USSR at the Summer Olympics - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

first participated at the Olympic Games
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...

in 1952, and competed at the Games on 18 occasions since then. At seven of its nine appearances at the Summer Olympic Games

Summer Olympic Games

The Summer Olympic Games or the Games of the Olympiad are an international multi-sport event, occurring every four years, organized by the International Olympic Committee. Medals are awarded in each event, with gold medals for first place, silver for second and bronze for third, a tradition that...

, the team ranked first in the total number of medals won, it was second by this count on the other two. Similarly, the team was ranked first in the medal count seven times and second twice in nine appearances at the Winter Olympic Games

Winter Olympic Games

The Winter Olympic Games is a sporting event, which occurs every four years. The first celebration of the Winter Olympics was held in Chamonix, France, in 1924. The original sports were alpine and cross-country skiing, figure skating, ice hockey, Nordic combined, ski jumping and speed skating...

.

The Olympic Committee of the USSR was formed on April 21, 1951 and was recognized by the IOC

International Olympic Committee

The International Olympic Committee is an international corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894 with Demetrios Vikelas as its first president...

on its 45th session (May 7, 1951). In the same year, when the Soviet representative Constantin Andrianov became an IOC member, the USSR officially joined the Olympic Movement.

The 1952 Summer Olympics

1952 Summer Olympics

The 1952 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Helsinki, Finland in 1952. Helsinki had been earlier given the 1940 Summer Olympics, which were cancelled due to World War II...

in Helsinki

Helsinki

Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...

became first Olympic Games for Soviet athletes. On July 20, 1952, the first Olympic gold medal in the history of Soviet sport was won by Nina Romashkova

Nina Romashkova

Nina Apollonovna Ponomaryova was a Soviet/Russian discus thrower, the first Soviet Olympic Champion.She became interested in athletics since 1947, when she entered the Physical Training Faculty of the Stavropol Pedagogical Institute...

in the women's discus throw

Discus throw

The discus throw is an event in track and field athletics competition, in which an athlete throws a heavy disc—called a discus—in an attempt to mark a farther distance than his or her competitors. It is an ancient sport, as evidenced by the 5th century BC Myron statue, Discobolus...

. Romashkova's result in this event (51.42 m) was the new Olympic record at that time.

The 1956 Winter Olympics

1956 Winter Olympics

The 1956 Winter Olympics, officially known as the VII Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy. This celebration of the Games was held from 26 January to 5 February 1956. Cortina, which had originally been awarded the 1944 Winter Olympics, beat out...

in Cortina d'Ampezzo

Cortina d'Ampezzo

Cortina d'Ampezzo is a town and comune in the southern Alps located in Veneto, a region in Northern Italy. Located in the heart of the Dolomites in an alpine valley, it is a popular winter sport resort known for its ski-ranges, scenery, accommodations, shops and après-ski scene...

became the first Winter Olympic Games for Soviet athletes. There the first Winter Olympic gold medal in the history of Soviet sport was won by Lyubov Kozyreva in women's cross-country skiing

Cross-country skiing

Cross-country skiing is a winter sport in which participants propel themselves across snow-covered terrain using skis and poles...

10 km event.

The USSR was the host nation for the 1980 Summer Olympics

1980 Summer Olympics

The 1980 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event celebrated in Moscow in the Soviet Union. In addition, the yachting events were held in Tallinn, and some of the preliminary matches and the quarter-finals of the football tournament...

in Moscow

Moscow

Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...

. These Games were boycotted by the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

and many other countries, and subsequently, the USSR led a boycott

1984 Summer Olympics boycott

The boycott of the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California. The boycott was a follow up to the American-led boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow. The boycott involved 14 Eastern Bloc countries and allies, led by the Soviet Union who initiated the boycott on May 8, 1984, and joined...

of the 1984 Games

1984 Summer Olympics

The 1984 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Los Angeles, California, United States in 1984...

in Los Angeles

Los Ángeles

Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

.

Although the USSR ceased to exist on December 26, 1991, The Olympic Committee of the USSR formally existed until March 12, 1992, when it disbanded.

In 1992, 12 of the 15 former Soviet Republics competed together as the Unified Team

Unified Team

The Unified Team was the name used for the sports team of the former Soviet Union at the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville and the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona. The IOC country code was EUN, after the French name, Équipe Unifiée...

and marched under the Olympic Flag in the Barcelona Games

1992 Summer Olympics

The 1992 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event celebrated in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, in 1992. The International Olympic Committee voted in 1986 to separate the Summer and Winter Games, which had been held in the same...

