Germany at the Olympics

Germany at the Olympic Games

Flag of Germany
IOC code  GER
NOC Deutscher Olympischer Sportbund
Website www.dosb.de (German)
Olympic history
Summer Games
1896 • 1900 • 1904 • 1908 • 1912 • 1920 • 1924 • 1928 • 1932 • 1936 • 1948 • 1952 • 19561 • 19601 • 19641 • 1968–1988 • 1992 • 1996 • 2000 • 2004 • 2008
Winter Games
1924 • 1928 • 1932 • 1936 • 1948 • 1952 • 19561 • 19601 • 19641 • 1968–1988 • 1992 • 1994 • 1998 • 2002 • 2006 • 2010

1As the Unified Team of Germany
Other related appearances
West Germany (1968–1988)
East Germany (1968–1988)
Saar (1952)

German athletes have taken part in most of the Olympic Games since the first modern Games in 1896. Germany has hosted three Olympic Games, in 1936 both the Winter and Summer Games, and the 1972 Summer Olympics. In addition, Germany had been selected to host the 1916 Summer Olympics as well as the 1940 Winter Olympics, both of which had to be cancelled due to World Wars. After these wars, Germans were banned from participating in 1920, 1924 and 1948. While the country was divided, each of the two German states boycotted the Summer Games: in 1980 West Germany was one of 65 nations which did not go to Moscow in protest at the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan and in 1984 East Germany joined the Soviet Union (and several others) in the boycott of the Summer Games in Los Angeles.

Including the Winter Games of 2010, German athletes have won 1618 medals : 528 gold, 542 silver and 548 bronze. The IOC currently splits these results among four codes, even though only the East German Democratic Republic (GDR) from 1968 to 1988 had sent a separate team to compete against the team of the German NOC that represented Germany (GER) since 1896.

Contents

German post-WW2 division until 1990

After German organisations had been dissolved by the Allies in 1947, in 1950 the IOC recognized the reorganized Nationales Olympisches Komitee für Deutschland for all of Germany, based in (West) Germany.

Due to the Cold War, an East German state (German Democratic Republic) was created in October 1949, and a separate National Olympic Committee (NOC) for East Germany was established in 1951. It was not immediately recognized by the IOC, which until 1965 required that athletes of the NOC of East Germany join the German team represented by the NOC of (West) Germany. This team, which competed together from 1956 to 1964, is nowadays called the United Team of Germany (EUA, "Equipe Unifiée Allemande"), but was Germany (GER) then. As a result of the Germany being divided, from 1968 to 1990 two independent teams competed in each of the Games; the original designations were GER for the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) and GDR for the German Democratic Republic (East Germany). In 1980 the West German code was changed to FRG (which is currently also applied by the IOC in retrospect). After the GDR ceased to exist in 1990 and its states joined the Federal Republic of Germany, Germany once again was represented by a single team, designated GER.

Additionally, in the early 1950s the French-occupied Saar had its own NOC and competed at the 1952 Summer Olympics before joining the German Olympic team in 1956 and the (West) German state by 1957.

Medals

Team (IOC code) № Summer Gold Silver Bronze Total № Winter Gold Silver Bronze Total № Games Gold Silver Bronze Combined Total
 Germany (GER) [1][2] 14 163 163 203 529 10 70 72 48 190 24 233 235 251 719
 East Germany (GDR) [3] 5 153 129 127 409 6 39 36 35 110 11 192 165 162 519
 West Germany (FRG) [4] 5 56 67 81 204 6 11 15 13 39 11 67 82 94 243
Germany United Team of Germany (EUA) [5] 3 28 54 36 118 3 8 6 5 19 6 36 60 41 137
  1. ↑ Competed 1896–1952 and 1992–current. Does not include the totals from the United Team of Germany (EUA, 1956–1964) nor the 1968–1988 totals of East Germany (GDR) or West Germany (FRG).
  2. ↑ Does not include medals won as part of mixed teams with athletes from other nations (1896–1904).
  3. ↑ Competed 1968–1988. Totals not combined with those of Germany (GER).
  4. ↑ Competed 1968–1988. Totals not combined with those of Germany (GER).
  5. ↑ Team competed from 1956–1964, composed of athletes from both East Germany (GDR) and West Germany (FRG). Totals not combined with those of Germany (GER).

Germany at Olympia

Germany's first team at Olympia, leading Greek workers in the excavations of 1875/1876

The history of Germany at Olympia predates the First Olympics of 1896, as exclusive access rights to excavate the ancient Greek site have been granted to German Empire archaeologists in 1874. Since 1875, systematic excavations are undertaken by several German expeditions and initiatives.

Nadine Kleinert won a silver medal at the ancient site as the shot put contests of the 2004 Summer Olympics were held there.

See also

For more information, please see:

External links