Los Angeles 1984 Olympic Games

The Los Angeles 1984 Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXIII Olympiad, were held in Los Angeles, United States, from July 28 to on August 12, 1984. 6,829 athletes (5,263 men and 1,566 women) from 140 countries participated, competing in 21 sports and 221 specialties.

Although a total of 14 states abstained, the absence of countries that used to be at the top of the medal table, such as the Soviet Union, East Germany and Bulgaria, was notable. In fact, at the 1976 Montreal Olympics, the countries that were now boycotting had won 58% of the total gold medals. For its part, in Los Angeles, Romania won the most Olympic medals in its history.

The new era of the Olympic Games

After the news received about the millionaire losses of money from the 1976 Montreal Olympic Games in Canada, no city came forward to try to host the 1984 Games, which represented a threat to the continuity of the Olympic Games since times of the World Wars. Faced with this critical situation, the United States appeared as a salvation to host that year's Olympics.

Initially New York City was considered and then Chicago, until finally Los Angeles was chosen. The city of Los Angeles, which had submitted its bids to host the 1976 and 1980 Games, renewed its bid for 1984 in 1978.

After seeing the bad economic consequences inherited from the 1976 Olympics, the Los Angeles City Council, together with the United States Olympic Committee, devised and bid for a plan that made the Olympic Games money-making. It was the first city to make a profit at the Olympics that became a role model for later venues: Los Angeles used existing facilities and stadiums that required only minor adaptations and remodeling, and used funds from private companies to host the Olympics; only two new centers had to be built, a velodrome and an Olympic swimming pool. The city made a profit of $200 million ($500 million in 2020).

Olympic Torch

Torch of the 1984 Olympic Games.

3,636 relays carried the Olympic torch on a 15,000-kilometer journey that began on May 7 in Olympia, Greece, with a private ceremony attended only by members of the press and officials from the Greek Olympic Committee, the Organizing Committee and the IOC. The torch was transported by helicopter to Athens and from there by plane to the United States, where the tour of that country began on May 8. This tour followed, broadly speaking, the following route:

New York - Boston - Philadelphia - Washington - Detroit - Chicago - Indianapolis - Atlanta - St. Louis - Dallas - Denver - Salt Lake City - Seattle - San Francisco - San Diego - Los Angeles.

The tour ended on July 28, with the opening ceremony.

Offices

Inside Los Angeles

• Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum - Athletics / Opening and closing ceremony
• Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena - Boxing
• Dodgers Stadium - Baseball
• Pauley Pavilion - Gymnastics
• Eagle Neast Arena - Judo
• Mc Donald's Olympic Swimming Stadium - Swimming/Closing
• Olympic Villa
• Los Angeles Tennis Center - Tennis
• Gersten Pavilion - Pesas
• Weingart Stadium - Hockey
• Santa Monica College - Marathon
• Los Angeles Streets - Marathon

Within Los Angeles County, California

• El Dorado Park, Long Beach
• The Forum, Inglewood
• 7-Eleven Olympics, Carson
• Santa Anita Park, Arcadia
• Long Beach Convention Center, Long Beach
• Rose Bowl Stadium, Pasadena
• Weingart Stadium, Monterey Park
• Alberca Memorial Raleigh Runnels, Malibu
• Port of Long Beach, Long Beach

Other locations within the Los Angeles Metropolitan Area

Ventura County, California

• Lago Casitas, Ventura Country

Orange County, California

• Mission Viejo
• Titan GYM, Fullerton
• Coto de Caza (California)
• Anaheim Convention Centre, Anaheim
• Fairbanks Ranch Santa Fe, California

San Bernardino County, California

• Tiro Olympic Field, Chinese

Other venues

• Harvard Stadium, Boston
• Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, Annapolis
• Stanford Stadium, Stanford

Great moments

Athletics

• Carl Lewis, from the United States team, enters the Olympic history by matching the success achieved by Jesse Owens in Berlin 1936, winning four gold medals at the same events: the 100 m, the 200 m, the 4 x 100 m and the leap in length.
• In the 400 m fences, leading the race from start to finish, Nawal El Moutawakel becomes the first woman of an Islamic country and the first Moroccan to win a gold medal.
• During his third Olympic Games, Daley Thompson from the United Kingdom, faces Jürgen Hingsen from West Germany in decalon. After staying in pairs at the first seven events, Thompson takes a decisive advantage in the leap with perch and the jabalin winning his second consecutive gold medal.
• For the first time in the history of the Games, the female marathon was disputed, in which the American Joan Benoit was firmly imposed. The most dramatic moment was when the Swiss Gabriela Andersen-Schiess came exhausted and dehydrated to the stadium. The doctors of the event let her continue and she completed the final round in five minutes falling faint as she stepped on the finish line.
• Mexican athleticism was a historic success in winning the victory in the two march tests, thanks to Ernesto Canto (gold in 20 km) and Raúl González (gold in 50 km and silver in 20 km).

