Olympic Games in 1996. Sports Russia

The Olympic Games were held by Belgrade (Yugoslavia), Manchester (England), Melbourne (Australia) and Toronto (Canada). But these cities were eliminated consecutively in the first four rounds of voting at the 96th session of the International Olympic Committee. In the final round, 51 out of 86 deputies voted for Atlanta.

Atlanta is a city of half a million people in the Southeast of the United States, which is the administrative center of the state of Georgia. It was founded in 1837 as one of the stations under construction railway to the Midwest. Then it had the name Terminus, and the status of the city and the new name of the settlement received a decade later. In the history of the country, Atlanta is known as a place that, during the civil war between north and south, was burned in 1864 by the army of northerners, and at the beginning of the 20th century there were mass unrest of the black population.

By the time of the event, Atlanta had become an ultra-modern city, the capital of the "new South" and the center of business activity, the architecture of which is dominated by "modern" and "postmodern" styles. The tallest building, "Bank American Plaza", has a height of 312 meters - the tallest skyscrapers in the country are only in Chicago and New York. By the opening of the 1996 Olympics, an 85,000-seat multi-purpose stadium was built in the city, which was named the Centennial Olympic Stadium. It was he who became the main arena of competitions, the venue for the opening and closing ceremonies of the XXVI Summer Olympic Games.

The Games were opened by the then US President Bill Clinton, and the Olympic flame at the stadium was lit by the legendary Mohammed Ali. The Americans also got the largest number of awards - 101. Despite the modernity of the city, the organization of the information systems and transport support of the Olympiad, as well as the subordination of the game schedule to the commercial interests of sponsors and organizers, was seriously criticized.

The XXVI Summer Olympic Games were held in Atlanta, Georgia, USA from July 19 to August 4, 1996. Athletes representing 197 countries competed in 26 sports. At the same time, 271 sets of medals were played.

Choice of Atlanta as Olympic city surprised many people. The fact is that the state of Georgia during the years of the Civil War in the United States was considered a stronghold of the Confederates - supporters of slavery, and racist prejudices were very strong in it for a long time. However, the members of the Atlanta bid committee did a great job convincing the IOC of the high degree of readiness of the city to host competitions of this level, and in the end they got their way.

The opening ceremony of the games was very colorful. Her main theme was the American South and Atlanta itself. 10,700 people participated in the parade of athletes. After US President Bill Clinton declared the games open, the Olympic flame was lit. This high honor was given to the legendary boxer Muhammad Ali. At the end of the ceremony, the song "The Power of Dreams" was performed, accompanied by colorful fireworks.

Alas, the great celebration of sports, which the Olympics should be, turned out to be clouded due to a number of circumstances. Firstly, during the Olympics in Atlanta, there was a terrorist attack - an explosion, because of which a person died, and more than a hundred people were injured (one of them died of a heart attack). Secondly, the very organization of the Olympic Games, despite all the assurances of the Atlanta bid committee, turned out to be at a very low level.

Many officials, representatives of the press, athletes expressed dissatisfaction with the poor organization traffic, unsatisfactory presentation of information, as well as low qualification of volunteer assistants. The mascot of the Olympics, the computer-generated character Izzy, also led people into confusion. It is quite natural that IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch, speaking at the closing ceremony of the games, did not utter the traditional phrase "These games were the best in history."

The Russian team in Atlanta performed very well, it took second place in the team standings, losing only to the US team. Our athletes won 63 medals, including 26 gold, 21 silver and 16 bronze. The most successful of the Russians was gymnast A. Nemov, who received 6 medals - 2 gold, 1 silver and 3 bronze.

1996 was the year of the 100th anniversary of the 1st Olympic Games, so many considered Athens as the main contender for the vote on the choice of the host city of the Olympics. However, the XXVI Summer Olympic Games were held in Atlanta (Georgia, USA). Since this Olympiad was an anniversary one, they began to call it the 100th Anniversary Olympiad.

The grand opening of the Summer Olympics took place on July 19, 1996 at Olympic Stadium, in front of which a special tower with a bowl for the Olympic flame was built. According to media reports, the live broadcast of the ceremony, which was conducted by 170 television companies, was watched by about 3.5 billion people. The most significant topics indicative numbers the ceremonies were the 100th anniversary of the Olympic Games, as well as the history of the American South and Atlanta. At the end of the opening ceremony of the Games, the song "The Power of Dreams" was performed by the famous singer Celine Dion, written by her especially for the Olympics. There were also colorful fireworks.

