1952 Summer Olympics
| Games of the XV Olympiad | |
 |
|
| Host city | Helsinki, Finland |
| Nations participating | 69 |
| Athletes participating | 4,925 (4,407 men, 518 women) |
| Events | 149 in 17 sports |
| Opening ceremony | July 19 |
| Closing ceremony | August 3 |
| Officially opened by | Juho Kusti Paasikivi |
| Athlete's Oath | Heikki Savolainen |
| Olympic Torch | Paavo Nurmi and Hannes Kolehmainen |
| Stadium | Helsinki Olympic Stadium |
The 1952 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad, were held in 1952 in Helsinki, Finland. Helsinki had been elected as the host city over rival bids from Amsterdam, Athens, Lausanne, and Stockholm and five American cities: Chicago, Detroit, Los Angeles, Minneapolis and Philadelphia on the 40th IOC session on June 21 1947. Helsinki had been earlier given the 1940 Summer Olympics but they were canceled due to World War II.
Highlights
- To the enjoyment of the Finnish crowd, the Olympic Flame was lit by two heroes, runners Paavo Nurmi and Hannes Kolehmainen.
- For the first time, a team from the USSR participated in the Olympics. The first gold medal for the USSR was won by Nina Romashkova in the women's Discus Throwing event, and the Soviet women's gymnastics team won the first of its eight consecutive gold medals.
- Hungary, a country with a mere 10 million inhabitants, won an astonishing 42 medals at these
games, coming in third place behind the
USA and the USSR with one of the most outstanding exhibitions ever. - Hungary's Golden Team won the football tournament in style, beating Yugoslavia 2-0 in the final.
- Germany and Japan were invited again after being barred in 1948. After occupation and partition, three German states had been erected. Only West German athletes took part, from the Federal Republic of Germany and the Saarland which joined the FRG after 1955, the East German Democratic Republic being absent. Despite ranking 5th by total medals with 24, Germans failed to score Gold for the first and only time.
- Rules in equestrianism now allowed non-military officers to compete, including women. Lis Hartel of Denmark became the first woman in the sport to win a medal.
- Emil Zátopek of Czechoslovakia won three gold medals in the 5,000m, 10,000m and the Marathon.
- Bob Mathias of the
USA became the first Olympian to successfully defend his decathlon title with a total score of 7,887 points. - Josy Barthel of the tiny country of Luxembourg pulled a major surprise by winning the 1500 m.
Sports
Demonstration sports
- Field handball
- Finnish baseball
Participating nations
A total of 69 nations participated in these Games, up from 59 in the 1948 Games. Twelve nations made their first Olympic appearance in 1952: The Bahamas, Gold Coast (now Ghana), Guatemala, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Israel, Netherlands Antilles, Nigeria, Saar, Soviet Union (USSR), Thailand, and Vietnam.
Medal count
These are the top ten nations that won medals at these Games.
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  United States |
40 | 19 | 17 | 76 |
| 2 | 
Soviet Union |
22 | 30 | 19 | 71 |
| 3 |  Hungary |
16 | 10 | 16 | 42 |
| 4 |  Sweden |
12 | 13 | 10 | 35 |
| 5 |  Italy |
8 | 9 | 4 | 21 |
| 6 |  Czechoslovakia |
7 | 3 | 3 | 13 |
| 7 |  France |
6 | 6 | 6 | 18 |
| 8 |  Finland (host nation) |
6 | 3 | 13 | 22 |
| 9 |  Australia |
6 | 2 | 3 | 11 |
| 10 |  Norway |
3 | 2 | 0 | 5 |
See also
External links
| Sports • Medal counts •
NOCs Medalists • Symbols |
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| Summer Games:
1896, 1900, 1904, 19061,
1908, 1912, (1916)2, 1920,
1924, 1928, 1932, 1936, (1940)2, (1944)2,3,
1948, 1952, 1956, 1960, 1964, 1968, 1972, 1976, 1980, 1984, 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020, 2024, 2028 |
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| Winter Games:
1924, 1928, 1932, 1936, (1940)2, (1944)2, 1948,
1952, |
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| Youth Games: 2010, 2012 | ||
| Athens 2004 — Turin 2006 — Beijing 2008 — Vancouver 2010 — London 2012 — Sochi 2014 | ||
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