Historically,

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

has been successful in the

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...

, taking part from the first Olympiad and in 47 Games out of 48, not having officially participated in the

1904 Summer Olympics The 1904 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the III Olympiad and also known as St. Louis 1904) were an international multi-sport event held in St. Louis, Missouri, United States, from 29 August to 3 September 1904, as part of an extended s ...

. Italy has taken part in all the

Winter Olympic Games The Winter Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'hiver) is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were he ...

, winning 141 medals, and 618 medals at the

Summer Olympic Games The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inau ...

. Italy has won a total of 259 gold medals which makes them the 6th most successful country in Olympic history, after the

USA The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

, the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

and

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. Italy has the sixth highest medal total of all time with 759. Italy has the third longest medaling streak after Sweden and Finland. Italy has medaled in 40 straight Olympic games, starting with the

1936 Summer Olympics The 1936 Summer Olympics (German: ''Olympische Sommerspiele 1936''), officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad (German: ''Spiele der XI. Olympiade'') and commonly known as Berlin 1936 or the Nazi Olympics, were an international multi-sp ...

. The

Italian National Olympic Committee The Italian National Olympic Committee ( it, Comitato Olimpico Nazionale Italiano, CONI), founded in 1914 and a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), is responsible for the development and management of sports activity in Italy. ...

was created in 1914 and recognised in 1915. As of 2020 Italy is the most successful nation at

fencing Fencing is a group of three related combat sports. The three disciplines in modern fencing are the foil, the épée, and the sabre (also ''saber''); winning points are made through the weapon's contact with an opponent. A fourth discipline, s ...

in Olympic history.

Hosted Games

Italy has hosted the Games on three occasions, with a fourth occasion is planning for the

2026 Winter Olympics ) , nations = , athletes = , events = 116 in 8 sports , opening = 6 February 2026 , closing = 22 February 2026 , opened_by = , cauldron = , stadium = San Siro Verona Arena , wint ...

Medal tables

According to the official count of the

International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swiss ...

, Italy has won 618 medals at

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inau ...

. In the

, Italy has finished 2nd in 1932, 3rd in 1960, 4th in 1936, and 5th in 1924, 1928, 1948, 1952, 1956, 1964, 1980 and 1984. In the

, Italy has finished 4th in 1968 and 1994, and 6th in 1952 and 1992. Italy ranks 1st all-time in fencing, 2nd in cycling, 3rd in luge, 4th in boxing and shooting, 5th in alpine skiing, and 6th in bobsled, cross-country skiing and short track speed skating.

Medals by Summer Games

* Performance of cyclist

Frank Bizzoni Francesco Filippo "Frank" Bizzoni (May 7, 1875 – December 25, 1926) was an Italian track cyclist who competed in the St Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mis ...

, who immigrated from Italy to the United States but still was an Italian citizen by some accounts in 1904, is currently disputed and not recognized by the International Olympic Committee.

Medals by Winter Games

Medals by summer sport

Medals by winter sport

Athletes with most appearances

Notes: the names highlighted in pink indicate that they are female athletes. Notes: the names in bold indicate that they are still active.

Athletes with most medals

The Italian athlete who won the most medals in the history of the

, is the fencer

Edoardo Mangiarotti Edoardo Mangiarotti (; 7 April 1919 – 25 May 2012) was an Italian fencer. He won a total of 39 Olympic titles and World championships, more than any other fencer in the history of the sport. His Olympic medals include one individual go ...

Men gold medalist

In this table (sorted by individual totals gold medals), the men who have won gold individual medals at the Olympics (but also at the World Championships). Notes: in Khaki the athletes still in activity. For

cycling Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from two ...

was considered for world championships, only professional events.

Women gold medalist

In this table, the women who have won gold individual medals at the Olympics and also at the

World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

. Updated to 21 February 2020.

Summary by sport

Aquatics

Swimming

Italy first competed in swimming at the 1900 Games, with two swimmers in three events winning no medals.

Athletics

Italy first competed in athletics in 1900. After 121 years from first participation,

Marcell Jacobs Lamont Marcell Jacobs Jr. (born 26 September 1994) is an Italian track and field sprinter and former long jumper. He is the 2020 Olympic 100 metres champion, the 2022 60 metres world champion, the 2022 European 100 metres champion, and a memb ...

became the very first Italian athlete to win a gold medal in Men's 100 metres at the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics on 1 August 2021, with a time of 9"80.

Cycling

Italy first competed in cycling at the 1900 Games, with Enrico Brusoni winning a gold medal in the points race that year. Italy has the second-most gold medals (behind France) and third-most total medals (behind France and Great Britain) in the sport (as of the 2016 Games).

Equestrian

Italy competed in equestrian at the first Games in which the sport was held, in Paris 1900. Six riders competed, including Italy's first female Olympian (

Elvira Guerra Elvira Guerra (; 1855–1937) was an Italian equestrienne and circus performer, notable for competing at the 1900 Summer Olympics, the first Games at which women were allowed to compete. She was the first woman to represent Italy at the Olympics. ...

Gian Giorgio Trissino Gian Giorgio Trissino (8 July 1478 – 8 December 1550), also called Giovan Giorgio Trissino and self-styled as Giovan Giωrgio Trissino, was a Venetian Renaissance humanist, poet, dramatist, diplomat, grammarian, linguist, and philosopher. ...

won a gold medal in the high jump and a silver in the long jump. Overall, Italy has won the eighth-most gold medals and eighth-most total medals in the sport.

Fencing

Italy first competed in fencing at the second edition of the Games in 1900. Italy has won more gold medals (49) and total medals (125) in the sport than any other nation. The nation's first medals were in its first appearance, as Italy's men's master sabreurs took gold and silver in that one-time-only event in 1900. Italy won six consecutive gold medals in the men's individual épée from 1932 to 1960 (including medal sweeps in 1936 and 1956), with a 7th in 2008; no other nation has more than 5 total gold medals (France) in the event.

Gymnastics

Italy's first gymnastics appearance was when the nation sent one gymnast to the second Games in 1900; Camillo Pavanello finished 28th in the men's all-around, the only event held that Games.

Sailing

Shooting

Italy's presence at the first Olympics in 1896 consisted of a single shooter,

Giuseppe Rivabella Giuseppe Rivabella (1855 or 1856 in Fubine – 24 August 1919 in Capri) was an Italian shooter. He competed at the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens. Rivabella competed in the military rifle event. His score and place in the competition are unkno ...

, who entered one event and whose score and rank are unknown. The sport has remained a relatively strong one for Italy, which (after the 2016 Games) ranks fourth on the list of most gold medals in shooting with 16.

Notes and references

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Italy at the Olympics