IN Olympic Games Athletes from 197 countries took part in the event, among which 271 awards were played in 25 sports. For the first time, Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Lithuania, Latvia and others performed as separate teams in the Summer Olympics. Women made their debut at the Games in Atlanta, Beach volleyball, softball, racing in rowing light weight crews and mountain bikes.

The Russian national team in 1996 for the first time acted as an independent country on Summer Games. Having taken 2nd place in the unofficial team event, the Russian team lost to the US team. Russian athletes took 26 gold, 21 silver and 16 bronze medals. Fencers, swimmers, athletes and wrestlers brought most of the medals to the national team.

The organization of the 1996 Summer Olympics was subject to considerable criticism from athletes, officials and journalists. Failures in the operation of information systems, the incompetence of volunteers, problems with the organization of traffic, as well as the excessive commercialization of the Olympic Games, were especially criticized. An important incident was the explosion in Olympic park, which occurred on July 27 and temporarily blocked Olympic events. As a result of the explosive action of a bomb planted by a terrorist, 1 person died, another 1 died of a heart attack, and more than 100 people received non-dangerous injuries. But still, despite these tragic events, the Olympic Games in Atlanta will be remembered thanks to sporting achievements.

On August 4, 1996, in the presence of more than 85 thousand people, the Closing Ceremony of the Games was held at the Atlanta Olympic Stadium. Many famous American musicians took part in the musical part of the ceremony. The winners were awarded in the men's marathon, which took place on the last day Summer Olympics 1996. By tradition, the athletes took part in the parade all together, thus symbolizing the Olympic unity.

At the closing ceremony of the Games, IOC President Samaranch did not say his traditional phrase "These Games were the best in history." During his speech, he gave Special attention the threat of terrorism and called to honor the memory of the victims of the terrorist attack in Atlanta, as well as the Israeli athletes who died in Munich in 1972. The Olympic flag was lowered from the flagpole, and the Olympic flag was solemnly presented to the mayor of the capital next Games- Sydney. The closing ceremony ended with a grandiose fireworks display.

Tip 4: What the 1996 Atlanta Olympics are notorious for

The 100th Anniversary Olympic Games were held in 1996 in the American city of Atlanta. For the first time, not the combined team of Russia and the union republics, but individual national teams of states that were previously part of the USSR, performed at them.

most successful for Russian teams competitions in sports and rhythmic gymnastics, synchronized swimming, jumping into the water. Many sports in which Soviet athletes traditionally were the winners, the Russians did not even manage to enter the top six. Such “failed” sports for men were: badminton, road cycling, rowing slalom, archery and tennis. Women performed unsuccessfully in competitions in badminton, rowing, kayaking and canoeing, moutainback, trap shooting, swimming, tennis and archery.

From total Only 52% of the team members managed to win medals among Russian athletes, the training of the remaining 48% was assessed as unsuccessful based on the results of these games. Experts noted a clear regression in the women's Olympic sports sports program. This was especially noticeable in judo competitions, cycling, swimming, archery, table tennis and field hockey.

The situation in sports related to games (basketball, volleyball, handball) and cyclic (academic rowing, track and field running, swimming) was called unfavorable based on the results of the games. national team Greco-Roman wrestling, on which special hopes were placed, also performed very mediocrely. It also turned out to be ineffective to involve in Olympic team athletes who have already played for foreign clubs - they brought very few extra points to the common treasury.

Several cities claimed to host the 1996 Olympic Games: Athens, Belgrade, Manchester, Melbourne, Toronto and Atlanta. The favorites, of course, were Athens - the 100th anniversary of the first Olympics was planned and they wanted to hold it in Greece. But the members of the Atlanta Bid Committee were able to convince the IOC of the city's excellent and highest readiness for the Summer Games. As a result, on September 18, 1990, at the 96th session of the IOC, Atlanta was declared the capital of the 1996 Summer Olympics.

Mascot of the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta

It was decided to generate it on a computer. As a result, the creature came out strange: barefoot without a nose and mouth. The designers tried to give Izzy more attractive appearance: big mouth, tail humiliated Olympic rings, funny shoes and white gloves. Then I added sparkle-star eyes. The creature's name Izzy is short for Whatisit? ("What it is?"). He is considered one of the worst mascots of the Olympics.

Opening of the 1996 Olympics

The ceremony took place on July 19, 1996 at the Olympic Stadium in Atlanta. The broadcast was carried out by 170 television companies, and about 3.5 billion viewers watched it. The main themes of the presentation were the history of Atlanta and South America, as well as the 100th anniversary of the Olympic Movement.

The parade was attended by 10,700 athletes from 197 participating countries. The Russian Flag was carried at the ceremony by the wrestler Alexander Karelin, who later won his third Olympic medal in Atlanta. gold medal.

