The Summer Olympic Games, also known as the Summer Olympics or the Games of the Olympiad, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inaugural Games took place in 1896 in Athens, Greece, and the most recent was held in 2024 in Paris, France. This was the first international multi-sport event of its kind, organized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) founded by Pierre de Coubertin. The tradition of awarding medals began in 1904; in each Olympic event, gold medals are awarded for first place, silver medals for second place, and bronze medals for third place. The Winter Olympic Games were created out of the success of the Summer Olympic Games, which are regarded as the largest and most prestigious multi-sport international event in the world.
The 1956 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XVI Olympiad and officially branded as Melbourne 1956, were an international multi-sport event held in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, from 22 November to 8 December 1956, with the exception of the equestrian events, which were held in Stockholm, Sweden, in June 1956.
The modern pentathlon at the 1980 Summer Olympics was represented by two events : Individual competition and Team competition. As usual in Olympic modern pentathlon one competition was held and each competitor's score was included to the Individual competition event results table and was also added to his teammates' scores to be included to the Team competition event results table. This competition consisted of 5 disciplines which were held in 4 venues:
- Equestrian held on July 20 at the Trade Unions Equestrian Centre situated in the Bitsa forest park
- Fencing held on July 21 at the Sports Palace of the Central Sports Club of the Army
- Shooting held on July 22 at the Dynamo Shooting Range in Mytishchi
- Swimming held on July 23 at the Swimming Pool of the Olympiski Sports Complex
- Cross-country held on July 24 at the Trade Unions Equestrian Centre
The equestrian events at the 1928 Summer Olympics included dressage, eventing, and show jumping. All three disciplines had both individual and team competitions. The competitions were held from 8 to 12 August 1928. Teams were now fielded by three riders, rather than four, the purpose being to reduce pressure on national federations to find that many riders in order to compete for team medals. Riders had to be considered amateurs, which was defined as either an actively serving professional officer, or as a gentleman rider as defined by the rules of that rider's national governing body. A total of 113 entries were present from 20 nations: Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the USA. This was the first appearance for Hungary, Japan and Argentina in equestrian events at an Olympics. Additionally, after being shut out from two Olympic competitions, Germany also returned to the Games to win a few medals in the equestrian events.
The equestrian events at the 1956 Summer Olympics were held in Stockholm due to the Australian quarantine regulations and included dressage, eventing, and show jumping. All three disciplines had both individual and team competitions. The competitions were held from 11 to 17 June 1956 at Stockholm Olympic Stadium. There were 158 entries from 29 National Olympic Committees: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Canada, Denmark, Egypt, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Soviet Union, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, USA and Venezuela. This would be the first appearance for Australia, Cambodia and Venezuela in equestrian events.
The equestrian events at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich included show jumping, dressage and eventing. All three disciplines had both individual and team competitions. The equestrian competitions were held at 3 sites: an existing equestrian facility at Riem for the individual show jumping and eventing competitions, the Olympic Stadium in Munich for the Nations Cup, and Nymphenburg, a Baroque palace garden, for the sold-out dressage. 179 entries, including 31 women, competed from 27 countries: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bolivia, Bulgaria, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Denmark, the German Democratic Republic (GDR), France, the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG), Great Britain, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, the Soviet Union, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United States. The youngest participant was Kurt Maeder from Switzerland at 19 years old, while the oldest rider was Lorna Johnstone from Great Britain at 70 years old.
Venezuela competed at the 1956 Summer Olympics held in Melbourne, Australia, and in the equestrian events held in Stockholm, Sweden. Twenty-two competitors, all men, were selected by the Venezuelan Olympic Committee to take part in sixteen events across five sports. The delegation featured no female competitors, for the second time, and won no medals. While most of the Venezuelan athletes did not advance past the qualifying rounds of their sports, there were some good placings in the shooting, with Germán Briceño and Carlos Monteverde finishing in the top 10 of their events.
