:1996 Summer Olympics#Sports

{{Main|Bids for the 1996 Summer Olympics}}

Atlanta was selected on September 18, 1990, in Tokyo, Japan, over Athens, Belgrade, Manchester, Melbourne, and Toronto at the 96th IOC Session. The city entered the competition as a dark horse, being up against stiff competition.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vqtLnCWHDX0C&pg=PA91 |title=Olympic turnaround: how the Olympic Games stepped back from the brink of Extinction to Become the Best Known Brand|first=Michael|last=Payne|isbn=0-275-99030-3|location=Westport, Ct.|publisher=Praeger Publishers|year=2006}} The US media also criticized Atlanta as a second-tier city and complained of Georgia's Confederate history. However, the IOC Evaluation Commission ranked Atlanta's infrastructure and facilities the highest, while IOC members said that it could guarantee large television revenues similar to the success of the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, the most recent Olympics in the United States. Additionally, former US ambassador to the UN and Atlanta mayor Andrew Young touted Atlanta's civil rights history and reputation for racial harmony. Young also wanted to showcase a reformed American South. The strong economy of Atlanta and improved race relations in the South helped to impress the IOC officials. Coca-Cola, a long-standing partner of the Olympics, was also a strong advocate to bring the Games to its hometown.{{cite book|last=Maloney|first=Larry|title=Encyclopedia of the Modern Olympic Movement|editor=Finding, John E. |editor2=Pelle, Kimberly D. |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|year=2004|pages=235–6|chapter=Atlanta 1996|isbn=9780313322785|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QmXi_-Jujj0C&q=Atlanta+Athens+IOC+bid&pg=PA236|access-date=September 23, 2008}} The Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games (ACOG) also proposed a substantial revenue-sharing with the IOC, USOC, and other NOCs. Atlanta's main rivals were Toronto, whose front-running bid that began in 1986 had chances to succeed after Canada had held a successful 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, and Melbourne, Australia, who hosted the 1956 Summer Olympics and after Brisbane, Australia's failed bid for the 1992 games (which were awarded to Barcelona) and prior to Sydney, Australia's successful 2000 Summer Olympics bid. This would be Toronto's fourth failed attempt since 1960 (tried in 1960, 1964, and 1976, but was defeated by Rome, Tokyo and Montreal).{{cite news|url=https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2015/07/24/toronto-has-made-5-attempts-to-host-the-olympics-could-the-sixth-be-the-winner.html|title=Toronto has made 5 attempts to host the Olympics. Could the sixth be the winner?|first=Peter|last=Edwards|date=July 24, 2015|newspaper=Toronto Star}}

Greece, the home of the ancient and first modern Olympics, was considered by many observers the "natural choice" for the Centennial Games,{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/09/19/sports/atlanta-selected-over-athens-for-1996-olympics.html?sec=&spon=&pagewanted=2&pagewanted=print|title=Atlanta Selected Over Athens for 1996 Olympics|last=Weisman|first=Steven R.|date=September 19, 1990|work=The New York Times|access-date=September 23, 2008}} due to its "divine right" in history.{{cite news|title='96 Olympic site in photo finish|last=Yates|first=Ronald E.|date=September 17, 1990|page=13|newspaper=Chicago Tribune}} Athens bid chairman Spyros Metaxas gave repeated warnings to the IOC and demanded to give them the games to mark the centennial, saying "You don't hold a 100th birthday in someone else's home. The Centenary Games should be held in Athens." He also warned that "if we don't get the Olympics in 1996 we will never bid again to host them."{{cite news|title=Greek Warning On Olympic Bid|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/08/23/sports/greek-warning-on-olympic-bid.html|date=August 23, 1990|agency=Associated Press|newspaper=The New York Times|page=B12}}

However, the Athens bid was described as "arrogant and poorly prepared," being regarded as "not being up to the task of coping with the modern and risk-prone extravaganza" of the current Games. Athens faced numerous obstacles, including "political instability, potential security problems, air pollution, traffic congestion and the fact that it would have to spend about US$3 billion to improve its infrastructure of airports, roads, rail lines and other amenities."{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1997/08/03/sports/athens-pins-olympic-bid-to-world-meet.html?pagewanted=print|title=Athens Pins Olympic Bid to World Meet|last=Longman|first=Jere|date=August 3, 1997|work=The New York Times|access-date=September 23, 2008}}{{cite web|title=1996 Olympic Games|url=http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-2042|publisher=Georgia Encyclopedia|access-date=February 24, 2013}} Athens would later be selected to host the 2004 Summer Olympics seven years later on September 5, 1997.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1997/09/06/sports/athens-wins-a-vote-for-tradition-and-the-2004-olympics.html?pagewanted=print|title=Athens Wins a Vote for Tradition, and the 2004 Olympics|date=6 September 1997|first=Jere|last=Longman|newspaper=The New York Times| access-date=25 May 2010 }}