After a speech by IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch and Games Organizing Committee President Billy Payne, US President Bill Clinton declared the 1996 Olympics open. Was raised olympic flag and the Fire was lit, the torch was brought by swimmer Janet Evans and boxer Evander Holyfield, and lit former boxer Muhammad Ali.

The culmination was the song "The Power of Dreams" performed by the famous singer Celine Dion, and then colorful fireworks.

Russia at the 1996 Olympics

The Russian team at the Summer Olympics in Atlanta for the first time performed as a separate country. According to the results of the medal count of the 1996 Olympics, the Russian team won second place after the US team. The Russians received 63 medals: 26 gold, 21 silver and 16 bronze.

Most of the winners were among swimmers, wrestlers, fencers and athletes. Swimmer Alexander Popov was able to win 4 medals: 2 gold and 2 silver, and became a four-time Olympic champion.

Criticism of the organization of the 1996 Olympics

Athletes, journalists and officials were very dissatisfied with the organization of the Games. There are many traffic problems, numerous failures in the operation of information systems, the unpreparedness of volunteers, the too strong commercialization of the Olympics in Atlanta.

But the most serious incident was the explosion in the Olympic Park on July 27 at night, in which 2 people died during the mass celebrations, 111 people were injured of varying severity. After many assurances from the organizers of increased security measures, the 1996 Summer Olympics decided to continue.

The offender was detained only a year later after several more terrorist attacks and was given four life sentences with deprivation of the right to parole.

Closing of the 1996 Summer Olympics

At the ceremony, Juan Antonio Samaranch, President of the IOC, for the first and last time did not say the phrase "These Games were the best in history."

The closing ceremony took place at the Olympic Stadium on August 4 and was attended by more than 85,000 people. Many American musicians took part in it. At the ceremony, the last awards of the Summer Olympics were presented to the winners in the men's marathon.

The final parade showed Olympic unity - all athletes walked together without separation by country.

In his speech, Juan Antonio Samaranch called to remember the victims of the Atlanta park bombing and the Israeli athletes who died in Munich in 1972.

The Olympic flag was lowered, and the banner was handed the measure of Sydney, the capital of the next Games. It all ended with a magnificent fireworks display.

Doping scandal at the 1996 Games

On July 28, IOC officials announced that the tests of Russian athletes: swimmer Andrey Korneev, cyclist Rita Razmayte and wrestler Zafar Guliyev had tested positive for the banned drug bromantane.

Then bromantane was found: at the swimmer Nina Zhivanevskaya - on July 30, at the runner Marina Trandenkova - on August 1. All caught athletes were disqualified and the won medals were taken away. But after arbitration court in Lausanne, when it was found out that the drug was banned during the Games, but not blacklisted, the results of the athletes were restored and the medals returned.

Atlanta is a city of half a million people in the Southeast of the United States, which is the administrative center of the state of Georgia. It was founded in 1837 as one of the stations under construction of the railroad to the Midwest. Then it had the name Terminus, and the status of the city and the new name of the settlement received a decade later. In the history of the country, Atlanta is known as a place that, during the civil war between north and south, was burned in 1864 by the army of northerners, and at the beginning of the 20th century there were mass unrest of the black population.

The choice of Atlanta as the Olympic city surprised many people. The fact is that the state of Georgia during the years of the Civil War in the United States was considered a stronghold of the Confederates - supporters of slavery, and racist prejudices were very strong in it for a long time. However, the members of the Atlanta bid committee did a great job convincing the IOC of the high degree of readiness of the city to host competitions of this level, and in the end they got their way.

Many officials, representatives of the press, athletes expressed their dissatisfaction with the poor organization of traffic, unsatisfactory presentation of information, as well as the low qualification of volunteer assistants. The mascot of the Olympics, the computer-generated character Izzy, also led people into confusion. It is quite natural that IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch, speaking at the closing ceremony of the games, did not utter the traditional phrase "These games were the best in history."

The grand opening of the Summer Olympics took place on July 19, 1996 at the Olympic Stadium, in front of which a special tower with a bowl for the Olympic flame was built. According to media reports, the live broadcast of the ceremony, which was conducted by 170 television companies, was watched by about 3.5 billion people. The 100th anniversary of the Olympic Games, as well as the history of the American South and Atlanta, were the most significant topics of the demonstration numbers of the ceremony. At the end of the opening ceremony of the Games, the song "The Power of Dreams" was performed by the famous singer Celine Dion, written by her especially for the Olympics. There were also colorful fireworks.

