The

1948 Summer Olympics The 1948 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XIV Olympiad and also known as London 1948) were an international multi-sport event held from 29 July to 14 August 1948 in London, England, United Kingdom. Following a twelve-year hiatus ...

(also known as the Games of the XIV Olympiad) was an international multi-sport event held from July 29 through August 14, 1948, in London, United Kingdom. It was the first Olympic Games to take place in twelve years, due to the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

(and was known informally as "The Austerity Games" - largely due to countries having to bring their own food due to shortages in Britain), with London being chosen as the host city in May 1946. London had previously hosted the

1908 Summer Olympics The 1908 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the IV Olympiad and also known as London 1908) were an international multi-sport event held in London, England, United Kingdom, from 27 April to 31 October 1908. The 1908 Games were o ...

, and was due to have hosted the event in 1944. A record 59 nations were represented by 4,104 athletes, 3,714 men and 385 women, in 19 sport disciplines. Following the Second World War, Germany and Japan remained under military occupation and had not yet formed their

National Olympic Committee A National Olympic Committee (NOC) is a national constituent of the worldwide Olympic movement. Subject to the controls of the International Olympic Committee, NOCs are responsible for organizing their people's participation in the Olympic Games ...

, and so were not invited. Findling (1996): p. 103 The only major Axis power to take part in the Games was

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 ...

. Findling (1996): p. 111 The Soviet Union was invited to compete, but chose not to send any athletes, sending observers instead to prepare for the

1952 Summer Olympics The 1952 Summer Olympics ( fi, Kesäolympialaiset 1952; sv, Olympiska sommarspelen 1952), officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad ( fi, XV olympiadin kisat; sv, Den XV olympiadens spel) and commonly known as Helsinki 1952 ( sv, Helsin ...

. Findling (1996): p. 104 Following the threats of a boycott from Arab countries should an Israeli team fly their flag at the opening ceremony, 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 Swis ...

(IOC) excluded Israel from the Games on a technicality. Findling (1996): p. 105 Several countries participated for the first time, including

Burma Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...

Ceylon Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus lie ...

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...

and

Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

. The

Olympic medal An Olympic medal is awarded to successful competitors at one of the Olympic Games. There are three classes of medal to be won: gold, silver, and bronze, awarded to first, second, and third place, respectively. The granting of awards is laid o ...

s themselves were the standard ''

Trionfo Trionfo () is an Italian word meaning "triumph", also "triumphal procession", and a triumphal car or float in such a procession. The classical triumphal procession for victorious generals and Emperors known as the Roman Triumph was revived for ...

'' design used for the Olympic medals between 1928 and 1968. It was not until 2010 that Belgian

Eugène Van Roosbroeck Eugène Van Roosbroeck (13 May 1928 – 28 March 2018) was a Belgian racing cyclist from Noorderwijk (Antwerp province). He won a gold medal in team road race at the 1948 Summer Olympics in London, together with Lode Wouters Lode Alphonse W ...

received his gold medal for his part in the

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 ...

road race as there was no podium for winners following the race and the team returned to Belgium two days after the event having received no medals.

Medal table

This is the full table of the medal count of the

, based on the medal count of the IOC. These rankings sort by the number of gold medals earned by a nation. The number of silver medals is taken into consideration next and then the number of bronze medals. If, after the above, countries are still tied, equal ranking is given and they are listed alphabetically. This information is provided by the IOC. However, the IOC does not recognize or endorse any ranking system. In the gymnastics events there were three athletes placed first for the men's

pommel horse The pommel horse is an artistic gymnastics apparatus. Traditionally, it is used by only male gymnasts. Originally made of a metal frame with a wooden body and a leather cover, the modern pommel horse has a metal body covered with foam rubber and ...

, with

Paavo Aaltonen Paavo Johannes Aaltonen (11 December 1919 – 9 September 1962) was a Finnish artistic gymnast and a three-time Olympic champion. At the 1948 Summer Olympics, he won four medals, of which three were gold, including a three-way tie for gold i ...

Veikko Huhtanen Veikko Aarne Aleks Huhtanen (5 June 1919 – 29 January 1976) was a Finnish artistic gymnast. He was the most successful gymnast at the 1948 Summer Olympics by taking home five medals, including three gold medals. In the pommel horse event Huht ...

and Heikki Savolainen all receiving gold medals for

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bot ...

in the same event, while no silver or bronze medals were handed out. Meanwhile, in the men's

vault Vault may refer to: * Jumping, the act of propelling oneself upwards Architecture * Vault (architecture), an arched form above an enclosed space * Bank vault, a reinforced room or compartment where valuables are stored * Burial vault (enclosure ...

, three athletes finished in joint third place and so were awarded a bronze medal each, resulting in five medals being handed out for that one event.

Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...

and

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

won their first gold medal.

References

External links

* * * * * {{featured list Medal count

1948 Events January * January 1 ** The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) is inaugurated. ** The Constitution of New Jersey (later subject to amendment) goes into effect. ** The railways of Britain are nationalized, to form British ...

United Kingdom sport-related lists