The total cost of the 1996 Summer Olympics was estimated to be around US$1.7 billion. The venues and the Games themselves were funded entirely via private investment,{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1996/08/04/weekinreview/so-you-want-to-hold-an-olympics.html?pagewanted=print|title=So, You Want to Hold an Olympics|last=Applebome|first=Peter|date=August 4, 1996|access-date=August 17, 2008|newspaper=The New York Times}} and the only public funding came from the U.S. government for security, and around $500 million of public money used on physical public infrastructure including streetscaping, road improvements, Centennial Olympic Park (alongside $75 million in private funding), expansion of the airport, improvements in public transportation, and redevelopment of public housing projects.{{cite journal|url=http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/journals/UNSWLJ/1999/38.html#Heading21|title=The Olympic Legacy in Atlanta – [1999] UNSWLJ 38; (1999) 22(3) University of New South Wales Law Journal 902|journal=University of New South Wales Law Journal|year=1999|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111130191143/http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/journals/UNSWLJ/1999/38.html|archive-date=November 30, 2011|url-status=live|access-date=June 16, 2009|last1=Engle|first1=Sam Marie}} $420 million worth of tickets were sold, sale of sponsorship rights accounted for $540 million, and sale of the domestic broadcast rights to NBC accounted for $456 million. In total, the Games turned a profit of $19 million.{{Cite web|url=https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Journal/Issues/2016/07/18/Olympics/Atlanta-by-the-numbers.aspx |url-access=registration |title=Atlanta Olympics: By The Numbers|date=July 18, 2018|website=Sports Business Daily|language=en|access-date=March 20, 2019}}

The cost for Atlanta 1996 compares with costs of $4.6 billion for Rio 2016, $40–44 billion for Beijing 2008, and $51 billion for Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics (the most expensive Olympic Games without differentiating between summer and winter in history). The average cost for the Summer Games since 1960 is $5.2 billion. Using the 1984 Summer Olympics financing model, this edition was organized 100% privately without any cent of public money. Beijing 2008 and Sochi 2014 were financed entirely by the governments of their respective countries.{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2013/oct/09/sochi-2014-olympics-money-corruption |title=Sochi 2014: the costliest Olympics yet but where has all the money gone? |last=Gibson |first=Owen |date=October 9, 2013 |work=The Guardian |access-date=December 4, 2020}}

{{Main|Venues of the 1996 Summer Olympics}}

File:N521UP B747-212B UPS(logojet) NRT 09JUL01 (6896202880).jpg from UPS Airlines in the 1996 Summer Olympics paint.]]

File:McDonnell_Douglas_MD-11,_Delta_Air_Lines_AN0063288.jpg from Delta Air Lines in the 1996 Summer Olympics paint.]]

File:Atlanta skyline with sports complexes.JPEG]]

File:Alexander Memorial Coliseum IN THE FOREGROUND AND DOWNTOWN ATLANTA IN THE BACKGROUND.JPG]]

File:Georgia Tech Aquatic Center (1996).JPEG]]

Events of the 1996 Games were held in a completely decentralized way using mostly existing facilities that were not built for the Games.Most of the events were held in the so-called Olympic Ring, a {{convert|3|mi|km|1|abbr=on}} circle from the center of Atlanta. Others were held at Stone Mountain, about {{convert|20|mi|km|0}} outside of the city. In many cases, it was decided to remove events from the Atlanta Metropolitan Region to save money, while in others the calendar was a difficulty, as was the case with association football which ended up having its host cities spread across the Southeastern United States region.{{cite book|first=Matthew|last=Burbank|title=Olympic Dreams: The Impact of Mega Events on Local Politics|publisher=Lynne Rienner Publishers|year=2001|page=97|display-authors=etal}}{{cite web|url=http://www.la84foundation.org/6oic/OfficialReports/1996/1996v2.pdf|publisher=la84foundation.org|title=Centennial Olympic Games| access-date= October 12, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080528012115/http://www.la84foundation.org/6oic/OfficialReports/1996/1996v2.pdf|archive-date=May 28, 2008|url-status=dead }}

• Alexander Memorial Coliseum – Boxing
• Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium – Baseball
• Centennial Olympic Stadium – Opening/Closing Ceremonies, Athletics
• Clayton County International Park (Jonesboro, Georgia) – Beach Volleyball
• Forbes Arena – Basketball
• Georgia Dome – Basketball (final), Gymnastics (artistic), Handball (men's final)
• Georgia International Horse Park (Conyers, Georgia) – Cycling (mountain), Equestrian, Modern pentathlon (riding, running)
• Georgia State University Sports Arena – Badminton
• Georgia Tech Aquatic Center – Diving, Modern pentathlon (swimming), Swimming, Synchronized Swimming, Water Polo
• Georgia World Congress Center – Fencing, Handball, Judo, Modern pentathlon (fencing, shooting), Table Tennis, Weightlifting, Wrestling
• Golden Park (Columbus, Georgia) – Softball
• Herndon Stadium – Field hockey (final)
• Lake Lanier (Gainesville, Georgia) – Canoeing (sprint), Rowing
• Legion Field (Birmingham, Alabama) – Football
• Miami Orange Bowl (Miami, Florida) – Football
• Omni Coliseum – Volleyball (indoor final)
• Ocoee Whitewater Center (Polk County, Tennessee) – Canoeing (slalom)
• Panther Stadium – Field hockey
• RFK Stadium (Washington, D.C.) – Football
• Stone Mountain Tennis Center (Stone Mountain, Georgia) – Tennis
• Stone Mountain Park Archery Center (Stone Mountain, Georgia) – Archery
• Stone Mountain Park Velodrome (Stone Mountain, Georgia) – Cycling (track)
• Sanford Stadium (Athens, Georgia) at the University of Georgia – Football (final)
• Stegeman Coliseum (Athens, Georgia) at the University of Georgia – Gymnastics (rhythmic), Volleyball (indoor)
• Wassaw Sound (Savannah, Georgia) – Sailing
• Wolf Creek Shooting Complex – Shooting