Athletes from 197 countries took part in the Olympic Games, between which 271 awards were played in 25 sports. For the first time, Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Lithuania, Latvia, etc. performed as separate teams in the Summer Olympics. Women's, beach volleyball, softball, light weight rowing and mountain biking debuted at the Games in Atlanta.

The Russian national team in 1996 for the first time acted as an independent country at the Summer Games. Having taken 2nd place in the unofficial team event, the Russian team lost to the US team. Russian athletes took 26 gold, 21 silver and 16 bronze medals. Fencers, swimmers, athletes and wrestlers brought most of the medals to the national team.

The organization of the 1996 Summer Olympics was subject to considerable criticism from athletes, officials and journalists. Failures in the operation of information systems, the incompetence of volunteers, problems with the organization of traffic, as well as the excessive commercialization of the Olympic Games, were especially criticized. An important incident was the explosion in the Olympic Park, which occurred on July 27 and temporarily blocked the Olympic events. As a result of the explosive action of a bomb planted by a terrorist, 1 person died, another 1 died of a heart attack, and more than 100 people received non-dangerous injuries. But still, despite these tragic events, the Olympic Games in Atlanta will be remembered thanks to sporting achievements.

On August 4, 1996, in the presence of more than 85 thousand people, the Closing Ceremony of the Games was held at the Atlanta Olympic Stadium. Many famous American musicians took part in the musical part of the ceremony. The winners were awarded in the men's marathon, which took place on the last day of the 1996 Summer Olympics. Traditionally, the athletes took part in the parade all together, thus symbolizing Olympic unity.

At the closing ceremony of the Games, IOC President Samaranch did not say his traditional phrase "These Games were the best in history." During his speech, he paid special attention to the threat of terrorism and called for the memory of the victims of the terrorist attack in Atlanta, as well as the Israeli athletes who died in Munich in 1972. The Olympic flag was lowered from the flagpole, and the Olympic banner was solemnly presented to the mayor of the capital of the next Games - Sydney. The closing ceremony ended with a grandiose fireworks display.

Tip 4: What the 1996 Atlanta Olympics are notorious for

The most successful competitions for Russian teams were in artistic and rhythmic gymnastics, synchronized swimming, and diving. In many sports in which Soviet athletes have traditionally been winners, the Russians did not even manage to enter the top six. Such “failed” sports for men were: badminton, road cycling, rowing slalom, archery and tennis. Women performed unsuccessfully in competitions in badminton, rowing, rowing and canoeing, moutainback, clay shooting, swimming, tennis and archery.

Of the total number of Russian athletes, only 52% of the team members managed to win medals, the training of the remaining 48% was assessed as unsuccessful based on the results of these games. Experts noted a clear regression in the women's types of the Olympic sports program. This was especially noticeable in judo competitions, cycling, swimming, archery, table tennis and field hockey.

The situation in sports related to games (basketball, volleyball, handball) and cyclic (academic rowing, track and field running, swimming) was called unfavorable based on the results of the games. The Greco-Roman wrestling team of the country, on which special hopes were placed, also performed very mediocrely. It turned out to be ineffective to attract athletes to the Olympic team who had already played for foreign clubs - they brought very few additional points to the common treasury.

The organization of the Games has been heavily criticized by officials, athletes and journalists. Problems with the organization of traffic, the incompetence of volunteers, and failures in the operation of information systems were especially noted. The over-commercialization of the Games has been criticized. The serious incident was bombing at the olympic park, which took place on July 27 and temporarily overshadowed the Olympic events. As a result of the explosion, one person died, another died of a heart attack, one hundred and eleven people were injured of varying severity. The FBI named the alleged perpetrator - Eric Robert Rudolph, who was only captured in 2003. After his arrest, he confessed to all crimes and explained his actions with political motives. He was sentenced to four life sentences without parole. At the closing ceremony of the Games, IOC President J. A. Samaranch, for the only time during his presidency, did not say the traditional phrase "These Games were the best in history."

