1920 Summer Olympics
The 1920 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the VII Olympiad, were celebrated in 1920 in Antwerp, Belgium. The 1920 Games were awarded to Antwerp to honor the suffering that had been inflicted on the Belgian people during the war.[1] The initial choice, was the Hungarian capital Budapest.
The 1916 Summer Olympics, to be held in the German Empire capital Berlin had been canceled. The Aftermath of World War I and the Paris Peace Conference, 1919 affected the Olympic Games not only due to new states being created, but also by sanctions against the nations that lost the war and were blamed for starting it.
Budapest had initially won to host the Games over Amsterdam and Lyon, but as the Austro-Hungarian Empire had been a German ally in the First World War, the Games were transferred in April 1919. Hungary, Germany, Austria, Bulgaria and Turkey were also banned from the Games. Germany remained banned until 1925, and instead hosted a series of games called Deutsche Kampfspiele, starting with the Winter edition of 1922 (that predated the first Winter Olympics).
Highlights
- These Olympics were the first in which the Olympic Oath was uttered, the first in which doves were released to symbolize peace, and was the first time the Olympic Flag was flown.
- The USA won 41 Gold, 27 Silver, and 27 Bronze medals, the most won by any of the 29 nations attending. Sweden, Great Britain, Finland and Belgium round out the top 5 medal winning nations.
- The Games also featured a week of winter sports, with figure skating and ice hockey making their Olympic debut.
- Duke Kahanamoku retained the 100 m swimming title he won before the war.
- Nedo Nadi won 5 gold medals in the fencing events.
- At the age of 72, Sweden's running deer double-shot event champion Oscar Swahn won in the team event to become the oldest Olympic champion ever.
- 23 year old Paavo Nurmi won the 10,000 m and 8,000 m cross country, took another gold in team cross country, and a silver in 5,000 m run. His contributions for Finland broke the U.S. dominance record in track and field with 9 medals.
- In a unique moment in Olympic history, the 12 foot dinghy event in sailing was held in two different countries. The final two races in the event were held in the Netherlands as the only two competitors in the event were Dutch.[2]
Medals awarded
Demonstration sport
Participating nations
A total of 29 nations participated in the Antwerp Games, only one more than in 1912, as Germany, Austria, Hungary, Bulgaria and Turkey were not invited, having lost World War I. From the newly created European states, only Estonia took part, and Czechoslovakia, succeeding Bohemia which had sent athletes prior to World War I as part of the Austrian Empire. Yugoslavia, Brazil, Monaco competed as nations at the Olympic Games for the first time. New Zealand, which had competed as part of a combined team with Australia in 1908 and 1912, competed on its own for the first time.
Medal count
These are the top ten nations that won medals at the 1920 Games.
| 1 |  United States |
41 | 27 | 27 | 95 |
| 2 |  Sweden |
19 | 20 | 25 | 64 |
| 3 |  Great Britain |
15 | 15 | 13 | 43 |
| 4 |  Finland |
15 | 10 | 9 | 34 |
| 5 |  Belgium (host nation) |
14 | 11 | 11 | 36 |
| 6 |  Norway |
13 | 9 | 9 | 31 |
| 7 |  Italy |
13 | 5 | 5 | 23 |
| 8 |  France |
9 | 19 | 13 | 41 |
| 9 |  Netherlands |
4 | 2 | 5 | 11 |
| 10 |  Denmark |
3 | 9 | 1 | 13 |
See also
External links