, where they finished first in the medal rankings. The Unified Team also competed at the Albertville Winter Games

1992 Winter Olympics

The 1992 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XVI Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event celebrated from 8 to 23 February 1992 in Albertville, France. They were the last Winter Olympics to be held the same year as the Summer Olympics, and the first where the Winter Paralympics...

earlier in the year (represented by seven of the twelve ex-Republics), and finished second in the medal ranking at those Games.

Medals by Summer Games

Total		395	319	296	1010	2
Games	Athletes	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total	Rank
1952 Helsinki 1952 Summer Olympics The 1952 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Helsinki, Finland in 1952. Helsinki had been earlier given the 1940 Summer Olympics, which were cancelled due to World War II...	295 (40)	22	30	19	71	2
1956 Melbourne 1956 Summer Olympics The 1956 Melbourne Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVI Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in Melbourne, Australia, in 1956, with the exception of the equestrian events, which could not be held in Australia due to quarantine regulations...	283 (39)	37	29	32	98	1
1960 Rome 1960 Summer Olympics The 1960 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held from August 25 to September 11, 1960 in Rome, Italy...	284 (50)	43	29	31	103	1
1964 Tokyo 1964 Summer Olympics The 1964 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Tokyo, Japan in 1964. Tokyo had been awarded with the organization of the 1940 Summer Olympics, but this honor was subsequently passed to Helsinki because of Japan's...	319 (63)	30	31	35	96	2
1968 Mexico City 1968 Summer Olympics The 1968 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Mexico City, Mexico in October 1968. The 1968 Games were the first Olympic Games hosted by a developing country, and the first Games hosted by a Spanish-speaking country...	313 (67)	29	32	30	91	2
1972 Munich 1972 Summer Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from August 26 to September 11, 1972....	373 (71)	50	27	22	99	1
1976 Montreal 1976 Summer Olympics The 1976 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXI Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event celebrated in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, in 1976. Montreal was awarded the rights to the 1976 Games on May 12, 1970, at the 69th IOC Session in Amsterdam, over the bids of Moscow and...		49	41	35	125	1
1980 Moscow 1980 Summer Olympics The 1980 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event celebrated in Moscow in the Soviet Union. In addition, the yachting events were held in Tallinn, and some of the preliminary matches and the quarter-finals of the football tournament... (host nation)		80	69	46	195	1
1984 Los Angeles 1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Los Angeles, California, United States in 1984...	did not compete
1988 Seoul 1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad, were an all international multi-sport events celebrated from September 17 to October 2, 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. They were the second summer Olympic Games to be held in Asia and the first since the 1964 Summer Olympics...		55	31	46	132	1

Medals by Winter Games

Total		78	57	59	194	4
Games	Athletes	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total	Rank
1956 Cortina d'Ampezzo 1956 Winter Olympics The 1956 Winter Olympics, officially known as the VII Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy. This celebration of the Games was held from 26 January to 5 February 1956. Cortina, which had originally been awarded the 1944 Winter Olympics, beat out...	55 (7)	7	3	6	16	1
1960 Squaw Valley 1960 Winter Olympics The 1960 Winter Olympics, officially known as the VIII Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event held between February 18 and 28, 1960 in Squaw Valley, California, United States. In 1955 at the 50th IOC meeting, the organizing committee made the surprise choice to award Squaw Valley as...	62 (13)	7	5	9	21	1
1964 Innsbruck 1964 Winter Olympics The 1964 Winter Olympics, officially known as the IX Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in Innsbruck, Austria, from January 29 to February 9, 1964...	69 (17)	11	8	6	25	1
1968 Grenoble 1968 Winter Olympics The 1968 Winter Olympics, officially known as the X Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1968 in Grenoble, France and opened on 6 February. Thirty-seven countries participated...	74 (21)	5	5	3	13	2
1972 Sapporo 1972 Winter Olympics The 1972 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XI Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated from February 3 to February 13, 1972 in Sapporo, Hokkaidō, Japan...	78 (20)	8	5	3	16	1
1976 Innsbruck 1976 Winter Olympics The 1976 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XII Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated February 4–15, 1976 in Innsbruck, Austria...		13	6	8	27	1
1980 Lake Placid 1980 Winter Olympics The 1980 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XIII Olympic Winter Games, was a multi-sport event which was celebrated from 13 February through 24 February 1980 in Lake Placid, New York, United States of America. This was the second time the Upstate New York village hosted the Games, after 1932...		10	6	6	22	1
1984 Sarajevo 1984 Winter Olympics The 1984 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XIV Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated from 8–19 February 1984 in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia. Other candidate cities were Sapporo, Japan; and Gothenburg, Sweden...		6	10	9	25	2
1988 Calgary 1988 Winter Olympics The 1988 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XV Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event celebrated in and around Calgary, Alberta, Canada from 13 to 28 February 1988. The host was selected in 1981 after having beat Falun, Sweden and Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy...		11	9	9	29	1

