Germany at the Summer Olympics

Germany at the
Summer Olympics
IOC codeGER
NOCGerman Olympic Sports Confederation
Websitewww.dosb.de (in German, English, and French)
Medals
Gold
450
Silver
470
Bronze
499
Total
1,419
Summer Olympics appearances ()
Other related appearances
1906 Intercalated Games

––––

 Saar (1952)
 United Team of Germany (1956–1964)
 East Germany (1968–1988)
 West Germany (1968–1988)

Athletes from Germany (GER) have appeared in 27 of the 30 Summer Olympic Games, having competed in all Games except[1] those of 1920, 1924 and 1948, when they were not permitted to do so. Germany has hosted the Summer Olympic Games twice; the 1936 Games in Berlin, and the 1972 Games in Munich.

The nation appeared 15 times as a single country (IOC code GER), before World War II and again after German reunification in 1990. Three times, from 1956 to 1964, German athletes from the separate states in West and East competed as a United Team of Germany, which is currently listed by the IOC as EUA, not GER.

Due to partition under occupation that resulted in three (until 1957) post-war German states, two concurrent Olympic teams with German athletes appeared on five occasions, in 1952, from 1968 to 1976, and in 1988. The all-time results of German athletes are thus divided among the designations GER, EUA, FRG, GDR and SAA (the Saarland, which only took part in the 1952 Summer Games and won no medals).

Including the Summer Games of 2020, German athletes have won 1384 medals: 438 gold, 456 silver and 490 bronze. The IOC currently splits these results among four codes, even though only the German Democratic Republic (East Germany; 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.

Timeline of Germany at the Summer Olympics

1896–1912

1896–1912

Germany entered all Olympic Games starting in 1896, even though the relations between the German Empire under Kaiser Wilhelm II, and the French Third Republic where Pierre de Coubertin revived Olympic games and held the 1900 Summer Olympics, were strained following the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71. The country's overall medal ranks varied from second through seventh.

The worst result, seventh, occurred in the 1900 Paris Olympics. The German gymnasts were judged no better than 53rd in the single gymnastic contest organized by the French, behind dozens of Frenchmen, who occupied the first 18 places and thus won all three medals. In contrast, the Gymnastics at the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens had seen eight contests, with Germans scoring five gold, three silver and two bronze medals.

The anticipated 1916 Summer Olympics, which were to be officially known as the Games of the VI Olympiad, were to have been held in Germany's capital, Berlin. At the outbreak of World War I in 1914, organization continued, as no one foresaw the war dragging on for four years. Eventually, though, the games were canceled.

1920–1948

1928–1932

After World War I, the German Empire became a republic informally known as Weimar Republic, a change which was reflected in a new flag of Germany that in fact was older than the former one, dating back to early 19th century democratic movements. In the Paris Peace Conference, the outbreak of the war was blamed on Germany and other Central Powers allies. These nations, which by now had new governments, were banned from the 1920 Summer Olympics. While all other banned nations were invited again for the 1924 Summer Olympics, held for the second time in Pierre de Coubertin's home town of Paris, the ban on Germany was not lifted until 1925. This was likely related to French Occupation of the Ruhr and the Rheinland between 1923 and 1925.

After 16 years of absence, a new generation of German athletes returned in the 1928 Summer Olympics, scoring second overall. Four years later, the worldwide Great Depression prevented many athletes from competing in the 1932 Games in Los Angeles. Winning only three gold medals, the German team was ranked ninth, though it did finish tied in silver medals, with 12.

1936

In the spring of 1931 the 1936 Summer Olympics were awarded to Berlin, 20 years later than originally planned. From 1933 onwards, the Nazi Party ruled Germany, a change being marked by the use of the Nazi flag. In the games, the 348 German athletes not only outnumbered the 310 Americans, but outscored them for the first time in the medal count in which Germany ranked first. Also, German gymnasts Konrad Frey and Alfred Schwarzmann won the most medals, with six and five in total, of which three each were gold, while American Jesse Owens had won four gold medals himself. Leni Riefenstahl documented the games in the film Olympia.

The 1940 Summer Olympics as well as the 1944 Summer Olympics were canceled due to World War II. For the 1948 Summer Olympics, with the war a recent memory, Germany and Japan were not invited.

Separate German teams 1952–1988

1952–1956
since 1972

A United Team of Germany with athletes from two states appeared three times at the Olympic games from 1956 to 1964. The IOC currently does not attribute these results to Germany (GER), but lists them separately as the Equipe Unifiée Allemande (EUA).

