At the 2012 Summer Games in London, Great Britain equaled its tally for all previous games combined, winning 4 medals to bring their all-time total to eight. Does not include gold medal won as part of a mixed team. Alongside five time gold medalist Redgrave, Grainger, Ainslie, Wiggins and Jack Beresford are the only British Olympians to win medals of any colour in five successive Games. Also, Great Britain is not a member of FIFA and its athletes participate in international football competitions as members of the national teams of the home nations (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland), none of which have National Olympic Committees. Phelps even broke a 2168-year old Olympic record held by Leonidas of Rhodes in 2016 when he won his 13th gold medal in an individual event, which gave him the most wins in individual Olympic events. 28 Irish athletes have won an Olympic medal - go here for a list of Irish medal winners. Great Britain made its Olympic boxing debut in 1908. When the sport returned in the 2016 Rio Olympics, after a 112-year absence, Justin Rose won gold. [9] However, athletes from Northern Ireland can elect to represent either the UK or Ireland at the Olympics, as people of Northern Ireland. Great Britain was the third most successful nation in swimming in 2008, with 2 golds, 2 silvers and 2 bronzes, with Rebecca Adlington winning two of these, making her the most successful female British swimmer in 100 years.[25]. Bronze: Italy has won 242 bronze medals in the Olympics - in total 445 Italian athletes have won a bronze medal. Prior to participating, as host nation, in the 2012 volleyball tournaments, Great Britain had never competed in Olympic volleyball with the exception of the women's team participating in the inaugural Beach volleyball tournament in 1996. Britain took four gold medals in the first Olympic sailing events in 1900. See the particular article on the athlete for more details on when and for what nation an athlete competed. However, the 1944 games were cancelled due to WW2. Does not include gold and bronze medals won in 1896 by mixed teams that included a British player. Chris Hoy and Jason Kenny are jointly the most successful cyclists in Olympic history and Ben Ainslie, with four golds at consecutive Games and a silver medal, is the most successful sailor in Olympic history. The British team won, making them the only nation to win an Olympic cricket contest and the only Olympic gold medalists in cricket. Prior to the 2014 Games all Britain's Winter Olympic medals had been won in sports performed on ice. She cried as she watched Kenny triumph in Silver: Ireland has won 10 silver medals in the Olympics - in total 12 Irish athletes have won a silver medal. Great Britain had one rider compete in the hacks and hunter combined event at the first Olympic equestrian events in 1900. The largest Swimming Team at an Olympics was in 1976 when GB took 39 different swimmers to Montreal, the smallest squad was the six participants in Athens in 1906. Lizzy Yarnold is the most successful British athlete at the Winter Olympics, with two gold medals. Rio saw the Swimming Team came home with one gold and five silver medals. According to official data of the International Olympic Committee. This page lists the individuals who have won at least four gold medals at the Olympic Games or at least three gold medals in individual events. It has sent athletes to every Summer and Winter Games, along with France and Switzerland, since the start of the Olympics' modern era in 1896, including the 1980 Summer Olympics, which were boycotted by a number of other Western nations. Great Britain hosted the first Olympic field hockey tournament in 1908. (If they were, Ray Ewry would be second on the list with 10 gold). UPDATED: The British media sets itself to go into overdrive as the team surpasses 2008's top medal tally. It is the only national team to have won at least one Gold Medal at every Summer Games, lying third globally in the winning of total medals, surpassed only by the United States and the former Soviet Union, and fourth behind Germany when considering gold medal totals. Britain took a silver medal in the first Olympic rugby competition, in 1900. Great Britain has competed in all Badminton events held at the Summer Olympics since badminton made its full debut as an Olympic sport in 1992. In addition to the above, the female British Olympian with the most medals (five) is rower Katherine Grainger who, from 2000-2016 won one gold and four silver medals. This table excludes seven medals one gold, two silver, and four bronze awarded in the 1908 and 1920 figure skating events. Of his 23 golds, 13 were in individual events, with the other 10 