The modern pentathlon at the 1976 Summer Olympics was represented by two events : Individual competition and Team competition. As usual in Olympic modern pentathlon, one competition was held and each competitor's score was included to the Individual competition event results table and was also added to his teammates' scores to be included to the Team competition event results table. This competition consisted of 5 disciplines:
Equestrian sports were first included in the Olympic Games in the Summer Olympics of 1900 in Paris. They were again included in 1912, and have been included in every subsequent edition of the Games. Currently, the Olympic equestrian disciplines are dressage, eventing, and show jumping. In each discipline, both individual and team medals are awarded. Since the XV Olympiad in Helsinki in 1952, women and men compete on equal terms.
Spain first participated at the Olympic Games in 1900, and has sent athletes to compete in most Summer Olympic Games since 1920. Spain has also participated in every Winter Olympic Games since 1936. Its team is organised by the Spanish Olympic Committee created in 1924.
James William George Roycroft, OBE was an Australian Olympic equestrian champion. He grew up on a dairy farm and learnt to ride horses there. After serving in the army in World War II, he moved with his family to a soldier's block in western Victoria near Camperdown, where he raised his three sons, all of whom went on to compete alongside their father in the Olympics. At his first Olympics, the 1960 Rome Games, he played a key role on the final day of the team three-day event, despite being thrown off his horse the day before, allowing Australia to win the gold medal in the competition. He went on to compete in four more Olympics from 1964 to 1976, winning bronze medals in team eventing at the 1968 Mexico City and 1976 Montreal Games. He later served as coach of the Australian eventing team.
Gillian Rolton was an Australian Olympic equestrian champion. She competed in two Olympic Games, the 1992 Barcelona Games and 1996 Atlanta Games, winning a gold medal in team eventing both times on her horse, Peppermint Grove. At the 1996 Atlanta Games, she broke her collarbone and ribs, but remounted and completed the course. She was one of four Australians to win multiple equestrian Olympic gold medals.
Egypt boycotted the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia, because of the British and French involvement in the Suez Crisis. The equestrian events for the 1956 Games, however, were held in Stockholm, Sweden, five months earlier, due to Australian quarantine regulations, and three Egyptian riders competed in the show jumping events. None of the athletes won individual medals and they failed to place in the team competition due to one rider's failure to finish the individual tournament.
Switzerland boycotted the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia because of the participation of the Soviet Union, who had invaded Hungary to crush the Hungarian Revolution of 1956. However, the equestrian events were held in Stockholm, Sweden earlier in the year because of the Australian quarantine laws. The Swiss team competed in Stockholm, winning a bronze medal.
The Netherlands boycotted the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia because of the participation of the Soviet Union, who invaded Hungary during the USSR's invasion of Hungary. However, the equestrian events for the 1956 Games were held in Stockholm, Sweden five months earlier, and one Dutch rider competed.
Spain boycotted the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia because of the participation of the Soviet Union, who invaded Hungary during the USSR's invasion of Hungary. However, the equestrian events for the 1956 Games were held in Stockholm, Sweden five months earlier, and six Spanish riders competed.
Egypt first participated at the Olympic Games in 1912, and has sent athletes to compete in most editions of the Summer Olympic since then. Along with Cambodia, Iraq and Lebanon, Egypt boycotted the 1956 Summer Olympics in protest of the tripartite Israeli, British, and French invasion of Egypt in the Suez War. However, the equestrian events for the 1956 Games were held in Stockholm, Sweden five months earlier, and three Egyptian riders competed there. Egypt withdrew from the 1976 Summer Olympics after three days of competition to join the broad African boycott in response to the participation of New Zealand, which still had sporting links with apartheid South Africa. Egypt also participated in the American-led boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics in protest of the Soviet Union's invasion of Afghanistan. Egypt's participation at the Winter Olympic Games was a single alpine skier in 1984.
Cambodia has competed in ten Summer Olympic Games. They have never won an Olympic medal and have not appeared in the Winter Olympic Games.
The Sydney International Equestrian Centre is the facility which was used to host equestrian events during the 2000 Summer Olympics and 2000 Summer Paralympics. The centre is located 45 kilometres from Sydney's business district and the harbour at Saxony Road, Horsley Park. Construction began in 1997, was finished in 1999 and it successfully hosted Olympic and Paralympic equestrian events in 2000.