The Olympiad's official theme, "Summon the Heroes", was written by John Williams, making it the third Olympiad at that point for which he had composed (official composer in 1984, NBC's coverage composer in 1988). The opening ceremony featured Céline Dion singing "The Power of the Dream", the theme song of the 1996 Olympics. The closing ceremony featured Gloria Estefan singing "Reach", the official theme song of the 1996 Olympics. The mascot for the Olympiad was an abstract, animated character named Izzy. In contrast to the standing tradition of mascots of national or regional significance in the city hosting the Olympiad, Izzy was an amorphous, fantasy figure. A video game featuring the Games' mascot, Izzy's Quest for the Olympic Rings, was also released.{{cite magazine |date=April 1995 |title=ProReview: Izzy's Quest for the Olympic Rings |magazine=GamePro |publisher=IDG |issue=69 |page=46}}

Atlanta's Olympic slogan "Come Celebrate Our Dream" was written by Jack Arogeti, a managing director at McCann-Erickson in Atlanta at the time. The slogan was selected from more than 5,000{{cite news|title=Atlanta Redefines Image With 'Come Celebrate Our Dream' Slogan|url=https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/19950219/2105823/atlanta-redefines-image-with-come-celebrate-our-dream-slogan|newspaper=Seattle Times|date=February 19, 1995}} submitted by the public to the Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau. Billy Payne noted that Jack "captured the spirit and our true motivation for the Olympic games."{{cite web|title=Congratulations Note from Billy Payne|date=December 30, 2012|url=http://olympicsloganinfo.wordpress.com/2012/12/30/note-from-billy-payne-to-jack-arogeti/paynearogetiolympics/}}

In 1994, African-American artist Kevin Cole was commissioned to create the Coca-Cola Centennial Olympic Mural, and the 15-story mural took two years to complete.{{Cite web|date=January 29, 2018|title=Exhibition {{!}} The Power of Color – Featuring works by Kevin Cole and Carl Joe Williams|url=https://www.blackartinamerica.com/index.php/2018/01/29/exhibition-the-power-of-color-featuring-works-by-kevin-cole-and-carl-joe-williams/|access-date=May 13, 2021|website=BLACK ART IN AMERICA|language=en-US}}

{{main|1996 Summer Olympics opening ceremony}}

The ceremony began with a 60-second countdown, which included footage from all of the previous Olympic Games at twenty-two seconds. There was then a flashback to the closing ceremony of the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, showing the then president of the IOC, Juan Antonio Samaranch, inviting the athletes to compete in Atlanta in 1996. Then, spirits ascended in the northwest corner of the stadium, each representing one of the colors in the Olympic rings. The spirits called the tribes of the world which, after mixed percussion, formed the Olympic rings while the youth of Atlanta formed the number 100. Famed film score composer John Williams wrote the official overture for the 1996 Olympics, called "Summon the Heroes"; this was his second overture for Olympic games, the first being "Olympic Fanfare and Theme" written for the 1984 Summer Olympics. Céline Dion performed David Foster's official 1996 Olympics song "The Power of the Dream", accompanied by Foster on the piano, the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and the Centennial Choir (comprising Morehouse College Glee Club, Spelman College Glee Club and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Chorus). Gladys Knight sang Georgia's official state song, "Georgia on My Mind".

There was a showcase entitled "Welcome To The World", featuring cheerleaders, Chevrolet pick-up trucks, marching bands, and steppers, which highlighted the American youth and a typical Saturday college football game in the South, including the wave commonly produced by spectators in sporting events around the world. There was another showcase entitled "Summertime" which focused on Atlanta and the Old South, emphasizing its beauty, spirit, music, history, culture, and rebirth after the American Civil War. The ceremony also featured a memorable dance tribute to the athletes and to the goddesses of victory of the ancient Greek Olympics, using silhouette imagery. The accompanying music, "The Tradition of the Games", was composed by Basil Poledouris.{{cite web|url=http://www.basil-poledouris.com/basil/biography.html|title=Basil Poledouris Biography|access-date=February 19, 2008|work=Basil Poledouris website|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080220223313/http://www.basil-poledouris.com/basil/biography.html|archive-date=February 20, 2008|url-status=dead}}

Muhammad Ali lit the Olympic cauldron and later received a replacement gold medal for his boxing victory in the 1960 Summer Olympics. For the torch ceremony, more than 10,000 Olympic torches were manufactured by the American Meter Company and electroplated by Erie Plating Company. Each torch weighed about {{convert|3.5|lb|kg}} and was made primarily of aluminum, with a Georgia pecan wood handle and gold ornamentation.Erie Times-News, "Erie Company's Olympic Work Shines", June 10, 1996, by Greg LavinePlating and Surface Finishing Magazine, August 1996 Issue

The city of Savannah, Georgia, host of the yachting events, also held your own Opening Ceremonies,held at the first day of their competions.The event was headlined by a performance by country musician Trisha Yearwood.{{Cite web|url=https://www.savannahga.gov/1900/1996-Olympics-in-Savannah|title=Remembering the Centennial Olympic Games in Savannah|publisher=City of Savannah|access-date=June 3, 2019}}

{{main|1996 Summer Olympics closing ceremony}}

File:1996 Summer Olympics medals, Atlanta History Center.jpg

The 1996 Summer Olympic program featured 271 events in 26 sports. Softball, beach volleyball and mountain biking debuted on the Olympic program, together with women's football, lightweight rowing, women's swimming, women's fencing, and a team rhythmic gymnastics event.