in relays, while the 200m medley stands out as the discipline where he won gold at all Great Britain has competed in all judo events held at the Summer Olympics since judo made its full debut as an Olympic sport in 1964. This list also contains the medals won in winter sports at the 1908 and 1920 Summer Olympics. Athletes from the United Kingdom, all but three of its overseas territories, and the three Crown dependencies, compete in the Olympic Games as part of the team Great Britain and Northern Ireland or Team GB. Great Britain has won an incredible 29 gold medals at London 2012, superseding the 19 taken at the Beijing Olympics in 2008. It has sent athletes to every Summer and Winter Games, along with France and Switzerland, since the start of the Olympics' modern era in 1896, including the 1980 Summer Olympics, which were boycotted by a number of other Western nations. Athletes from the United Kingdom, all but three of its overseas territories, and the three Crown dependencies, compete in the Olympic Games as part of the team Great Britain and Northern Ireland or Team GB. Who has the most Olympic gold medals? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_multiple_Olympic_gold_medalists Phelps won six gold medals in Athens, eight in Beijing and four in London. Team GB is organised by the British Olympic Association (BOA) as the National Olympic Committee for the UK. They competed in the nine Olympics in the table below. The most successful female Olympian for GB is cyclist Laura Trott, who has four gold medals, while the most decorated female Olympians are Katherine Grainger and Kathleen McKane Godfree, with five medals each - one gold and four silver for Grainger, a gold, two silver and two bronze for McKane Godfree. In addition, British sailors were part of two mixed teams that won gold. At the Winter Olympics as a non-alpine nation Great Britain has historically been unable to replicate the amount of success they have achieved in the Summer Olympics although in recent years with the expansion of the Winter Olympics to include sports such as Curling, Snowboarding, Skeleton and Freestyle skiing has brought some increased success. Currently Great Britain is the most successful nation in women's skeleton, having won a medal six times, at least one for each time the event has been held, including a gold medal for Amy Williams in 2010, and the same for Lizzy Yarnold in 2014 and 2018. Britain took a bronze medal in the first Olympic rowing competition, in 1900. Sir Steve Redgrave is the only British Olympian to win a gold medal in five consecutive Olympic Games, winning his first in 1984 Los Angeles and last in 2000 Sydney. In 1908, the country finished in the Olympic table in first place for the first and only time in its history; its most successful performance both post-War and away from a home Games was in 2016, finishing second. Tennis in 1896 was a sport that allowed mixed teams, and both Boland and George S. Robertson joined partners from other nations to win their medals. Alberto Tomba of Italy was the first to successfully defend an Olympic alpine title, in giant slalom in 1992. Great Britain is the most successful nation in Skeleton winning a medal at every Games in which the sport has been included and has won at least one medal in each of the five contests of Women's skeleton since its introduction with five different athletes. This is a progressive list of Olympians that have held the record for most titles won. All record-holders have competed at Summer Games rather than Winter Games. Great Britain have competed in all five taekwondo competitions that have taken place since 2000. Cyclist Sir Bradley Wiggins has the most overall medals by a British Olympian (and thus often referred to in the media as the "most decorated British Olympian") with eight. Rio medal tracker traces team GB's progress at the 2016 Olympics in Brazil. Other records include being the only woman to win an all-around medal in a minimum of three Olympics. Great Britain's first shooting medals came when the nation hosted the 1908 Games, at which the British shooters dominated the competitions. Great Britain hosted the only Olympic rackets tournament, in 1908. She first appeared on the international scene as a 14-year-old in 1987, when she won the 50-meter freestyle and placed third in the 100-meter This success came 20 years after finishing 36th in the medal table, after winning just one gold and fourteen other medals at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, which led to significant changes in the management and funding of British sports and facilities.