opening and closing ceremonies, were lo-
cated at sites located within the downtown
area of Atlanta. As a result, there were numer-
ous traffic problems, which became a major
criticism of the Games. A twelve-acre Olym-
pic Centennial Park was developed in the
heart of the downtown area. The 85,000-seat
Olympic Stadium was constructed for the
opening and closing ceremonies and to be
used for the track-and-field competitions. At
the conclusion of the Olympic Games, the
stadium was modified to become the home of
the Atlanta Braves baseball team.
Existing facilities were used to accommo-
date the competition of several sports. The
Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium was used for
baseball competition; the Omni Coliseum,
home of the National Basketball Association
(NBA) Atlanta Hawks, was used for volleyball
matches. The Georgia Dome, with a seating
capacity of 69,000, was used for men’s and women’s
basketball as well as artistic gymnastics and team
handball. Neighboring colleges and universities
provided their facilities for competition. For the first
time in Olympic history, all four of the aquatics
sports—diving, swimming, synchronized swimming,
and water polo—were held at the same venue: the
Georgia Tech Aquatic Center. In addition, Georgia
Tech’s Alexander Memorial Coliseum, home to
Georgia Tech’s basketball team, was used for boxing
matches. The campus of Georgia State University
was used for badminton competition. The Georgia
World Congress Center was used for fencing, judo,
table tennis, weight lifting, and wrestling. Although
many of the competitive sports were conducted at fa-
cilities located in the downtown area, there were sev-
eral competitive events that were located elsewhere.
Canoe and kayak events were held on the Ocoee
River in Cleveland, Tennessee. Columbus, Georgia,
was the site for the softball events. Soccer matches
were played in Miami, Orlando, Washington, D.C.,
and Birmingham, Alabama, and finals were held at
the University of Georgia campus located in Athens,
Georgia.
Medals A total of 10,318 athletes (3,512 women,
6,806 men) from 197 nations participated in the
1996 Olympic Games. A record-setting seventy-nine
nations won medals and fifty-three won gold. Three
new sports were introduced: mountain biking, soft-
ball (women), and beach volleyball. In addition,
women’s football (soccer) made its first Olympic ap-
pearance. Cycling professionals were permitted for
the first time, and each soccer team that qualified
was allowed to have three professional soccer play-
ers. A total of 1,933 medals were awarded. The top
four nations with medal accumulations and gold
medals won were the following: The United States
won the most medals, 101, and the most gold med-
als, 44; Russia had a total of 63 medals and 26 gold;
Germany had 65 total medals and 20 gold; China
had a total of 50 medals and 16 gold. There were sev-
enteen Olympic records in track-and-field events
and two world records. In aquatics, twelve Olympic
and four world records were established.Athletic Achievements In track and field, Donovan
Bailey of Canada won the gold medal in the men’s
100 meters with a world record of 9.84 seconds. Mi-
chael Johnson of the United States won gold medals
in the men’s 200 and 400 meters, setting a new world
record in the 200 meters with a time of 19.32 sec-
onds. Gail Devers of the United States won the gold
in the women’s 100 meters. Marie-José Pérec re-
ceived gold medals in the women’s 200 and 400 me-
ters. This was the second Olympic Games in which
she won a gold medal in the 400 meters; it was the
first time that a runner of either sex won the 400
meters twice. The United States won gold medals in
the men’s 110-meter hurdles (Allen Johnson) and644 Olympic Games of 1996 The Nineties in America
Leading Medal Winners of the
1996 Summer OlympicsCountry Gold Silver Bronze Medals Won
United States 44 32 25 101
Russia 26 21 16 63
Germany 20 18 27 65
China 16 22 12 50
France 15 7 15 37
Italy 13 10 12 35
Australia 9 9 23 41
Cuba 9 8 8 25
Ukraine 9 2 12 23
South Korea 7 15 5 27