Medals by summer sport

Total	395	319	296	1010
Gymnastics Gymnastics at the Summer Olympics Gymnastics events have been contested at every Summer Olympic Games since the birth of the modern Olympic movement at the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens. For 32 years, only men were allowed to compete. Beginning at the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam, women were allowed to compete in artistic...	73	67	44	184
Athletics Athletics at the Summer Olympics Athletics has been contested at every Summer Olympics since the birth of the modern Olympic movement at the 1896 Summer Olympics. The athletics program traces its earliest roots to events used in the ancient Greek Olympics. The modern program now comprises track and field events, road running...	65	55	75	195
Wrestling Wrestling at the Summer Olympics Wrestling has been contested at the Summer Olympic Games since the sport was introduced in the ancient Olympic Games in 708 BC. When the modern Olympic Games resumed in Athens in 1896, wrestling became a focus of the Games, with the exception of the 1900 Summer Olympics when wrestling did not...	62	31	23	116
Weightlifting Weightlifting at the Summer Olympics Weightlifting has been contested at every Summer Olympic Games since the 1920 Summer Olympics, as well as twice before then. It debuted at the 1896 Summer Olympics, in Athens, Greece, and was also an event at the 1904 Games.-Men's events:...	39	21	2	62
Canoeing Canoeing at the Summer Olympics Canoeing and kayaking has been featured as a competition sport in the Summer Olympic Games since the 1936 Games in Berlin although it was a demonstration sport at the 1924 Games in Paris. There are two disciplines of canoeing in Olympic competition: slalom and sprint.Two styles of boats are...	29	13	9	51
Fencing Fencing at the Summer Olympics Fencing has been contested at every Summer Olympic Games since the birth of the modern Olympic movement at the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens. Women's foil made its Olympic debut in Paris, during the 1924 Olympic Games...	18	15	16	49
Shooting Shooting at the Summer Olympics Shooting sports have been contested at every Summer Olympic Games since the birth of the modern Olympic movement at the 1896 Summer Olympics except at the 1904 & 1928 editions.-Men's:...	17	15	17	49
Boxing Boxing at the Summer Olympics Boxing has been contested at every Summer Olympic Games since its introduction to the program at the 1904 Summer Olympics, except for the 1912 Summer Olympics in Stockholm, because Swedish law banned the sport at the time. The 2008 Summer Olympics was the final games with boxing as a male only event...	14	19	18	51
Swimming Swimming at the Summer Olympics Swimming has been a sport at every modern Summer Olympics. It has been open to women since 1912. Along with track & field athletics and gymnastics it is one of the most popular spectator sports at the Games and the one with the largest number of events....	13	21	26	60
Rowing Rowing at the Summer Olympics Rowing at the Summer Olympics has been part of the competition since the 1900 Summer Olympics. Rowing was on the program at the 1896 Summer Olympics but was cancelled due to bad weather. Only men were allowed to compete until the women's events were introduced at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal...	12	20	10	42
Cycling Cycling at the Summer Olympics Cycling has been contested at every Summer Olympic Games since the birth of the modern Olympic movement at the 1896 Summer Olympics.-Track cycling, Men:-Track cycling, Women:-Road bicycle racing, Men:-Road bicycle racing, Women:...	11	4	8	23
Volleyball Volleyball at the Summer Olympics Volleyball has been contested as an indoor sport at the Summer Olympic Games since 1964. Beach volleyball was introduced at the 1992 Games, and has been an official Olympic sport since 1996.-Origins:...	7	4	1	12
Equestrian Equestrian at the Summer Olympics Equestrianism made its Summer Olympics debut at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris, France. It disappeared until 1912, but has appeared at every Summer Olympic Games since. The current Olympic equestrian disciplines are Dressage, Eventing, and Jumping...	6	5	4	15
Judo Judo at the Summer Olympics Judo was first included in the Summer Olympic Games at the 1964 Games in Tokyo, Japan. After not being included in 1968, judo has been an Olympic sport in each Olympiad since then. Only male judoka participated until the 1988 Summer Olympics, when women participated as a demonstration sport...	5	5	13	23
Modern pentathlon Modern pentathlon at the Summer Olympics Modern pentathlon is a sports contest created especially for the Summer Olympic Games by the founder of the modern Games, Baron Pierre de Coubertin, and was first contested in 1912. Coubertin was inspired by the pentathlon event in Ancient Olympic Games, which was modeled after the skills of the...	4	5	5	14
Sailing Sailing at the Summer Olympics Sailing has been one of the Olympic sports since the Games of the I Olympiad, held in Athens, Greece, in 1896. Despite being scheduled in the first Olympic program, the races were canceled due to severe weather conditions...	4	5	3	12
Basketball Basketball at the Summer Olympics Basketball has been a Summer Olympics sport for men consistently since 1936. Prior to its inclusion as a medal sport, it was held as demonstration event in 1904 and 1932, both in the United States. Women's basketball was played in the Olympics only since 1976....	4	4	4	12
Handball Handball at the Summer Olympics Team handball was introduced as an Olympic sport for men at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, but dropped after that, only to be resumed at the 1972 Summer Olympics, again on German territory...	4	1	1	6
Diving Diving at the Summer Olympics Diving was first introduced in the official programme of the Summer Olympic Games at the 1904 Games of St. Louis and has been an Olympic sport since. It was known as "fancy diving" for the acrobatic stunts performed by divers during the dive...	3	4	6	13
Water polo Water polo at the Summer Olympics Water polo has been part of the Summer Olympics program since the second games, in 1900. A women's water polo tournament was introduced for the 2000 Summer Olympics...	2	2	3	7
Football (soccer) Football at the Summer Olympics Association football, usually known simply as football or soccer, has been included in every Olympiad except 1896 and 1932 as a men's competition sport. Women's football was added to the official programme in 1996.-Early history:...	2	0	3	5
Archery Archery at the Summer Olympics Archery had its debut at the 1900 Summer Olympics and has been contested in 13 Olympiads. Eighty three different nations have appeared in the Olympic archery competitions, with France appearing the most often at 11 times. It is governed by the International Archery Federation...	1	3	3	7
Field hockey Field hockey at the Summer Olympics Field hockey was introduced at the Summer Olympic Games as a men's competition at the 1908 Games in London, with six teams, including four from the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland....	0	0	2	2