[11]. This table includes seven medals one gold, two silver, and four bronze awarded in the 1908 and 1920 figure skating events. Gold Silver Bronze Total 1: Trischa Zorn United States: Swimming: 19802004: Summer: F: 41: 9: 5: 55: 2: Ragnhild Myklebust Norway: Biathlon, Cross-country skiing, Ice sledge racing: 19882002: Winter: F: 22: 3: 2: 27 3: Batrice Hess France: Swimming: 19842004: Summer: F: 20: 5: 0: 25 4: Reinhild Moeller Germany: Alpine skiing, Athletics: 19802006: Winter, Summer: F: 19: 3: 1: 23 5: Michael Edgson This ended the practice of "shamateurism", where players claimed to be amateur but still got irregular payments from their clubs. Great Britain enjoyed a period of significant success between 1976 and 1984 in figure skating, winning golds in three successive games on the rink. At the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio, Great Britain became the first country to win more medals at a Summer Olympics immediately after hosting a Summer Olympics; they won 67 medals overall, coming in second place in the medal table ahead of China, two more than in London in 2012. She has been the most Bronze: Ireland has won 12 bronze medals in the Olympics - in total 11 Irish athletes have won a bronze medal. Great Britain hosted the first Olympic figure skating contests in 1908. Great Britain men's national ice hockey team, Canoeing and kayaking at the Summer Olympics, Cross-country skiing at the Winter Olympics, Short track speed skating at the Winter Olympics, List of flag bearers for Great Britain at the Olympics, Category:Olympic competitors for Great Britain, "Sochi 2014: snowboarder Jenny Jones wins Britain's first ever medal on snow", "Jenny Jones wins snowboard slopestyle bronze medal at Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics", "Sochi 2014: Jenny Jones - Team GB's first Olympic snow medallist", "Izzy Atkin wins Britain's first ever skiing Winter Olympics medal", "No place for 'NI', says Olympic Team GB", "Minister urges BOA to change 'erroneous Team GB name, "BBC SPORT - Olympics 2004 - Olympics 2012 - Irish and GB in Olympic row", "Rio Olympics 2016: Team GB beat China to finish second in medal table", http://www.sportspromedia.com/news/london-olympics-bid-2036, https://www.cbre.co.uk/research-and-reports/our-cities/major-sporting-events, "Badminton players selected for Team GB at Rio Olympics", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Great_Britain_at_the_Olympics&oldid=1010863227, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, Men's 300 metre free rifle, three positions, This page was last edited on 7 March 2021, at 19:11. Norwegian cross-country skier Marit Bjrgen is the most decorated Winter Olympian, with Trott, the first British woman to win four Olympic gold medals, wept for joy at their extraordinary success in Rio. The most decorated Winter Olympian in history is Norwegian cross-country skier Marit Bjoergen. Great Britain first competed in gymnastics in the inaugural 1896 Olympics, with wrestler Launceston Elliott entering the rope climbing event and finishing last. Great Britain's Olympic modern pentathlon debut was in 1912 when it was first included in the Olympics. Although Great Britain has won 19 judo medals, none have been gold. Sir Steve Redgrave GBs most decorated Olympic rower with five gold medals and a bronze medal from five successive Olympic Games. Laura Trott has secured her fourth Olympic gold medal with a spectacular victory in the omnium to extend her status as Britains most successful woman athlete in history Steve Redgrave and Reginald Doherty are the most successful male athletes in their respective sports, rowing and tennis. Great Britain hosted the only Olympic jeu de paume tournament in 1908. More medals are available in some events than others, and the number of events in which medals are available overall has changed over time. At the end of the games, teenage Phelps had become the second-best performer at an Olympic event, and the second male swimmer to win more than two titles in one Summ Since the women's event was added in 2000, Great Britain has medalled in that event at every Games. Katherine Grainger GBs most decorated female rower with a gold and three silvers from four successive Games. Irish Medals in the Olympic Games Gold: Ireland has won 9 gold medals in the Olympics - in total 6 Irish athletes have won a gold medal. See also references in the articles on each athlete. The most successful Games was in 2000, when Great Britain won the gold and bronze medals. Snowboarder Jenny Jones became the first British athlete to win a medal on snow in the 90 years of the winter games when she won a bronze medal in the women's slopestyle event. It includes top-three placings in 1896 and 1900, before medals were awarded for top-three placings. Medals won in the 1906 Intercalated