United States at the 1996 Summer Olympics
The United States of America (USA) was the host nation for the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia. 646 competitors, 375 men and 271 women, took part in 263 events in 31 sports. The team finished first in the overall medal rankings for the first time since 1984, and for the first time since 1968 in a non-boycotted Summer Olympics. Medalists. The following U.S. competitors won medals at the games. In the by discipline sections below, medalists' names are bolded. <nowiki>*</nowiki> - Indicates that the athlete competed in preliminaries but not  the final. Archery. The United States claimed both of the gold medals in the men's archery competitions, with Justin Huish claiming the individual medal and the three-man team claiming the team medal. The American women were not as successful. Baseball. Baseball was open only to male amateurs in 1992 and 1996. As a result, the Americans and other nations where professional baseball is developed relied on collegiate players, while Cubans used their most experienced veterans, who technically were considered amateurs as they nominally held other jobs, but in fact trained full-time. In 2000, pros were admitted, but  the MLB refused to release its players in 2000, 2004, and 2008, and the situation changed only a little: the Cubans still used their best players, while the Americans started using minor leaguers. The IOC cited the absence of the best players as the main reason for baseball being dropped from the Olympic program. ---- Fencing. Fifteen fencers, nine men and six women, represented the United States in 1996. Field hockey. Men's tournament. The US men's field hockey team competed for the sixth time at the Summer Olympics. On home soil the squad coached by Jon Clark once again  finished twelfth and last. Head Coach: Jon Clark Women's tournament. The US women's field hockey team competed for the third time at the Summer Olympics. On home soil the team coached by Pam Hixon and finished fifth. Head coach: Pam Hixon ---- Football (soccer). Men's tournament. Head coach: Bruce Arena ---- Head coach: Tony DiCicco ----