In women's gymnastics, Ukrainian Lilia Podkopayeva became the all-around Olympic champion. Podkopayeva also won a second gold medal in the floor exercise final and a silver on the beam – becoming the only female gymnast since Nadia Comăneci to win an individual event gold after winning the all-around title in the same Olympics. Kerri Strug of the United States women's gymnastics team vaulted with an injured ankle and landed on one foot, winning the first women's team gold medal for the US. Shannon Miller won the gold medal on the balance beam event, the first time an American gymnast had won an individual gold medal in non-boycotted Olympic games. The Spanish team won the first gold medal in the new competition of women's rhythmic group all-around. The team was formed by Estela Giménez, Marta Baldó, Nuria Cabanillas, Lorena Guréndez, Estíbaliz Martínez and Tania Lamarca.

Amy Van Dyken won four gold medals in the Olympic swimming pool, the first American woman to win four titles in a single Olympiad. Penny Heyns, swimmer of South Africa, won the gold medals in both the 100-meter and 200-meter breaststroke events. Michelle Smith of Ireland won three gold medals and a bronze in swimming. She remains her nation's most decorated Olympian. However, her victories were overshadowed by doping allegations even though she did not test positive in 1996. She received a four-year suspension in 1998 for tampering with a urine sample, though her medals and records were allowed to stand.{{cite web |url=https://www.swimmingworldmagazine.com/news/the-con-of-michelle-smith-how-the-irish-lass-cheated-the-swimming-world/ |title=The Con of Michelle Smith: How the Irish Lass Cheated the Swimming World |work=Swimming World Magazine |last=Lohn |first=John |date=July 10, 2021 |access-date=August 25, 2021 |url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210518132732/https://www.swimmingworldmagazine.com/news/the-con-of-michelle-smith-how-the-irish-lass-cheated-the-swimming-world/ |archive-date=May 18, 2021 }}{{cite news |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/sport/other-sports/sporting-controversies-irish-mist-descends-upon-michelle-smith-s-fairytale-1.4246400?mode=amp |title=Sporting Controversies: Irish mist descends upon Michelle Smith's fairytale |newspaper=The Irish Times |last=Watterson |first=John |date=May 7, 2020 |access-date=August 25, 2021 |url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200507220138/https://www.irishtimes.com/sport/other-sports/sporting-controversies-irish-mist-descends-upon-michelle-smith-s-fairytale-1.4246400?mode=amp |archive-date=May 7, 2020 }}

File:JO Atlanta 1996 - Stade.jpg

In track and field, Donovan Bailey of Canada won the men's 100 m, setting a new world record of 9.84 seconds at that time.{{cite news|last=Zurowski|first=Monica|title=From the Archives: Sprinter Donovan Bailey dazzled in Olympics 25 years ago|work=Calgary Herald|date=July 27, 2021|url=https://calgaryherald.com/news/local-news/from-the-archives-sprinter-donovan-bailey-dazzled-in-olympics-25-years-ago|access-date=March 31, 2024}} He also anchored his team's gold in the 4 × 100 m relay.

Michael Johnson won gold in both the 200 m and 400 m, setting a new world record of 19.32 seconds in the 200 m. Marie-José Pérec equaled Johnson's performance, although without a world record, by winning the rare 200 m/400 m double. Carl Lewis won his 4th long jump gold medal at the age of 35.

File:Ocoee River 1996 Olympics.jpg]]

In tennis, Andre Agassi won the gold medal, which would eventually make him the first man and second singles player overall (after his eventual wife, Steffi Graf) to win the career Golden Slam, which consists of an Olympic gold medal and victories in the singles tournaments held at professional tennis' four major events (Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and US Open).

File:JO Atlanta 1996 - Drapeau.jpg

There were a series of national firsts realized during the Games. Deon Hemmings became the first woman to win an Olympic gold medal for Jamaica and the English-speaking West Indies. Lee Lai Shan won a gold medal in sailing, the only Olympic medal that Hong Kong ever won as a British colony (1842–1997). This meant that for the only time, the colonial flag of Hong Kong was raised to the accompaniment of the British national anthem "God Save the Queen", as Hong Kong's sovereignty was later transferred to China in 1997. The U.S. women's soccer team won the gold medal in the first-ever women's football event. For the first time, Olympic medals were won by athletes from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Burundi, Czech Republic, Ecuador, Georgia, Hong Kong, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Mozambique, Slovakia, Tonga, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan. Another first in Atlanta was that this was the first Summer Olympics ever that not a single nation swept all three medals in a single event.{{cn|date=August 2024}}

{{main|World and Olympic records set at the 1996 Summer Olympics}}

{{Main|1996 Summer Olympics medal table}}

These are the top ten nations that won medals at the 1996 Games.

{{Medals table

| caption =

| host = USA

| show_limit =

| remaining_text =

| flag_template = flagIOC

| event = 1996 Summer

| team =

| gold_USA = 44 | silver_USA = 32 | bronze_USA = 25 | host_USA = yes

| gold_RUS = 26 | silver_RUS = 21 | bronze_RUS = 16

| gold_GER = 20 | silver_GER = 18 | bronze_GER = 27

| gold_CHN = 16 | silver_CHN = 22 | bronze_CHN = 12

| gold_FRA = 15 | silver_FRA = 7 | bronze_FRA = 15

| gold_ITA = 13 | silver_ITA = 10 | bronze_ITA = 12

| gold_AUS = 9 | silver_AUS = 9 | bronze_AUS = 23

| gold_CUB = 9 | silver_CUB = 8 | bronze_CUB = 8

| gold_UKR = 9 | silver_UKR = 2 | bronze_UKR = 12

| gold_KOR = 7 | silver_KOR = 15 | bronze_KOR = 5

}}

[[File:1996 Summer Olympic games countries.svg|thumb|Participants at the 1996 Summer Olympics

