GAMES OF THE 16 OLYMPIAD

Games of the 16 Olympiad,1956
Start:
22 Nov 1956
End:
08 Dec 1956
Countries:
72
Athletes:
3314
Sports:
20
Events:
145
City:
Melbourne, Australia (Stockholm, Sweden - Equestrian)

MELBOURNE 1956 - Bid History

  • Melbourne, Australia, was selected to host the Olympics 1956 by one vote over Buenos Aires, Argentina.
  • The other candidate cities were Mexico and five American cities: Chicago, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, Detroit, and San Francisco.
  • Equestrian events were held separately in Stockholm, Sweden on June 11-17, because Australian quarantine laws were too severe (a six-months period) to allow the entry of foreign horses.

Games of the 16 Olympiad,1956 - Interesting Facts

  • The His Royal Highness Duke of Edinburgh officially opened the first Games in the the southern hemisphere.
  • The Olympics 1956 were the first Olympics to be boycotted. Less than three weeks before the beginning of the Olympic games, the USSR invaded Hungary to quash a revolution against the Communist regime. Switzerland, Netherlands, and Spain boycotted the Olympics 1956 to protest against the Soviet invasion. Also, Egypt, Lebanon, and Iraq boycotted Melbourne 1956 due to the Suez Crisis, and China stayed away because of Taiwan.
  • United German Team (GDR and FRG) competed under the Olympic flag and used Beethoven's Ninth Symphony as its anthem.
  • A new idea was introduced for the Closing ceremony - all the athletes walked together as one team - that began an Olympic tradition for next following Games.

Summer Olympics 1956 - Medal Table

Gold Medals
Silver Medals
Bronze Medals
1
37
29
32
98
2
USA
32
25
17
74
3
13
8
14
35
4
9
10
7
26
5
8
8
9
25
6
8
5
6
19
8
6
7
11
24
9
5
3
5
13
10
4
10
5
19
11
4
4
6
14
12
3
2
2
7
13
3
1
11
15
14
2
2
1
5
15
2
1
3
6
16
2
0
0
2
17
1
4
4
9
18
1
4
1
6
19
1
3
1
5
20
1
2
1
4
21
1
1
3
5
22
1
0
2
3
23
1
0
1
2
24
1
0
0
1
24
1
0
0
1
26
0
3
0
3
27
0
2
2
4
28
0
2
0
2
29
0
1
1
2
29
0
1
1
2
31
0
1
0
1
31
0
1
0
1
33
0
0
4
4
34
0
0
2
2
35
0
0
1
1
35
0
0
1
1
35
0
0
1
1
35
0
0
1
1