in Olympic history. He nevertheless won
9328-435: The scene. Ali would later throw his gold medal away in disgust after being refused service in a whites-only restaurant in his home town of Louisville, Kentucky . He was awarded a new medal 36 years later at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. Other notable performers in 1960 included Wilma Rudolph , a gold medallist in the 100 meters, 200 meters, and 4 × 100 meters relay events. The 1964 Tokyo Games were
9434-443: The spectators, who were mostly U.S. citizens. This would turn out to be Romania's most successful Olympic Games – they won 53 medals, including 20 golds. In the table below, the number of athletes representing each state is shown in parentheses. Fifteen countries took part in the Soviet-led boycott of the 1984 Summer Olympics: Albania , Iran , Libya and Upper Volta (changed to Burkina Faso following August 4) also missed
9540-421: The stadium. The most successful competitor was German wrestler and gymnast Carl Schuhmann , who won four gold medals. Greek officials and the public were enthusiastic about the experience of hosting an Olympic Games. This feeling was shared by many of the athletes, who even demanded that Athens be the permanent Olympic host city. The IOC intended for subsequent Games to be rotated to various host cities around
9646-467: The success of the Summer Olympic Games, which are regarded as the largest and most prestigious multi-sport international event in the world. The Summer Olympics have increased in scope from a 42-event competition programme in 1896 with fewer than 250 male competitors from 14 nations, to 339 events in 2021 with 11,420 competitors (almost half of whom were women) from 206 nations. The Games have been held in nineteen countries over five continents: four times in
9752-416: The third city ever to have hosted the Games three times. Australia , Germany , Greece and Japan all hosted the Summer Olympic Games twice (with Australia planned to host in 2032, therefore taking it to three). Tokyo , Japan, hosted the 2020 Games and became the first city outside the predominantly English-speaking and European nations to have hosted the Summer Olympics twice, having already hosted
9858-416: The third time in 2028 . After the terrorist attack at the 1972 Summer Olympics , the significant financial debts of Montreal (1976) , and various boycotts by National Olympic Committees, few cities by the late 1970s were willing to bid for the Summer Olympics. Only two cities ( Tehran and Los Angeles) made serious bids for the 1984 Summer Games, but before the final selection of a winning city in 1978,
9964-692: The venues for the equestrian events , which took place in Sha Tin and Kwu Tung . The International Olympic Committee (IOC) was founded in 1894 when Pierre de Coubertin , a French pedagogue and historian, sought to promote international understanding through sporting competition. The first edition of The Olympic Games was held in Athens in 1896 and 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
10070-567: The war, in 1948 . The first post-war Games were held in 1948 in London, with both Germany and Japan excluded. Dutch sprinter Fanny Blankers-Koen won four gold medals on the track, emulating Owens' achievement in Berlin. At the 1952 Helsinki Games , the USSR team competed for the first time and quickly emerged as one of the dominant teams, finishing second in the number of gold and overall medals won. Their immediate success might be explained by
10176-405: The world record in front of a home crowd. Canadians savoured Donovan Bailey 's recording gold medal run in the 100-meter 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
10282-620: The world. The second Olympics was held in Paris. Four years later the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris attracted more than four times as many athletes, including 20 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 five months. It has been disputed which exact events were Olympic , as some events were for professionals, some had restricted eligibility, and others lacked international competitors. Tensions caused by
10388-450: Was a record at the time. The Games were also the first time mainland China (People's Republic) participated. The 1988 Games , in Seoul, was very well planned but the games were tainted when many of the athletes, most notably men's 100 metres winner Ben Johnson , failed mandatory drug tests. Despite splendid drug-free performances by many individuals, the number of people who failed screenings for performance-enhancing chemicals overshadowed
10494-599: Was adopted in 1959. The meet would not be held regularly on an annual basis until 1973, and the Weltklasse introduced electronic timing the following year. During 2020 the COVID-19 pandemic prevented Weltklasse Zürich from taking place, instead an event called Inspiration Games was held. The first surface was made of dirt in 1928, and the first synthetic track surface in Europe was installed in 1968. The number of lanes
10600-639: Was also the Olympic Stadium for the 1932 Summer Olympics . The only two new venues constructed specifically for the 1984 Summer Olympics were secured with the backing of corporate sponsors: the Olympic Velodrome was largely funded by the 7-Eleven corporation and the Olympic Swim Stadium by McDonald's . In addition to corporate support, the Olympic committee also used the income from the exclusive television rights, and for
10706-653: Was among the runners, carrying the torch up the California Incline in Santa Monica . Gina Hemphill, a granddaughter of Jesse Owens , carried the torch into the Coliseum, completed a lap around the track, then handed it off to the final runner, Rafer Johnson , winner of the decathlon at the 1960 Summer Olympics . With the torch, he touched off the flame which passed through a specially designed flammable Olympic logo, igniting all five rings. Johnson became
10812-547: 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 and later disqualified for that. As compensation for the missing medal, Queen Alexandra gave Pietri a gilded silver cup. Arthur Conan Doyle wrote a special report about the race in the Daily Mail . The Games continued to grow, attracting 2,504 competitors, to Stockholm in 1912 , including
10918-578: Was increased to eight in the early 1970s which forced the Weltklasse to be put on hold for two years for the construction to take place. The current surface at the Letzigrund Stadium was developed in 2014 by the Swiss company CONICA. The new surface was installed in June 2014 at a cost of 800,000 CHF and was paid for by the city of Zurich, which owns Letzigrund Stadium. Some of the earliest editions were bilateral matches that are not counted among
11024-751: Was overshadowed by controversies , including political instability and an economic crisis in the host country, health and safety concerns surrounding the Zika virus , and significant pollution in the Guanabara Bay . However, these concerns were superseded by a state-sponsored doping scandal involving Russian athletes at the Winter Olympics held two years earlier , which affected the participation of its athletes in these Games. The 2020 Summer Olympics were originally scheduled to take place from 24 July to 9 August 2020 in Tokyo, Japan. The city
11130-490: Was the fifth in history to host the Games twice and the first Asian city to have this title. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic , the then-Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe , the IOC and the Tokyo Organising Committee announced that the 2020 Games were to be delayed until 2021, marking the first time that the Olympic Games have been postponed. This was the first time since 1900 that the games were not held in
11236-418: Was the main soundtrack and is the official theme song of the 1984 Summer Olympics. The Brazilian composer Sérgio Mendes also produced a special song for the 1984 Olympic Games, "Olympia," from his 1984 album Confetti . A choir of approximately one thousand voices was assembled of singers in the region. All were volunteers from nearby churches , schools and universities. Etta James performed " When
#753246