{{legend|#1e90ff|Participating for the first time.}}

{{legend|#00ff7f|Having previously participated.}}

{{legend|#ababab|Not participating.}}

Yellow circle is host city (Atlanta)]]

File:1996 Summer Olympic team numbers.svg

A total of 197 nations, all of the then-existing and recognized National Olympic Committees, were represented at the 1996 Games, and the combined total of athletes was about 10,318.{{cite web|url=http://www.olympic.org/uk/games/past/index_uk.asp?OLGT=1&OLGY=1996 |title=Atlanta 1996, Games of the XXVI Olympiad |website=Olympic.org |access-date=May 19, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080822100835/http://www.olympic.org/uk/games/past/index_uk.asp?OLGT=1&OLGY=1996 |archive-date=August 22, 2008 }} Twenty-four countries made their Olympic debut this year, including eleven of the ex-Soviet countries that competed as part of the Unified Team in 1992. Russia participated in the Summer Olympics separately from the other countries of the former Soviet Union for the first time since 1912 (when it was the Russian Empire). Russia had been a member of the Unified Team at the 1992 Summer Olympics together with 11 post-Soviet states. The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia competed as Yugoslavia. After missing the 1992 Summer Games Afghanistan and Cambodia returned to send delegations to Atlanta.

The 14 countries making their Olympic debut were: Azerbaijan, Burundi, Cape Verde, Comoros, Dominica, Guinea-Bissau, Macedonia, Nauru, Palestinian Authority, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, São Tomé and Príncipe, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan. The ten countries making their Summer Olympic debut (after competing at the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer) were: Armenia, Belarus, Czech Republic, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Slovakia, Ukraine and Uzbekistan. The Czech Republic and Slovakia attended the games as independent nations for the first time since the breakup of Czechoslovakia, while the rest of the nations that made their Summer Olympic debut were formerly part of the Soviet Union.{{cn|date=August 2024}}

10,339 athletes from 197 NOCs participated in the 1996 Summer Olympics.

{{Main|Centennial Olympic Park bombing}}

File:The marker at the entrance to Olympic Park in Atlanta.jpg

The 1996 Olympics were marred by the Centennial Olympic Park bombing, which occurred on July 27. Security guard Richard Jewell discovered the pipe bomb and immediately notified law enforcement, helping to evacuate as many people as possible from the area before it exploded. Although Jewell's quick actions are credited for saving many lives, the bombing killed spectator Alice Hawthorne, wounded 111 others, and caused the death of Melih Uzunyol by a heart attack. Jewell was later considered a suspect in the bombing but was never charged, and he was cleared in October 1996.

Fugitive Eric Rudolph was arrested in May 2003 and charged with the Olympic Park bombing as well as the bombings of two abortion clinics and a gay nightclub.{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/4441627.stm |title=Profile: Eric Rudolph |work=BBC News |date=April 14, 2005 |access-date=April 9, 2021}} At his trial two years later, he confessed to all charges and afterwards released a statement, saying: "the purpose of the attack on July 27th was to confound, anger and embarrass the Washington government in the eyes of the world for its abominable sanctioning of abortion on demand."{{Cite web|title=On This Day: Bomb Explodes in Atlanta's Olympic Park |url=http://www.findingdulcinea.com/news/on-this-day/July-August-08/On-this-Day--Bomb-Explodes-in-Atlanta-s-Olympic-Park.html |date=July 27, 2011 |last=Cummings |first=Denis |website=findingdulcinea.com |access-date=September 28, 2015}} He received four life sentences without parole, to be served at USP Florence ADMAX near Florence, Colorado.

File:1996 Atlanta Summer Olympics cauldron 0460.jpg]]

File:Flair monument.jpg

Preparations for the Olympics lasted more than seven years and had an economic impact of at least US$5.14 billion. Over two million visitors came to Atlanta, and approximately 3.5 billion people around the world watched at least some of the events on television. Although marred by the tragedy of the Centennial Olympic Park bombing, the Games were a financial success, due in part to TV rights contracts and sponsorships at record levels.{{cite news|url=http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2009-09-21/news/0909200352_1_centennial-olympic-games-billy-payne-atlanta-committee |title=Olympics' impact on Atlanta still subject to debate |newspaper=Chicago Tribune |date=September 21, 2009 |access-date=July 14, 2012 |first=Dahleen |last=Glanton|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120205004957/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2009-09-21/news/0909200352_1_centennial-olympic-games-billy-payne-atlanta-committee|archive-date=February 5, 2012|url-status=dead}} Atlanta also set a new record for the most tickets sold at a single Games (8.3 million), and held it until 2024.{{cite web |url=https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/greatest-attendance-at-olympic-games |title=Largest attendance at an Olympic Games |work=Guinness World Records |access-date=August 9, 2024}}

Beyond international recognition, the Games resulted in many modern infrastructure improvements. The mid-rise dormitories built for the Olympic Village, which became the first residential housing for Georgia State University (Georgia State Village), are now used by the Georgia Institute of Technology (North Avenue Apartments). As designed, the Centennial Olympic Stadium was converted into Turner Field after the Paralympics, which became the home of the Atlanta Braves Major League Baseball team from 1997 to 2016. The Braves' former home, Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium, was demolished in 1997 and the site became a parking lot for Turner Field; the Omni Coliseum was demolished the same year to make way for State Farm Arena. The city's permanent memorial to the 1996 Olympics is Centennial Olympic Park, which was built as a focal point for the Games. The park initiated a revitalization of the surrounding area and now serves as the hub for Atlanta's tourism district.