In the 1952 Games, only athletes from West Germany and the Saar Protectorate took part. The former represented the Federal Republic of Germany (GER), which as the only independent democratic state, covering the largest part of Germany, claimed exclusive mandate to represent the entire country. Athletes from the Saar Protectorate (SAA) competed as a separate team, as the French-occupied region would not join the Federal Republic of Germany until 1955.

West Germany used the code GER at the Games from 1968 to 1976, although its athletes' participation is now coded as FRG by the IOC, a code introduced in 1980.

Athletes from the Soviet-occupied German Democratic Republic (GDR) appeared in a separate team after the United Team effort was discontinued. In five Games, from 1968 to 1980 and again in 1988, they represented the GDR before the East German states joined the Federal Republic of Germany in 1990, and the GDR ceased to exist.

Since 1990, the enlarged Federal Republic of Germany has been simply called Germany (GER). West Germany's six Olympic teams (from 1952, 1968, 1972, 1976, 1984 and 1988) are still listed by the IOC under FRG, though, and not attributed to GER.

In the 1980s, each of the two states participated in one of the multinational boycotts of Summer Games. Many Western countries, including the Federal Republic of Germany, boycotted the Moscow Games of 1980 due to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan the year before. In return, 14 Eastern Bloc states, including the GDR, boycotted the Los Angeles Games in 1984. Thus, only one German team was present in each of these two Olympics.

FRG (West Germany)

The Federal Republic of Germany (FRG), often called West Germany during the Cold War, was founded in 1949 as the largest of the three German states formed under occupation after the division of Germany following World War II. The West German NOC continued the tradition of the German NOC that had joined the IOC in 1895, and continued to represent the Germany that was enlarged after the Saar Protectorate (SAA) joined the Federal Republic of Germany in 1956, and after the states of the former German Democratic Republic (GDR) (East Germany) had joined in the process of German reunification in 1990.

German teams competed in the 1952 Summer Olympics under the designations of GER and SAA. In the Games of 1956, 1960 and 1964, German athletes competed as a United Team of Germany (EUA), but 1968 until the end of the Cold War, the two states sent independent teams designated as West and East Germany, until the separate East German state ceased to exist.

United Team of Germany 1956–1964

1960–1968

After three German states had been founded in Germany under occupation after World War II, athletes from the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG, West Germany) and the German Democratic Republic (GDR, East Germany) competed together as the United Team of Germany (EUA for French: Équipe unifiée d'Allemagne, German: Gesamtdeutsche Mannschaft) in the 1956, 1960, and 1964 Winter and Summer Olympics.

Prior to that, German athletes from West Germany and the French-occupied Saar Protectorate took part in the 1952 Summer Olympics organized in different teams designated as GER and SAA. The Saar Protectorate joined the Federal Republic after 1955, while the East German authorities, which had not taken part in the 1952 Games, agreed in 1956 to let their athletes compete in a united team that used the black-red-gold tricolour, but with additional Olympic rings in white placed upon the red middle stripe, as East German politicians were eager not to compete under the traditional German flag used both by West Germany and even themselves. Only in 1959, the GDR added socialist symbols to create a distinct Flag of East Germany. As the use of the Deutschlandlied, dating back to 1841 and 1797, of the recently created East German anthem, or of possible combinations was also rejected, Beethoven's melody to Schiller's Ode an die Freude (Ode to Joy) was played for winning German athletes as a compromise in lieu of a national anthem.

During the Games of 1956, 1960 and 1964 the traditional abbreviation GER for Germany was used, or rather the equivalents in the language of the host country. In Innsbruck in 1964, the Austrian officials used the international license plate code of D for Deutschland (Germany) for the country. The IOC code currently uses EUA (from the official French-language IOC designation, Equipe Unifiée Allemande) and applies this in hindsight for the United German Team. No reasoning is given, it may be done to allow for the political circumstances during the German divide between 1949 and 1990, and the involvement of two National Olympic Committees rather than only one.

Despite initially calling for a "united Germany" in the East German anthem, the socialist East German government intensified its separation in Germany, with the erection of the Berlin Wall in August 1961 obstructing travel within Germany even more. The travel of GDR athletes, such as to contests and training sites in the Alps, was limited due to fear of Republikflucht.

As a result of this development, in the 1968 Winter and Summer Olympics, German athletes competed as separate West and East teams, while still using the compromise flag and Beethoven anthem that year. The French organizers of the Grenoble Games used the codes ALL (Allemagne, Germany) and ADE (Allemagne de l'Est, East Germany), which roughly correspond to the IOC codes of GER and GDR.