Swimming

• In male swimming there was no undisputed star, but highlighted the German Michael Gross, nicknamed the Albatros winner of two gold medals (100 m free and 100 butterfly) and two other silver medals (200 butterfly and 4x200 m).
• The American Rick Carey beat the two back tests, while the Canadian Alex Baumann did it in styles.
• In female category the best was Mary T. Meagher, who obtained three gold medals (100 and 200 m butterfly, 4 x 100 styles).

Other sports

In the men's artistic gymnastics, the individual champion was the Japanese Koji Gushiken, who beat Peter Vidmar of the United States and the Chinese Li Ning. The United States won by teams.

In the women's category, the team victory went to the Romanian women, but the queen of the games was the local Mary Lou Retton, individual winner over the Romanian women Ekaterina Szabo and Simona Pauca despite their victories in separate competitions. The local Julianne McNamara also stood out, who did not let the Romanian national anthem sound once again on uneven bars.

In Basketball, the United States led by Michael Jordan and Pat Ewing had no problem winning gold. In the final they defeated Spain, which had an extraordinary championship and took the silver. Bronze was Yugoslavia.

France won the Soccer tournament by defeating Brazil 2-0.

In Boxing, the Americans won in nine of the twelve categories. Tyrrell Biggs won heavyweight gold. However future heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield couldn't get past bronze in the 75-81 kg category.

In Volleyball there were big surprises as China and the United States gradually surpassed the traditional powers of this sport, helped by the absence of the Soviet teams, until they won the gold medal in the women's and men's tournament, respectively.

Medal table

Organizing country (United States)

No.	Country				Total
1	United States (USA)	83	61	30	174
2	Romania (ROM)	20	16	17	53
3	Western Germany (FRG)	17	19	23	59
4	People ' s Republic of China (CHN)	15	8	9	32
5	Italy (ITA)	14	6	12	32
6	Canada (CAN)	10	18	16	44
7	Japan (JPN)	10	8	14	32
8	New Zealand (NZL)	8	1	2	11
9	Yugoslavia (YUG)	7	4	7	18
10	South Korea (KOR)	6	6	7	19

Sports

	Sports at the Los Angeles Olympic Games 1984
Athleticism Basketball Δ Balonmano Δ Boxing Δ Cycling Å Equivalent. Farming Δ 日本語 Gymnastics Halterofilia Δ Hockey on Grass Δ Judo ̄ Lucha ̄s Swimming 日本語 Synchronized swimming. Swimming balances Δ Modern Pentathlon Piragüismo Δ Remo LIC Tyre Δ Archery with Δ Vela. Volleyball Č Waterpolo

Demonstration sports: Baseball and Tennis.

Participating countries

In green and blue, participating countries (blue are debutants).

The following countries participated in the games:

West Germany, Andorra, Antigua and Barbuda, Netherlands Antilles, Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bermuda, Burma, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Bhutan, Cameroon, Canada, Chad, Chile, China, Chinese Taipei, Cyprus, Colombia, Congo, South Korea, Ivory Coast, Costa Rica, Denmark, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, United Arab Emirates, Spain, United States, Fiji, Philippines, Finland, France, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Great Britain, Grenada, Greece, Guatemala, Guinea, Equatorial Guinea, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Ireland, Iceland, Cayman Islands, Islands Solomon, British Virgin Islands, US Virgin Islands, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Kuwait, Lesotho, Lebanon, Liberia, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Mali, Malta, Morocco, Mauritius, Mauritania, Mexico, Monaco, Mozambique, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Norway, Central African Republic, Dominican Republic, New Zealand, Oman, Netherlands, Pakistan, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Rwanda, Romania, Samoa, San Marino, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Syria, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Swaziland, Sudan, Sweden, Switzerland, Suriname, Thailand, Tanzania, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Uganda, Uruguay, Venezuela, North Yemen, Djibouti, Yugoslavia, Zaire, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Notably, Romania was the only Soviet bloc country to compete in these Olympics. Also, these Olympics mark the return of China to the Olympic games.

Soviet boycott

Countries that boycotted the Los Angeles Olympics.

In response to the US boycott of the 1980 Olympic Games, which had been held in Moscow, the Eastern Bloc countries —with the exception of Romania— along with 8 other socialist allies did the same with the Los Angeles games. The Soviet Union, promoter of the boycott, argued that there were insufficient guarantees for its athletes and announced its decision not to attend on May 8, just over two months before the start of the Games.

These were the countries that boycotted the games: Afghanistan, Albania, East Germany, Angola, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Cuba, Ethiopia, Hungary, Iran, Laos, Libya, Mongolia, North Korea, Poland, Soviet Union, Vietnam, and South Yemen.

Albania, Iran and Libya all boycotted the games for political reasons, not being part of the Soviet boycott.

These countries organized "counter-Olympics" called Friendship Games. These games were attended by 49 countries, among which were all the countries of the Soviet bloc and several of the participating countries in Los Angeles.