In November 2016, a commemorative plaque was unveiled for Centennial Olympic Park to honor the 20th anniversary of the Games.{{Cite news|url=https://www.ajc.com/news/new-historic-marker-for-1996-games-unveiled-centennial-olympic-park/JEqxfDJLr2cCGbufu5GCYM/|title=New historic marker for 1996 Games unveiled in Centennial Olympic Park|work=Atlanta Journal-Constitution|access-date=November 26, 2018|last=Vejnoska|first=Jill|date=November 1, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161102161227/https://www.ajc.com/news/new-historic-marker-for-1996-games-unveiled-centennial-olympic-park/JEqxfDJLr2cCGbufu5GCYM/|archive-date=November 2, 2016|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/2016/11/02/historical-marker-planted-for-1996-centennial.html|title=Historical Marker planted for 1996 Centennial Olympic Games|website=Atlanta Business Chronicle|date=November 2, 2016|access-date=November 26, 2018}}

Following the Braves' departure from Turner Field to Truist Park in 2017, Georgia State University acquired the former Olympic Stadium and surrounding parking lots. It reconfigured the stadium for a second time into Center Parc Stadium for its college football team.

The 1996 Olympic cauldron was originally built and placed at the intersection of Fulton Street and Capitol Avenue, near the Centennial Olympic Stadium. After the Paralympics, in order to make room for the stadium conversion, the Olympic cauldron was moved (except its ramp, which was demolished) to the intersection of Capitol Avenue and Fulton Street in 1997, where it has stayed since. Since Georgia State University's acquisition of the former Olympic Stadium and surrounding lots, there has been proposals and growing calls to move the Olympic cauldron to Centennial Olympic Park.{{Cite web|url=https://atlanta.curbed.com/2016/8/15/12453182/atlanta-olympic-cauldron-move-centennial-park|title=Atlanta's Olympic cauldron relocation floated five years ago; went nowhere|first=Michael|last=Kahn|date=August 15, 2016|website=Curbed Atlanta|access-date=February 15, 2024}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.infobae.com/aroundtherings/articles/2021/07/12/atlanta-cauldron-facing-possible-relocation/|title=Atlanta Cauldron Facing Possible Relocation|first=|last=|date=July 12, 2021|website=www.infobae.com|access-date=February 15, 2024}}{{Cite web|url=https://publications.risdmuseum.org/risd-grad-show-2020-interior-architecture/qianyu-liu|title=Qianyu Liu | RISD Museum Publications|website=publications.risdmuseum.org|access-date=February 15, 2024}}

The Olympic cauldron was re-lit in February 2020 for the 2020 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials.{{Cite news|url=https://www.ajc.com/lifestyles/atlanta-olympic-cauldron-lit-this-weekend-for-first-time-since-1996/7hfy3pOvtxQtOMzsVdoMDI/|title=Atlanta's Olympic Cauldron to be lit this weekend for first time since 1996|first=Courtney|last=Kueppers|newspaper=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution |access-date=February 15, 2024|via=AJC.com}}

The 1996 Olympics are the most recent edition of the Summer Olympics to be held in the United States. Los Angeles will host the 2028 Summer Olympics, 32 years after the Games were held in Atlanta.{{cite news|url=http://www.latimes.com/sports/olympics/la-sp-la-olympics-approved-20170913-story.html|title=L.A. officially awarded 2028 Olympic Games|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|last=Wharton|first=David|date=September 13, 2017|access-date=September 13, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170920014321/https://www.latimes.com/sports/olympics/la-sp-la-olympics-approved-20170913-story.html|archive-date=September 20, 2017|url-status=live}}

The 1996 Summer Olympics relied heavily on commercial sponsorship. The Atlanta-based Coca-Cola Company was the exclusive provider of soft drinks at Olympics venues, and built an attraction known as Coca-Cola Olympic City for the Games.{{cite web|last=Collins|first=Glenn|date=March 28, 1996|title=Coke's Hometown Olympics;The Company Tries the Big Blitz on Its Own Turf|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1996/03/28/business/coke-s-hometown-olympics-the-company-tries-the-big-blitz-on-its-own-turf.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm|newspaper=New York Times|access-date=November 3, 2013}} As part of a sponsorship agreement with Columbia TriStar Television, the syndicated game shows Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune both produced episodes with Olympics tie-ins (including branded memorabilia and contests) for broadcast between April and July 1996. These included a Jeopardy! international tournament, and three weeks of Wheel of Fortune episodes filmed on-location at Atlanta's Fox Theatre.{{Cite news |date=March 16, 1996 |title=Atlanta spinning 'Wheel' for sponsorship fortune |newspaper=Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/sports/1996/03/16/atlanta-spinning-wheel-for-sponsorship-fortune/3620e4ea-246b-46b4-8fb3-56e2619b105c/ |access-date=April 17, 2019}}{{Cite web |date=October 16, 1995 |title=THAT 'WHEEL OF FORTUNE' JUST KEEPS SPINNING ALONG |url=https://www.deseret.com/1995/10/16/19199078/that-wheel-of-fortune-just-keeps-spinning-along/ |access-date=April 17, 2019 |website=Deseret News |language=en}}{{cite news |last=Winship |first=Frederick M. |date=January 24, 1995 |title=Game shows join 1996 Olympic games |work=United Press International |url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1995/01/24/Game-shows-join-1996-Olympic-games/9237790923600/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200829120147/https://www.upi.com/Archives/1995/01/24/Game-shows-join-1996-Olympic-games/9237790923600/ |archive-date=August 29, 2020}}