Games are not included. Her five medals at PyeongChang 2018 took her total to 15 - [2][3][4] At the 2018 Games, Izzy Atkin won Britain's first skiing medal, winning a bronze in the women's ski slopestyle. Their best finish is a 1st and 2nd place in the men's triathlon, and 3rd-place finish in the women's triathlon, in 2016. Great Britain was then one of only two teams to compete in 1912 and also won the last Tug of War competition held in the Olympics in 1920. They did not compete in the Olympic golf competition held in 1904. The figures from 1972 do not count towards the total as badminton was a demonstration sport. Michael Phelps, in only his third Olympics in Beijing 2008, has smashed the record for most gold medals awarded to one Olympian by two with three races to go. China. Athletes from Ireland represented Great Britain up until the 1920 Olympics while the entire island was part of the United Kingdom. London also won the right to host the 1944 Summer Olympics. Gold: Italy has won 246 gold medals in the Olympics - in total 437 Italian athletes have won a gold medal. Athletes have won medals in both Summer Britain again dominated in 1900, taking all four gold medals and adding seven others (three as part of mixed teams). [7][8], Under the IOC charter, the Olympic Council of Ireland is responsible for the entire island of Ireland. Great Britain's Olympic tug of war debut came when the nation hosted the Games in 1908. Hungary has 175 while Sweden has 147. Silver: Italy has won 214 silver medals in the Olympics - in total 437 Italian athletes have won a silver medal. Although not making this list, a significant achievement was by Hungarian Aladar Gerevich who won medals in 6 consecutive Olympic Games in fencing. For simplicity, when an athlete has won medals for more than one nation, only the last nation he or she represented is mentioned here. In 1974, the FA abolished the distinction between "amateur" and "professional" footballers in England. Phelps 23 gold medals, plus three silver and two bronze, came across four Olympic Games from Athens 2004 to Rio 2016. This list currently includes all Olympians with three or more gold medals won as individuals (not as part of a team of two or more). Great Britain's men's and women's handball teams were allowed to take up host places at the 2012 Olympics. The most successful Winter Olympian from Great Britain is Lizzy Yarnold, with two gold medals in the women's skeleton. Great Britain hosted the only Olympic water motorsports contests, in 1908. During the Athen 2004 Summer Olympics, Phelps set several records, including Olympic records in the 100 meter butterfly, 200 meter butterfly, and 200 meter medley, as well as world records in the 400 meter medley and 4100 meter medley. Great Britain was one of four nations to play golf at the first Olympic golf events in 1900. List of most Olympic gold medals over career, List of most career gold medals in individual events, List of multiple Olympic gold medalists at a single Games, List of multiple Olympic gold medalists in one event, List of multiple Olympic medalists at a single Games, List of multiple Olympic medalists in one event, List of multiple Paralympic gold medalists, Athletes at both the Summer and Winter Olympics, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_multiple_Olympic_gold_medalists&oldid=1003062893, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. She won twelve medals, including eight gold medals, in the 1992, 1996, 2000, and 2004 Summer Olympics. Great Britain and France were the only two nations to compete in the only Olympic cricket match, in 1900. While the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and BOA both refer to the team as 'Great Britain' and the team uses the brand name Team GB, the BOA explains that it is a contraction of the full title, the Great Britain and Northern Ireland Olympic Team. No other rider has successfully defended a Gold Medal. With 12 medals and eight gold medals, Jenny Thompson has won more swimming medals and gold medals than any woman in Olympic history. Great Britain's first gymnastics medal came in 1908 with a silver in the men's individual all-around. Sir Chris Hoy wins a sixth Olympic gold medal to become the most successful British Olympian of all time. Triumphant wins for the Brits set to music. Athletes have won medals in Winter Olympics only. The most recent gold medal was won by Adam Peaty in both the 100m Breaststroke in Rio 2016. As the National Olympic Committee (NOC) for the United Kingdom, the British Olympic Association (BOA) membership encompasses the four Home Nations of the United Kingdom (England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales), plus the three Crown dependencies (Guernsey, Isle of Man and Jersey), and all but three of the British Overseas Territories (Bermuda, British Virgin Islands and Cayman Islands have their own NOCs). Sir Steve Redgrave, long hailed Britain's greatest Olympian, has handed the honour to cyclist Bradley Wiggins, saying: "Obviously he's got more medals than me". This is the only time that Great Britain has competed in handball at the Olympics. Great Britain's Olympic lacrosse debut was in 1908. It includes titles won in 1896 and 1900, before gold medals were awarded for first place. This table is sorted by individual totals gold medals. The Flying Finn dominated middle-distance and long-distance running throughout the Sir Chris Hoy holds the record for gold medals in different events, having reached the top step in four different disciplines men's kilo, men's team sprint, men's match sprint and men's kierin. [5][nb 1]. Great Britain's only gold medal in weightlifting came at the first Games in 1896, when Launceston Elliot won the one-hand lift. This five-time Olympian is the owner of two gold medals, four silver and three bronze, and the 2005 title of German Sportswoman of the Year. There were 215 shooters from 14 nations in the shooting events, including 67 from Great Britain. This is a list of people who have won three or more Olympic gold medals for Great Britain. In 1952, American Andrea Mead Lawrence became the first female alpine skier to win two gold medals; Henri Oreiller of France won two golds and a bronze in 1948. As a result, Great Britain usually does not participate in Olympic qualifying tournaments. Great Britain's only stripped medal in Olympic history was an Alpine Skiing bronze at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. Representatives of the devolved Northern Ireland government and others in the region, however, have objected to the name "Team GB" as discriminatory, and have called for it to be renamed as "Team UK" to make it clearer that Northern Ireland is included on the team. Until 2008, Great Britain's last medal for gymnastics was a Bronze in the Women's all-round team event in 1928. The most successful British Olympians by gold medals won are Sir Chris Hoy and Jason Kenny, who have won six gold (and one silver) medals each in track cycling; two British Olympians come next with five gold medals fellow cyclist Sir Bradley Wiggins, and Sir Steve Redgrave, who won five gold medals in five consecutive Games in rowing, a record for an endurance event. Sir Chris Hoy became the greatest Olympian from the UK in history in London after securing a record sixth gold medal, but this was equalled by Jason Kenny at the Rio Games. Again, Phelps leads the way with an astonishing 18 gold medals. It has more silver and bronze medal that puts the total tally in its favor. From 1896 to 2018 inclusive, Great Britain & NI has won 851 medals at the Summer Olympic Games, and another 32 at the Winter Olympic Games. Phelps has the most gold medals of all time at 23, most total medals ever at 28 and the most medals in individual events with 16. Thorpe is the most decorated Olympian athlete in Australia with five Olympic gold medals and is held in high regard by fellow swimmer, Michael Phelps. Their best result is a gold, silver and bronze in 2016. Phelps won six gold medals and two bronze medals, despite having little time to rest between events. [10], Great Britain has hosted the Summer Games on three occasions 1908, 1948 and 2012, all in London second only to the United States. The most successful sports Gold medalist Jason Kenny (GBR) of Britain poses with his gilfriend, women's omnium gold medalist Laura Trott (GBR) of Britain. Latynina is the most successful female athlete of all time based on gold medals as she has nine to her name and has won medals in 18 of the 19 Olympic gymnastics events she has competed in. The list. Lizzy Yarnold is the most successful Skeleton rider of all time winning back to back Gold Medals in 2014 and 2018. The most decorated Olympian of all time by some distance. Australia. Chris Hoy, Jason Kenny (both cycling), Ben Ainslie (sailing) Alistair Brownlee (Triathlon) and Lizzy Yarnold (skeleton) are the most successful Olympic competitors in their sports, as of 2018. A number of Northern Irish-born athletes, particularly in boxing, have won medals for Ireland at the Games. Great Britain appeared in the first synchronised swimming competition in 1984. This is a partial list of multiple Olympic gold medalists, listing people who have won four or more Olympic gold medals. British Gold Medals London Olympics 2012 set to the song "OLYMPIAN". Great Britain was one of four nations to compete in the debut of Olympic polo. Great Britain won its first fencing