1960 Summer Olympics

See also: 1960 Summer Paralympics

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The Games of the XVII Olympiad were held in 1960 in Rome, Italy. Rome had been awarded the organisation of the 1908 Summer Olympics, but had to decline and pass the honours to London. This time, they beat Lausanne, Detroit, Budapest, Brussels, Mexico City and Tokyo.

Games of the XVII Olympiad
Nations participating	83
Athletes participating	5,348 (4,738 men, 610 women)
Events	150 in 17 sports
Opening ceremonies	August 25, 1960
Closing ceremonies	September 11, 1960
Officially opened by	Giovanni Gronchi
Athlete's Oath	Adolfo Consolini
Judge's Oath:	-
Olympic Torch	Giancarlo Peris

Table of contents

1 Highlights 2 Medals awarded 3 Medal count 4 References 4.1 Internal links 4.2 External links 4.3 Bibliography

Highlights

• Danish sailer Paul Elvstrøm wins his forth straight gold medal in the Finn class, the first athlete to achieve this feat in an individual event. The only other two to have emulated his performance are Al Oerter and Carl Lewis.
• Fencer Aladar Gerevich of Hungary won his sixth consecutive gold medal in the team sabre event (1932-1936, 1948-1960).
• Wilma Rudolph, a former polio patient, wins three gold medals in the sprint events on the track.
• Abebe Bikila of Ethiopia wins the marathon bare-footed to become the first black African Olympic Champion.
• Cassius Clay, later better known as Muhammad Ali, wins boxing's light-heavyweight gold medal.
• South Africa appears in the Olympic arena for the last time under the apartheid regime. They would be allowed again only in 1992.
• Swedish canoer Gert Fredriksson wins his sixth Olympic title.
• Danish cyclist Knut Jensen collapsed during his race under the influence of amphetamines and later died in the hospital. It was the second time an athlete died in competition at the Olympics, after the death of Portuguese marathon runner Francisco Lazaro at the 1912 Summer Olympics.

Medals awarded

See the medal winners, ordered by sport:

• Athletics
• Basketball
• Boxing
• Canoeing
• Cycling
• Diving
• Equestrianism
• Fencing
• Football
• Gymnastics
• Hockey
• Modern Pentathlon
• Rowing
• Shooting
• Swimming
• Water Polo
• Weightlifting
• Wrestling
• Yachting

Medal count

Pos

Country

Gold

Silver

Bronze

Total

References

Internal links

• Olympic Games
• Summer Olympic Games
• International Olympic Committee
• WikiProject Sports Olympics
• IOC country codes

External links

• IOC Site on 1960 Summer Olympics

Bibliography

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Summer Olympics

1896 | 1900 | 1904 | 1906 | 1908 | 1912 | 1920 | 1924 | 1928 | 1932 | 1936 | 1948 | 1952 | 1956 | 1960 | 1964 | 1968 | 1972 | 1976 | 1980 | 1984 | 1988 | 1992 | 1996 | 2000 | 2004 | 2008 | 2012

Winter Olympics

1924 | 1928 | 1932 | 1936 | 1948 | 1952 | 1956 | 1960 | 1964 | 1968 | 1972 | 1976 | 1980 | 1984 | 1988 | 1992 | 1994 | 1998 | 2002 | 2006 | 2010