The Games were affected by several instances of ambush marketing—in which companies attempt to use the Games as a means to promote their brand, in competition with the exclusive, category-based sponsorship rights issued by the Atlanta organizing committee and the IOC (which grants the rights to use Olympics-related terms and emblems in marketing). The Atlanta organizing committee threatened legal actions against advertisers whose marketing implied an official association with the Games. Several non-sponsors set up marketing activities in areas near venues, such as Samsung (competing with Motorola), which ambushed the Games with its "96 Expo".{{Cite news|url=https://www.sfgate.com/business/article/Samsung-s-Expo-Gives-It-Olympic-Exposure-And-3303881.php|title=Samsung's Expo Gives It Olympic Exposure / And BellSouth is putting out COWS|date=July 2, 1996|work=SFGate|access-date=November 27, 2018}} The city of Atlanta had also licensed street vendors to sell products from competitors to Olympic sponsors.{{cite web|url=http://reporter-archive.mcgill.ca/Rep/r2901/pound.htm|title=McGill's master of the rings|website=McGill Reporter|date=September 12, 1996|access-date=November 28, 2018}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/stories/2001/11/05/story3.html?page=2|title=Olympic bid smacks into $10M hurdle|website=San Francisco Business Times|last=Leuty|first=Ron|date=November 4, 2001|access-date=November 28, 2018}}

The most controversial ambush campaign was undertaken by Nike, Inc., which had begun an advertising campaign with aggressive slogans that mocked the Games' values, such as "Faster, Higher, Stronger, Badder", "If you're not here to win, you're a tourist", and "You don't win silver, you lose gold." The slogans were featured on magazine ads and billboards it purchased in Atlanta.{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1996/07/17/an-olympic-size-ambush/c6bbfed9-9515-4936-a21f-05787f493caa/?noredirect=on|title=An Olympic-Size Ambush|date=July 17, 1996|last=Heath|first=Thomas|newspaper=Washington Post|access-date=November 26, 2018}} Nike also opened a pop-up store known as the Nike Center near the Athletes' Village, which distributed Nike-branded flags to visitors (presumably to be used at events). IOC marketing director Michael Payne expressed concern for the campaign, believing that athletes could perceive them as being an insult to their accomplishments. Payne and the United States Olympic Committee's marketing director, John Krimsky, met with Howard Slusher, a subordinate of Nike co-founder Phil Knight. The meeting quickly turned aggressive, with Payne warning that the IOC could pull accreditation for Nike employees and ban the display of its logos on equipment; he also threatened to organize a press conference where silver medallists from the Games, as well as prominent Nike-sponsored athlete Michael Johnson (who attracted attention during the Games for wearing custom, gold-colored Nike shoes), would denounce the company. Faced with these threats, Nike agreed to retract most of its negative advertising and public relations stunts.{{cite web|title=Rise of the pseudo-sponsors: A history of ambush marketing|url=http://www.sportspromedia.com/notes_and_insights/rise_of_the_pseudo-sponsors_a_history_of_ambush_marketing|website=SportPro|last=Emmett|first=James|date=June 16, 2010|access-date=January 3, 2015|archive-date=January 3, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150103100600/http://www.sportspromedia.com/notes_and_insights/rise_of_the_pseudo-sponsors_a_history_of_ambush_marketing|url-status=dead}}

At the closing ceremony, IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch said in his closing speech, "Well done, Atlanta" and simply called the Games "most exceptional." This broke precedent for Samaranch, who had traditionally labeled each Games "the best Olympics ever" at each closing ceremony, a practice he resumed at the subsequent Winter Games in Nagano in 1998.{{cite web|url=http://static.espn.go.com/oly/summer00/news/2000/1001/794339.html|title=Samaranch calls these Olympics 'best ever'

|work=ESPN.com|date=October 1, 2000|access-date=March 13, 2009}}

A report prepared after the Games by European Olympic officials was critical of Atlanta's performance in several key areas, including the level of crowding in the Olympic Village, the quality of available food, the accessibility and convenience of transportation, and the Games' general atmosphere of commercialism.{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/olympic-games-maligned-atlanta-meets-targets-1352491.html |title=Olympic Games: Maligned Atlanta meets targets |date=November 15, 1996 |work=The Independent |location=United Kingdom |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120130141948/http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/olympic-games-maligned-atlanta-meets-targets-1352491.html |archive-date=January 30, 2012 |access-date=October 25, 2010 |url-status=live }} IOC vice-president Dick Pound responded to criticism of the commercialization of these Games, stating that they still adhered to a historic policy barring the display of advertising within venues, and that "you have to look to the private sector for at least a portion of the funding, and unless you're looking for handouts, you're dealing with people who are investing business assets, and they have to get a return."