1968–1988

The separation was completed at the 1972 Winter and Summer Olympics (the latter was hosted by West Germany), when the two countries used separate flags and anthems. This continued until the German Reunification of 1990 where the German Democratic Republic became part of the Federal Republic of Germany.

Overview of Olympic participation

Combined medals at the Summer Olympics (including all German NOCs)

status after the 2024 Olympics
Summer Games
Team (IOC code)

No.

   Germany (GER) 18 213 220 255 688
 Saar (SAA) 1 0 0 0 0
 United Team of Germany (EUA) 3 28 54 36 118
 East Germany (GDR) 5 153 129 127 409
 West Germany (FRG) 5 56 67 81 204
Total 27 450 470 499 1,419
Combined IOC codes No. Games 1st place, gold medalist(s) 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Combined total
 Germany (GER)[2] 18 213 220 255 688
 Germany (GER) (EUA) 21 241 274 291 806
 Germany (GER) (EUA) (FRG) 26 297 341 372 1,010
 Germany (GER) (EUA) (FRG) (GDR)[3] 31[4] 450 470 499 1,419

All German NOCs at the Summer Olympics

  Host country

Medals by sport (GER 1896-1936, 1952, 1992-current )

  Leading in that sport
SportGoldSilverBronzeTotal
Canoeing36212683
Equestrian32151461
Rowing24161555
Athletics20303787
Swimming15203267
Cycling15171749
Gymnastics15121441
Shooting109524
Weightlifting67720
Wrestling5121128
Fencing57921
Boxing491124
Field hockey43411
Tennis36211
Sailing35715
Judo341522
Diving281323
Beach volleyball2114
Triathlon2103
Modern pentathlon2013
Handball1214
Water polo1203
Football1146
3x3 basketball1001
Table tennis0459
Archery0325
Taekwondo0112
Golf0101
Rugby0101
Totals (29 entries)212218254684

These totals do not include the one gold and one silver medal won by Germany in figure skating at the 1908 Summer Olympics.

Best results in non-medaling sports:

Medals by sport (EUA 1956-1964)

SportGoldSilverBronzeTotal
Equestrian55414
Athletics418830
Canoeing45211
Rowing4419
Diving3104
Swimming15612
Wrestling1539
Cycling1427
Boxing1326
Fencing1124
Gymnastics1113
Sailing1113
Shooting1012
Judo0112
Field hockey0011
Football0011
Totals (16 entries)285436118

Medals by sport (GDR 1968-1988)

SportGoldSilverBronzeTotal
Athletics383635109
Swimming38322292
Rowing337848
Canoeing147930
Gymnastics6131736
Cycling66416
Boxing52613
Shooting38516
Wrestling2327
Diving2237
Sailing2226
Weightlifting14611
Judo1269
Football1113
Handball1113
Volleyball0202
Fencing0101
Totals (17 entries)153129127409

Medals by sport (FRG 1968-1988)

SportGoldSilverBronzeTotal
Athletics12141743
Equestrian115925
Fencing78116
Cycling45514
Rowing44614
Shooting44311
Swimming351422
Canoeing26311
Sailing2237
Weightlifting2237
Wrestling1449
Judo1438
Field hockey1304
Boxing1056
Tennis1012
Handball0101
Gymnastics0022
Football0011
Water polo0011
Totals (19 entries)566781204

Medalists

Archery

Athletics

Basketball

Medal Name Games Sport Event
 Gold Svenja Brunckhorst
Sonja Greinacher
Elisa Mevius
Marie Reichert
France 2024 Paris Basketball Women's 3x3 tournament

Boxing

Beach volleyball

Canoeing

Cycling

Diving

Equestrian

Fencing

Field Hockey

Figure Skating

Medal Name Games Sport Event
 Gold Anna Hübler
Heinrich Burger
United Kingdom 1908 London Figure Skating Pairs
 Silver Elsa Rendschmidt United Kingdom 1908 London Figure Skating Ladies' Singles

Football

Golf

Medal Name Games Sport Event
 Silver Esther Henseleit France 2024 Paris Golf Women's individual

Gymnastics

Handball

Judo

Modern pentathlon

Medal Name Games Sport Event
 Bronze Helmuth Kahl Netherlands 1928 Amsterdam Modern pentathlon Men's individual
 Gold Gotthard Handrick Germany 1936 Berlin Modern pentathlon Men's individual
 Gold Lena Schöneborn China 2008 Beijing Modern pentathlon Women's individual

