Summer sports: overview

Summer Olympics

The world's biggest sporting festival gathers over 10,000 athletes from around 200 nations.

💡 Did you know? The first modern Games were held in 1896 in Athens.

four years

Every four years: this cycle, called an „Olympiad“, goes back to the ancient games.

💡 Did you know? Since 1994 the Summer and Winter Games alternate every two years.

Athletics

Running, jumping, throwing: athletics is the heart of the Summer Games and the most medal-rich discipline.

💡 Did you know? Athletics is regarded as the 'queen of the Summer Games'.

Swimming

Freestyle, breast, back and butterfly: the pool awards almost as many medals as athletics.

💡 Did you know? Swimming awards a particularly large number of Olympic medals.

Gymnastics

On bars, beam, high bar and floor, difficulty and execution count: one of the most crowd-pleasing sports.

💡 Did you know? Gymnastics is one of the crowd favourites of the Summer Games.

Rowing

Over 2,000 m with a sliding seat: one of the oldest Olympic disciplines and a pure endurance sport.

💡 Did you know? Rowing is contested on calm water over 2000 metres.

Fencing

With foil, épée or sabre: fencing has featured at every Summer Olympics since 1896.

💡 Did you know? Fencing has been part of the Games since the first modern edition in 1896.

Archery

From 70 metres archers aim at a target whose centre is just 12.2 cm across.

💡 Did you know? In Olympic archery the target is 70 metres away.

Equestrian

Equestrian is the only sport where human and animal compete as a team and men and women go head to head.

💡 Did you know? In equestrian sport men and women compete directly against each other.

Modern pentathlon

Fencing, swimming, riding, running and shooting in one day: devised by Coubertin as a test of the versatile soldier. From Los Angeles 2028 an obstacle course replaces the riding.

💡 Did you know? The modern pentathlon combines five summer disciplines in one event.