Medals by winter sport

Total	78	57	59	194
Cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing at the Winter Olympics Cross-country skiing has been contested at the Winter Olympic Games since the first Winter Games in 1924. The women's events were first contested at the 1952 Winter Olympics.- Events :- Medal table :- Number of Cross-country skiers by Nation :...	25	22	21	68
Speed skating Speed skating at the Winter Olympics Speed skating has been featured as a sport in the Winter Olympics since the first winter games in 1924. Women's events were added to the Olympic program for the first time in 1960.-History:...	24	17	19	60
Figure skating Figure skating at the Olympic Games Figure skating has been contested in the Olympic Games since the 1908 Summer Olympics. In 1908 and 1920, the figure skating competitions were held in conjunction with the Games of the Olympiad...	10	9	5	24
Biathlon Biathlon at the Winter Olympics Biathlon debuted at the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley with the men's 20 km individual event. At the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, the men's 4×7.5 km relay debuted, followed by the 10 km sprint event at the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York...	9	5	5	19
Ice hockey Ice hockey at the Olympic Games Ice hockey tournaments have been staged at the Olympic Games since 1920. The men's tournament was introduced at the 1920 Summer Olympics and was transferred permanently to the Winter Olympic Games programme in 1924. The women's tournament was first held at the 1998 Winter Olympics...	7	1	1	9
Luge Luge at the Winter Olympics Luge was introduced to the Winter Olympic Games in 1964, with both men's and women's events and a doubles event. Doubles is technically a mixed event, but is almost always competed by a team of two men...	1	2	3	6
Bobsleigh Bobsleigh at the Winter Olympics Bobsleigh has been contested at the Winter Olympic Games since the first Winter Games in 1924, with the exception of the 1960 games in Squaw Valley when the organizing committee decided not to build a track in order to reduce expenses. Other than that exception, the four-man competition has been...	1	0	2	3
Ski jumping Ski jumping at the Winter Olympics Ski jumping has been included in the program of every Winter Olympic Games. From 1924 through 1956, the competition involved jumping from one hill whose length varied from each edition games to the next. Most historians have placed this length at 70 meters and have classified this as the large hill...	1	0	0	1
Nordic combined Nordic combined at the Winter Olympics The Nordic combined events have been contested at the Winter Olympic Games since 1924. The first competition involved 18 km cross-country skiing, followed by ski jumping. Whoever earned the most points from both competitions won the event. At the 1952 Winter Olympics, the ski jumping was held...	0	1	2	3
Alpine skiing Alpine skiing at the Winter Olympics Alpine skiing has been contested at every Winter Olympics since 1936, when a combined event was held in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. From 1948–80, the Winter Olympics also served as the World Championships in Olympic years...	0	0	1	1

Medals by Summer Games

Medals by Winter Games

Medals by summer sport

Medals by winter sport

See also