1896 Summer Olympics

The 1896 Summer Olympics, formally called the Games of the I Olympiad, were the first modern Summer Olympic Games and the first Games since Roman emperor Theodosius I banned the Ancient Olympic Games in AD 393 as part of the Christian campaign against paganism. They were held between 6 April and 15 April 1896.

Nations

The concept of national teams was not a major part of the Olympic movement until the Intercalated Games ten years later, though many sources list the nationality of competitors in 1896 and give medal counts.

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Most sources list 13 competing nations as follows:

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• Australia - Despite Australia still being part of the United Kingdom, the results of Teddy Flack are typically given with him listed as Australian.
• Austria - Austria was part of Austria-Hungary at the time, though the results of Austrian athletes are typically reported separately.
• Denmark
• Egypt - Dionysios Kasdaglis, a resident of Alexandria, is typically considered to have represented Egypt. Some sources count him as Greek, however.
• France
• Germany
• Great Britain and Ireland - The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland has historically maintained separate athletic organizations for each of its constituent kingdoms. The major exception to this has been the Olympic Games, in which the country is considered as a single entity. However, it has conventionally used the name "Great Britain and Ireland" (and later "Great Britain and Northern Ireland") at the Olympics rather than the more common shortening of the name to "the United Kingdom".
• Greece - Greek results typically include the results of competitors from Cyprus and Smyrna. Occasionally, Kasdaglis of Egypt is also included in the Greek count.
• * Cyprus - Some sources give Cypriot results separately, though most count Anastasios Andreou, a Greek-Cypriot and the only athlete from Cyprus, as Greek. Cyprus was a protectorate of the United Kingdom at the time.
• * Smyrna - The two athletes from Smyrna are nearly always included in the Greek listings, similarly to the Cypriot athlete.
• Hungary - Hungary is usually listed separately from Austria, despite the two being formally joined as Austria-Hungary at the time. However, Hungarian results are considered to include those of athletes from Vojvodina (now part of Serbia) and Slovakia.
• Italy
• Sweden
• Switzerland
• United States

Entered nations that did not compete

Three nations had entered the names of competitors, but all of the men from those nations withdrew before the competitions.

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• Belgium
• Chile
• Russia