In 1997, Athens was awarded the 2004 Summer Olympics. Along with addressing the shortcomings of its 1996 bid, it was lauded for its efforts to promote the traditional values of the Olympic Games, which some IOC observers felt had been lost due to the over-commercialization of the 1996 Games. However, the 2004 Games heavily relied on public funding and eventually failed to make a profit, which some have claimed contributed to the financial crisis in Greece.{{cite web|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2010/06/03/did-2004-olympics-spark-greek-financial-crisis.html|title=Did 2004 Olympics Spark Greek Financial Crisis?|date=June 3, 2010|work=CNBC|agency=Associated Press}}{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1997/09/06/sports/athens-wins-a-vote-for-tradition-and-the-2004-olympics.html?pagewanted=print|title=Athens Wins a Vote for Tradition, and the 2004 Olympics|date=September 6, 1997|first=Jere|last=Longman|newspaper=The New York Times| access-date=May 25, 2010 }}{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1997/09/07/sports/athens-can-thank-atlanta-for-2004-games.html|title=Athens Can Thank Atlanta for 2004 Games|date=September 7, 1997|first=Dave|last=Anderson|newspaper=New York Times| access-date=May 25, 2010 }}

The financial struggles faced by many later Games, such as the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin and the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, have caused some to offer more positive reappraisals of the management of the 1996 Summer Games. Former JPMorgan Chase president (and torchbearer) Kabir Sehgal noted that in contrast to many later Olympics, those of 1996 were financially viable, had a positive economic impact on the city, and most of the facilities constructed continued to be used after the Games. Sehgal contrasted the 1996 Games' "grassroots" effort backed almost entirely by private funding, with the only significant public spending coming from infrastructure associated with the Games, to modern "top-down" bids, instigated by local governments and reliant on taxpayer funding, making them unpopular among citizens who may not necessarily be interested.{{Cite web|url=http://fortune.com/2016/08/08/rio-olympics-opening-ceremony/|title=What Rio Should Have Learned From Atlanta's 1996 Summer Olympics|website=Fortune|language=en|access-date=March 20, 2019}} The 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles will rely almost entirely on private funding, with the city of Los Angeles and state of California each intending to provide up to $250 million in funding in the event of shortfalls, and the U.S. federal government providing funding solely for security.{{Cite web |last=Wharton |first=David |date=April 30, 2019 |title=Estimated cost of 2028 Los Angeles Olympics jumps to $6.9 billion |url=https://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-la-2028-olympics-budget-20190429-story.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190627122146/https://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-la-2028-olympics-budget-20190429-story.html |archive-date=June 27, 2019 |access-date=June 29, 2019 |website=Los Angeles Times}}{{Cite web |date=March 23, 2017 |title=Update on Los Angeles' Bid for the 2024 Olympics |url=https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/3622 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190601164610/https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/3622 |archive-date=June 1, 2019 |access-date=June 18, 2020 |website=California Legislative Analyst's Office}}{{cite web |date=February 2020 |title=President Trump confirms government will assist L.A. during 2028 Olympics |url=https://www.latimes.com/sports/olympics/story/2020-02-18/president-trump-2028-olympics-la-los-angeles.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220206065611/https://www.latimes.com/sports/olympics/story/2020-02-18/president-trump-2028-olympics-la-los-angeles |archive-date=February 6, 2022 |access-date=February 18, 2020 |work=Los Angeles Times}}

{{Portal|1990s|United States}}

{{IOC seealso|games=1996 Summer Olympics}}

• Use of performance-enhancing drugs in the Olympic Games – 1996 Atlanta

{{Archival records|title=Olympic/Paralympic Planning Office Records}}

{{Reflist}}

{{Commons category}}

{{external media|video1={{youTube|zoszdYy1zEE|The Atlanta 1996 Olympic Film}}}}

• {{IOC games|games=1996 Summer Olympics }}
• [https://web.archive.org/web/19961022174839/https://www.atlanta.olympic.org/ Official web site for the 1996 Olympic Games]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20080528011846/http://www.la84foundation.org/6oic/OfficialReports/1996/1996v1.pdf Official Report of the Centennial Olympic Games, Volume I: Planning and Organizing] Digital Archive from the LA84 Foundation of Los Angeles
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20080816013128/http://www.la84foundation.org/6oic/OfficialReports/1996/1996v2.pdf Official Report of the Centennial Olympic Games, Volume II: The Centennial Olympic Games] Digital Archive from the LA84 Foundation of Los Angeles
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20070927222634/http://www.la84foundation.org/6oic/OfficialReports/1996/1996v3.pdf Official Report of the Centennial Olympic Games, Volume III: The Competition Results] Digital Archive from the LA84 Foundation of Los Angeles
• 1996 program from GPB about Atlanta and the 1996 Olympic Games, [https://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-526-wm13n21s73 "Fences & Neighborhoods,"] 1996-06-07, The Walter J. Brown Media Archives & Peabody Awards Collection at the University of Georgia, American Archive of Public Broadcasting
• [https://www.ajc.com/sports/atlanta-olympic-games-anniversary/ Atlanta Summer Games 25th anniversary] Coverage from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
• {{cite web |title=Collection: Olympic/Paralympic Photograph Collection {{!}} Georgia Tech Archives Finding Aids |url=https://finding-aids.library.gatech.edu/repositories/2/resources/201 |website=finding-aids.library.gatech.edu}}
• {{cite web |title=Collection: Olympic Village Photograph Collection {{!}} Georgia Tech Archives Finding Aids |url=https://finding-aids.library.gatech.edu/repositories/2/resources/144 |website=finding-aids.library.gatech.edu}}

{{Olympic Games}}

{{Nations at the 1996 Summer Olympics}}

{{EventsAt1996SummerOlympics}}

{{1996 Summer Olympic venues}}

{{Atlanta history}}

{{Authority control}}

{{Portal bar|Olympics|United States|Georgia (U.S. state)|Sports|1990s}}

Category:Summer Olympics by year

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Category:1996 in Atlanta

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Category:July 1996 sports events in the United States

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Category:Olympic Games in Georgia (U.S. state)