# Summer Olympic Games

The Olympic Rings are the symbol of the Olympic Games.
The **Summer Olympic Games** or the **Games of the Olympiad** are an international sporting event which are held every four years by the International Olympic Committee. The "Games", as they are often called, are held in a different city each time. It is a great honour for a city to be "awarded" (given) the right to hold the Olympic Games. Two years after the Summer Olympics, the Winter Olympic Games are held. The Winter Games were held in the same year as the summer Games from 1924 to 1992 and then switched to two years apart in 1994. These are always in a cold, mountainous place because the sports are all snow and ice sports such as skiing. Many more countries send athletes to the Summer Olympics than to the Winter Olympics

The Olympic Games were first held in Ancient Greece more than two thousand years ago. The first modern Summer Olympic Games were held in Athens in 1896. There were 200 athletes from Greece and 45 athletes from 13 other countries. Since 1904, medals have been given to the three best athletes or teams in each sport.

The earliest Games consisted of 42 events only, but it was expected that 10,500 athletes would compete in the 302 events on the program for the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.

## List of modern Summer Olympic Games

Map of Summer Olympics locations
Games in *italics* were cancelled or have not yet been held.

* 1896 – Games of the I Olympiad – Athens, Greece
* 1900 – Games of the II Olympiad – Paris, France
* 1904 – Games of the III Olympiad – St. Louis, Missouri, United States
* *1906 – Intercalated Games – Athens, Greece*
* 1908 – Games of the IV Olympiad – London, United Kingdom
* 1912 – Games of the V Olympiad – Stockholm, Sweden
* *1916 – Games of the VI Olympiad – Berlin, Germany - Cancelled due to World War I*
* 1920 – Games of the VII Olympiad – Antwerp, Belgium
* 1924 – Games of the VIII Olympiad – Paris, France
* 1928 – Games of the IX Olympiad – Amsterdam, Netherlands
* 1932 – Games of the X Olympiad – Los Angeles, California, United States
* 1936 – Games of the XI Olympiad – Berlin, Germany
* *1940 – Games of the XII Olympiad – Helsinki, Finland - Cancelled due to World War II*
* *1944 – Games of the XIII Olympiad – London, United Kingdom - Cancelled due to World War II*
* 1948 – Games of the XIV Olympiad – London, United Kingdom
* 1952 – Games of the XV Olympiad – Helsinki, Finland
* 1956 – Games of the XVI Olympiad – Melbourne, Australia / Stockholm, Sweden (Equestrian events)
* 1960 – Games of the XVII Olympiad – Rome, Italy
* 1964 – Games of the XVIII Olympiad – Tokyo, Japan
* 1968 – Games of the XIX Olympiad – Mexico City, Mexico
* 1972 – Games of the XX Olympiad – Munich, West Germany (now Munich, Germany)
* 1976 – Games of the XXI Olympiad – Montréal, Quebec, Canada
* 1980 – Games of the XXII Olympiad – Moscow, Soviet Union (now Moscow, Russia)
* 1984 – Games of the XXIII Olympiad – Los Angeles, California, United States
* 1988 – Games of the XXIV Olympiad – Seoul, South Korea
* 1992 – Games of the XXV Olympiad – Barcelona, Spain
* 1996 – Games of the XXVI Olympiad – Atlanta, Georgia, United States
* 2000 – Games of the XXVII Olympiad – Sydney, Australia
* 2004 – Games of the XXVIII Olympiad – Athens, Greece
* 2008 – Games of the XXIX Olympiad – Beijing, China / Hong Kong, China (Equestrian events)
* 2012 – Games of the XXX Olympiad – London, United Kingdom
* 2016 – Games of the XXXI Olympiad – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
* 2020 – Games of the XXXII Olympiad – Tokyo, Japan
* 2024 – Games of the XXXIII Olympiad – Paris, France
* *2028 – Games of the XXXIV Olympiad – Los Angeles, California, United States*
* *2032 – Games of the XXXV Olympiad – Brisbane, Australia*

## Cancelled Games

* The 1906 Summer Olympics or 1906 Intercalated Games were discounted *ex post facto* by the IOC. All medals awarded during these games have not since been counted officially on total medal counts.
* The following games were cancelled due to the World Wars. The 1916 Summer Olympics were cancelled due to the onset of WWI; both Summer Olympics of 1940 and 1944 were cancelled due to WWII.
* Some summer events were held by the IOC in celebration of its Jubilee in Lausanne, despite the war that cancelled the 1944 Summer Olympics, at the Jubilee Celebrations of the IOC.

## Related pages

* Athletics at the Summer Olympics