medal, a silver, in 1908 at the London Games. Australia has 497 medals. It includes top-three placings in 1896 and 1900, before medals were awarded for top-three placings. Great Britain made its Olympic diving debut in 1908. Alain Baxter tested positive for a banned substance, which was claimed to be as a result of Baxter using an inhaler with different chemicals in the United States. Croatian Janica Kosteli has won the most medals of any woman, with six (four gold, two silver). In February 2019, the London mayor announced plans to bid for the 2032 or 2036 Olympics, which was backed by UK Sport. The Americans standout Games was Beijing 2008, where he won a staggering eight golds, breaking Mark Spitzs record for the most victories at a single Olympics in the process. John Pius Boland dominated the 1896 tennis tournaments. Three of the five teams had British players, and those three teams took both the top two places and split the third place with the Mexican team. American swimmer Michael Phelps is the clear winner, with the highest ranked female being gymnast Larisa Latynina. Sweden has 494 medals in total but it has less gold medals than Hungary. Sailor Sir Ben Ainslie jointly holds the Great Britain record for most individual Olympic gold medals with Chris Hoy and Sir Mo Farah with four, and the most gold medals in a single event with three gold medals (in the Men's Finn class sailing event 20042012) - again shared with Jason Kenny (men's team sprint 20082016), Steve Redgrave (men's coxless pair 19881996) and Ed Clancy (men's team pursuit 2008-2016). GOLD: 1: Con Leahy IRE 1906 [1.775] SILVER: 2: Pat Leahy IRE 1900 [1.78], Con Leahy IRE 1908 [1.88] BRONZE: 1: Steve Smith 1996 [2.35] POLE VAULT: Highest Placing: 6th= Richard Webster 1936 [4.00] LONG JUMP: GOLD: 1: Lynn Davies 1964 [8.07/-0.7] SILVER: 1: Peter O'Connor IRE 1906 [7.025] BRONZE: 1: Pat Leahy IRE 1900 [6.95] TRIPLE JUMP: GOLD: 3 Kathleen McKane Godfree also won five medals, but were one gold, two silvers, and two bronzes. [13], .mw-parser-output .legend{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}.mw-parser-output .legend-color{display:inline-block;min-width:1.25em;height:1.25em;line-height:1.25;margin:1px 0;text-align:center;border:1px solid black;background-color:transparent;color:black}.mw-parser-output .legend-text{}Host country. Here is a run-down Great Britain have competed in all five triathlon competitions that have taken place since 2000. Although it may be possible for London to host the 2032 games, with Manchester or Birmingham hosting the 2040 games. With five golds and a bronze, Redgrave is the most successful Olympic male rower of all time. Great Britain and Ireland now represented separately by Team Ireland and Team Great Britain was one of three nations to play in the inaugural football tournament, winning their only match to take the first Olympic gold medal in football. [1] Great Britain was one of 14 teams to compete in the first Games, the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens, and is one of only three nations (France and Switzerland being the others) to have competed at every Summer and Winter Olympic Games. 8) Paavo Nurmi. In addition, Shirley Robertson, Sarah Ayton and Sarah Webb with two gold medals in sailing, Nicola Adams in boxing and Stephanie Cook in modern pentathlon) share the position as most successful woman in their respective sports. The Olympics listed for each athlete only include games in which they won medals. He has broken 30 world records in swimming and has tied for the most medals won (eight) at an Olympics once already at Athens four years ago. Ian Thorpe In 2013, he sustained a shoulder injury which deterred his future plans to compete but was honored with a Doctor of Letters from Macquarie University for his sports philanthropy and work with indigenous rights. Medals won in the 1906 Intercalated Games are not included. The cyclist Bradley Wiggins has become the most decorated British Olympian after he won gold in the men's cycling time trial. Jason Kenny expects wife Laura to claim most the Olympic gold medals by a Briton - even if he sets the record himself in Tokyo next year. [12] However, it has been speculated that either Manchester or Birmingham may be in the frame to host, rather than London, at least for the 2040 games. Here is the list of the top 10 athletes (males and females) with the most medals in total (includes all gold, silver and bronze medals won), from all summer Olympic Games (including 2016). From 1896 to 2018inclusive, Great Britain & NI has wo Australia has exactly the same number of gold medals as Sweden but the country has even more bronze than Sweden. This page was last edited on 27 January 2021, at 06:50.