Rowing

Rugby

Medal Name Games Sport Event
 Silver Hermann Kreuzer
Arnold Landvoigt
Heinrich Reitz
Jacob Herrmann
Erich Ludwig
Hugo Betting
August Schmierer
Fritz Muller
Adolf Stockhausen
Hans Latscha
Willy Hofmeister
Georg Wenderoth
Eduard Poppe
Richard Ludwig
Albert Amrhein
France 1900 Paris Rugby Men's 15 Rugby

Sailing

Shooting

Swimming

Men

Women

Table tennis

Taekwondo

Medal Name Games Sport Event
 Silver Faissal Ebnoutalib Australia 2000 Sydney Taekwondo Men's middleweight
 Bronze Helena Fromm United Kingdom 2012 London Taekwondo Women's middleweight

Tennis

Triathlon

Medal Name Games Sport Event
 Silver Stephan Vuckovic Australia 2000 Sydney Triathlon Men's individual
 Gold Jan Frodeno China 2008 Beijing Triathlon Men's individual
 Gold Tim Hellwig
Lisa Tertsch
Lasse Lührs
Laura Lindemann
France 2024 Paris Triathlon Mixed relay

Water Polo

Weightlifting

Wrestling

Summary by sport

Aquatics

Artistic swimming

Games Swimmers Events Gold Silver Bronze Total
1992 Barcelona 2 2/2 0 0 0 0
Total 2 2/17 0 0 0 0

Diving

Games Athletes Events Gold Silver Bronze Total
1904 St. Louis 3 1/2 0 1 0 1
1908 London 5 2/2 1 1 1 3
1912 Stockholm 4 3/4 1 2 1 4
1928 Amsterdam 9 4/4 0 0 0 0
1932 Los Angeles 2 2/4 0 0 0 0
1936 Berlin 11 4/4 0 0 2 2
1952 Helsinki 4 2/4 0 0 1 1
1992 Barcelona 7 4/4 0 0 1 1
1996 Atlanta 7 4/4 0 2 0 2
2000 Sydney 8 6/8 0 0 2 2
2004 Athens 10 7/8 0 1 0 1
2008 Beijing 9 8/8 0 1 1 2
2012 London 8 6/8 0 0 0 0
2016 Rio de Janeiro 8 7/8 0 0 1 1
2020 Tokyo 9 7/8 0 0 2 2
2024 Paris 9 6/8 0 0 0 0
Total 73/102 2 8 12 22

Swimming

Germany first competed in swimming at 1900 Games, with six swimmers in five events, winning two gold medals.

Games Swimmers Events Gold Silver Bronze Total
1900 Paris 6 5/7 2 0 0 2
1904 St. Louis 4 5/9 4 2 2 8
1908 London 5 2/6 1 0 0 1
1912 Stockholm 17 8/9 2 3 2 7
1928 Amsterdam 19 10/11 1 1 1 3
1932 Los Angeles 2 2/11 0 0 0 0
1936 Berlin 24 10/11 0 3 1 4
1952 Helsinki 9 7/11 0 0 1 1
1992 Barcelona 34 31/31 1 3 7 11
1996 Atlanta 28 30/32 0 5 7 12
2000 Sydney 35 32/32 0 0 3 3
2004 Athens 35 29/32 0 1 4 5
2008 Beijing 25 28/34 2 0 1 3
2012 London 30 24/34 0 1 0 1
2016 Rio de Janeiro 29 26/34 0 0 0 0
2020 Tokyo 31 29/37 1 0 2 3
2024 Paris 25 25/37 1 1 1 3
Total 15 20 32 67

Water polo

Games Swimmers Events Gold Silver Bronze Total
1900 Paris 7 1/1 0 0 0 0
1928 Amsterdam 8 1/1 1 0 0 1
1932 Los Angeles 8 1/1 0 1 0 1
1936 Berlin 11 1/1 0 1 0 1
1952 Helsinki 9 1/1 0 0 0 0
1992 Barcelona 12 1/1 0 0 0 0
1996 Atlanta 13 1/1 0 0 0 0
2004 Athens 13 1/2 0 0 0 0
2008 Beijing 12 1/2 0 0 0 0
Total 9/27 1 2 0 3

Archery

Games Archers Events Gold Silver Bronze Total
1992 Barcelona 6 4/4 0 0 0 0
1996 Atlanta 3 2/4 0 1 0 1
2000 Sydney 4 3/4 0 0 1 1
2004 Athens 4 3/4 0 0 0 0
2008 Beijing 2 2/4 0 0 0 0
2012 London 2 2/4 0 0 0 0
2016 Rio de Janeiro 2 2/4 0 1 0 1
2020 Tokyo 4 4/5 0 0 1 1
2024 Paris 4 4/5 0 1 0 1
Total 20 26/54 0 3 2 5