Softball, beach volleyball, mountain biking, women's soccer, and lightweight crew racing in rowing made their Olympic debuts.
Largest number gold medals, four, were won by American swimmer Amy Van Dyken. She won the 50m freestyle, 100m butterfly; and also competed in the 4x100 freestyle relay and medley relay. The highest total number of medals, six, is by Russian gymnast Alexei Nemov.
Li Laishan won the first and last gold medal in the history of Hong Kong as a British colony in the sailboard competition.
The strongest professional cyclists were admitted to the Games for the first time. individual race won on the highway five-time champion racing Tour de France Spaniard Miguel Indurain.
American Michael Johnson and Frenchwoman Marie Jo Perec made a gold double in the 200 and 400 meters, with Johnson with a world record in the two hundred meters.
Sprinter Donovan Bailey of Canada won the 100m with a world record time of 9.84 seconds.
The famous athlete Carl Lewis won his ninth gold medal in the long jump at the age of 35. Olympic medal.
Russian swimmer Alexander Popov won the 50m and 100m freestyle at the second Olympics in a row.
Turkish weightlifter Naim Suleymanoglu became the first representative of his sport to win three Olympic gold medals.
The athletics stadium contained nine tracks for running 100 meters. At the same time, 9 participants went to the final race (those who took 8th and 9th places showed the same time in the semi-finals). After the Olympics, it was converted into a baseball one.
At the third Olympic Games in a row, Russian Greco-Roman wrestler Alexander Karelin won gold.
American basketball team, made up of NBA players and called "Dream Team 2", won the gold of the Olympic tournament following its predecessors from Dream Team 1.
The victory of the Nigerian team in the football competition was the first ever Olympic football victory for an African country.
All 4 medals for

Olympic games were held July 19-August 4, 1996 in Atlanta (Georgia, USA). Atlanta became the legal host of the Olympic Games on September 18, 1990 at the IOC Session in Tokyo, the capital of Japan. Since the Games were to be held in year of the century of modern Olympic movement , many experts and sports fans were convinced that the competition should be held in the historical homeland of the Olympic Games - Greece. But the IOC members chose Atlanta, believing that hosting the Games in the United States would bring more revenue than in Greece.

opening ceremony, which took place on July 19, 1996, was watched by a record 3.5 billion people. The theatrical part of the opening of the Games was devoted to the history of the southern part of the United States and the 100th anniversary of the Olympic movement. The Olympic flame was lit by the legendary American boxer (Cassius Clay).

Participated in the Olympic Games 10,318 athletes from 197 countries. The games provided almost 50 thousand volunteers. Competitions were held in 37 sports (official website of the IOC), 271 award sets. Softball, beach volleyball, mountain biking, light weight crew races in rowing, women's football debuted in the competition program.

An incomprehensible goggle-eyed became the mascot of the Games little man Izzy(short for What is it?). Unlike other mascots, Izzy did not become popular with fans and tourists. This talisman is considered the most failed in the history of the Olympic movement.

The heroine of the Games in Atlanta was American Amy Van Dyken, who won four gold medals in swimming (50m high speed, 100m butterfly, 4x100m relay, 4x100m combined relay). Russian swimmer Alexander Popov won 4 medals, 2 of which (at distances of 50 and 100 m) are gold. The greatest number of medals at the Olympic Games was won by the famous Russian gymnast Alexei Nemov. He won 6 awards - 2 gold (vault, team championship), 1 silver (absolute championship), 3 bronze (exercises on horseback, crossbar, floor exercises).

Muhammad Ali

For the first time professional cyclists took part in the Olympic Games. The best in the individual road race was the legendary Spanish cyclist, multiple winner of the Tour de France.

A serious fight for medals unfolded in the athletics competitions. French sprinter Marie Jo Perec won two gold medals in the 200m and 400m. Marie became the first athlete in the history of the Olympics, who managed to win twice in a row (1992 and 1996) in the 400 m. In men, Michael Johnson became the king of the sprint, who won 2 gold medals in the 200 and 400 m.

The legendary American athlete, at the age of 35, managed to win the ninth Olympic gold medal, this time in the long jump. For the first time in the history of weightlifting, a famous Turkish athlete won the third consecutive gold medal. Also triple Olympic champion became a famous Greco-Roman wrestler.

Football ended sensationally Olympic tournament, where the victory was won by the Nigerian team, who defeated in the final match strong team Argentina. A brilliant victory at the Olympic Games was won by the now famous Ukrainian professional boxer Vladimir Klichko.

Of the 197 participating countries, medals were won by representatives of 79 countries, athletes from 53 countries became owners of gold medals. In the unofficial team standings, the victory was celebrated by the US team, whose athletes won 101 medals - (44-32-25). The Olympic team came second. Russian Federation- 63 medals (26-21-16), the third were the athletes of Germany - 65 awards (20-18-27).

Despite the excellent sports achivments, numerous world records, the Olympic Games in Atlanta were remembered as a failed organization. Volunteers were not prepared to provide the Games and work with tourists, information systems were constantly breaking down. The organizers were accused of over-commercialization of the Games. July 27 became a sad page in the Games. On this day, a bomb planted by terrorists exploded in the Olympic Park. As a result, 2 people died, more than a hundred were injured.

At the official closing ceremony of the Games, IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch for the first time during his presidency did not say the traditional phrase "These Games were the best in history", thus expressing dissatisfaction with the organization of the Games.