31 Sydney Olympics Facts: A Must Read Blog For History & Sports Lover!
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The Sydney Olympics was an event that not many have forgotten about.
The Sydney Olympics took place in 2000. The excitement of the sports, along with the entire ambience of the Olympic games, made it so special.
This was the biggest sports event of that era with more than 11000 athletes participating in the event. The event took place in Sydney, Australia, and was hosted during September and October.
Two new sports such as the triathlon and taekwondo were added to the long list of sports played in that years. Michael Johnson was the first American to win four medals and maintained his Olympic title.
The mascot of the game was Olly the kookaburra, as it represented the generosity of the game. Surprisingly Bulgaria won six medals of silver for the first time. Georgia was a bronze winner.
It was the year that changed how the world looked at some countries. Know more about these along with more such mesmerizing Sydney Olympics facts below.
If you like what you read, do check out 1896 Olympics Facts and 2012 Olympics facts
Ceremonies in Sydney Olympics:
The opening ceremonies were hosted at stadium Australia. Governor-General Sir William Deane started the ceremony.
It was the first time that the monarch did not participate in the beginning ceremony but the government took that place. The opening ceremony marks the beginning of the event so the hosts of Australia and the Olympic community made new innovative ways of opening the event as the Sydney Games marks the beginning of a new Millenium.
The Olympic band consisted of 1000 Australian musicians and another 1000 musicians came from other places in this world. The Opening ceremony has about 18 different performances, performed by different performers of the world. In the opening ceremony, all the voice artists performed live for the first time.
The great Olympic Flame was lighted by Cathy Freeman, an Australian Athlete. The medals were distributed to the athletes after their performances by respective guest members during special medal events. The gold medals were made of pure silver and they were plated with gold.
The closing ceremony also took place in stadium Australia and this was directed by Ric Birch. The ceremony had performances from around the world and ended with a party for all members. The 2000 Olympic games ended with the Ioc president claiming it to be the best Olympic event in sports history.
Sports in Sydney Olympics
The host city of Sydney hosted the Olympics in the Spring of 2000. Just like swimming and rowing, there were many other interesting sports participants.
Sports like mountain biking, water polo, table tennis, rhythmic gymnastics, field hockey, interstate football, synchronized Diving were also included in the games. The marathon course was designed in such a way that it covered the most beautiful sceneries of the city.
It was both enthusiastic and mesmerizing for athletes to gallop through the course. The game gave recognition to many such sports. The Olympic stadiums were newly built for the benefit of the athletes.
Politics in Sydney Olympics
A limited number of people know this, but 2000 was also the year of revolution for Australia.
Cathy Freeman was seen carrying not only the Australian flag but also the Aboriginal flag after her win. The flag resembles the land of movement. The flag is a symbolic representation of Aboriginal people. Cathy was proudly carrying the flag as she strongly believed in the Australia motto.
Controversies in Sydney Olympics
The Sydney games were the first time in history that women participated in male-dominated sports like weightlifting and modern pentathlon
The Olympic games hosted in 2000 were special as South Korea and North Korea were seen marching together under the one flag in the ceremony.
Afghanistan was the only nation excluded from the 2000 Olympic games as at that time Afghanistan was under Taliban rule. It was the first time that individual athletes took part in the game. Four people from East Timur participated in the games and listed themselves as individual participants.
Andrea Raducan won a gold medal for Romania but after she was found in the possession of a banned substance, her gold medal was taken back from her. It was the first time in history that a woman had to return her medal to the International Olympic Committee.
This is why the other team members (Simona Amanar and Maria Olaru) were upgraded to gold medals.
China's bronze medal was taken away from the participant as the 14year old girl failed to meet the eligibility criteria.
Winners from Sydney Olympics
The 2000 Olympic games were the evolving platform for all female sportsperson as the year was marked by the victory of Birgit Fisher as she became the first woman to win two golds in kayaking and also the first sportsperson to participate and win after 20 years.
Stephenie Cook became the first athlete (female) to win Gold medals in modern pentathlon for women.
Australia won as many as 16 golds, 25 silver, and 17 bronze medals that year.
The games gave hope to the world especially to the ones who have less in the world compared to others. The Sydney Games gave Colombia her first gold medal. 35 year-old Maria Isabel Urrutia became the first Columbian weightlifter to win a medal for her country.
Olympic games such as swimming had seen the largest number of gold winners in the year 2000 in Sydney. The Russian gymnast Elena Zamolodchikova won two golds for her country.
Ryoka Tamura's story of winning the medal is one of the most inspiring. Her win teaches us to never lose hope as she lost twice in 105 lb (48 kg) Judo but finally in Sydney she gifted herself and her country with a Gold medal from the Olympic Games.
Steven Redgrave became the first one to win five consecutive gold medals in rowing in consecutive Olympics. The Olympic games saw the best of sportsmanship when 17-year-old Ian Thorpe won gold medals in swimming by breaking his own world record.
Athletes such as Jenny Thompson have won as many as three gold in swimming in the Olympic games. Lenny Krayzelburg also managed to win three gold.
It was a fortunate year for Susanthika Jayasinghe as she became the first Sri Lankan woman to win bronze for her country in the 200-meter race. The year was more serendipitous for the USA for winning the maximum number of gold medals in the event.
The USA won 37 gold medals, 24 silver medals, and 33 bronze medals in the Sydney games. Thus the USA received the most number of medals in the event followed by Russia with 89 medals.
Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for Sydney Olympics facts then why not take a look at 2016 Olympic facts, or ancient Olympic facts?
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Bachelor of Arts and Law specializing in Political Science and Intellectual Property Rights
Anusuya MukherjeeBachelor of Arts and Law specializing in Political Science and Intellectual Property Rights
With a wealth of international experience spanning Europe, Africa, North America, and the Middle East, Anusuya brings a unique perspective to her work as a Content Assistant and Content Updating Coordinator. She holds a law degree from India and has practiced law in India and Kuwait. Anusuya is a fan of rap music and enjoys a good cup of coffee in her free time. Currently, she is working on her novel, "Mr. Ivory Merchant".
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