Athletics

Badminton

Basketball

Games Athletes Events Gold Silver Bronze Total
1936 Berlin 10 1/1 0 0 0 0
1992 Barcelona 12 1/2 0 0 0 0
2008 Beijing 12 1/2 0 0 0 0
2020 Tokyo 12 1/4 0 0 0 0
2024 Paris 28 3/4 1 0 0 1
Total 67 7/24 1 0 0 1

Beach volleyball

Boxing

Canoeing

Cycling

Germany competed in all six of the cycling events at the first Games in 1896, earning a silver medal.

Equestrian

Germany competed in equestrian at the first Games in which the sport was held, in Paris 1900. One rider competed in the mail coach event, winning no medals.

Fencing

Germany first competed in fencing in 1900, with a single sabreur who did not advance past the first round.

Football

Golf

Gymnastics

Artistic Gymnastics

Germany competed in all eight of the gymnastics events at the first Games in 1896, winning five of them and medaling in all eight.

Rhythmic Gymnastics

Trampoline

Handball

Games Rowers Events Gold Silver Bronze Total
1936 Berlin 22 1/1 1 0 0 1
1992 Barcelona 32 2/2 0 0 0 0
1996 Atlanta 30 2/2 0 0 0 0
2000 Sydney 15 1/2 0 0 0 0
2004 Athens 15 1/2 0 1 0 1
2008 Beijing 29 2/2 0 0 0 0
2016 Rio de Janeiro 15 1/2 0 0 1 1
2020 Tokyo 14 1/2 0 0 0 0
2024 Paris 28 2/2 0 1 0 1
Total 157 13/19 1 2 1 4

Rowing

Germany was among the nations that competed at the first Olympic rowing regatta in 1900, with three boats in the men's coxed four (all of which earned medals in an unusual event that awarded two full sets of medals) and one in the men's eight.

Games Rowers Events Gold Silver Bronze Total
1900 Paris 21 2/4 1 0 2 3
Total 23 14 14 51

Rugby

Germany competed in the inaugural Olympic rugby union contest in 1900, taking joint silver with Great Britain behind winners France. Germany did not compete in any of the other rugby union competitions (in 1908, 1920, or 1924) and was not among the nations competing in the rugby sevens in 2016.

Games Players Events Gold Silver Bronze Total
1900 Paris 15 1/1 0 1 0 1
Total 0 1 0 1

Sailing

Germany competed in the first Olympic sailing competitions in 1900, taking a gold and a silver medal.

Games Rowers Events Gold Silver Bronze Total
1900 Paris 4 3/13 1 1 0 2
Total 3 4 4 11

Tennis

Germany first competed in tennis at the inaugural 1896 Games, with one player competing in men's singles and, as part of a mixed team, in men's doubles. Friedrich Traun lost to John Boland in the first round of the singles, but paired with him to win the gold in the doubles. The mixed team medal is not credit to Germany.

Games Athletes Events Gold Silver Bronze Total
1896 Athens 1 2[5]/2 0 0 0 0[6]
Total 2 6 2 10[6]

Weightlifting

Germany first competed in weightlifting at the inaugural 1896 Games, with one lifter competing in one event.

Games Lifters Events Gold Silver Bronze Total
1896 Athens 1 1/2 0 0 0 0
Total 6 7 7 20

Wrestling

Germany first competed in wrestling at the inaugural 1896 Games, with one wrestler (actually a gymnast, Carl Schuhmann) competing in the open weight class event. He won the gold medal.

Games Wrestlers Events Gold Silver Bronze Total
1896 Athens 1 1/1 1 0 0 1
Total 4 12 9 25

References

  1. ^ In the boycotts of 1980 and 1984, only one of two teams remained absent, with the East Germans being the only Germans present in Moscow 1980
  2. ^ International Olympic Committee: Germany
  3. ^ BBC: Timeline: Olympic Powers
  4. ^ Counting the four Summer Games where both East Germany (GDR) and West Germany (FRG) competed as two appearances.
  5. ^ Includes participation as part of a mixed doubles team.
  6. ^ a b Does not include a gold medal won in 1896 by a mixed team that included a German player.
  • "Olympic Medal Winners". International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 2006-12-09.
  • (in German) Chronology of Germany at the Olympics