Greece at the Olympics

Greece has competed at every Summer Olympic Games, one of five countries to have done so, and most of the Winter Olympic Games.
Greece has hosted the modern Olympic Games twice, both in Athens for the Summer Olympic Games, in 1896 and 2004.
In recognition as the birthplace of the Ancient Olympic Games, Greece always enters the stadium first to lead the Parade of Nations at the opening ceremony, with the notable exception of 2004 when Greece entered last as the host nation. Before each Games, the Olympic Flame is lit in Olympia, the site of the Ancient Olympic Games, in a ceremony that reflects ancient Greek rituals and initiates the Olympic torch relay. The flag of Greece is always hoisted in the closing ceremony, along with the flags of the current and the next host country.
Greek athletes have won a total of 129 medals in 15 different sports and the country currently ranks 36th in the all-time Summer Olympics medal count. Athletics and weightlifting have been the top medal-producing sports for the nation and in the latter Greece is placed among the top 10 countries overall. Gymnastics, shooting and wrestling are the other sports that have produced ten or more medals for Greece. In the inaugural 1896 Olympics, Greece finished second in the gold medals count, but won the most medals in total, in their best Olympic performance. Greece finished third in the 1906 Intercalated Games with 8 gold, 14 silver and 13 bronze medals, which were considered Olympic Games at the time but are not officially recognized by the IOC today.
Greece has not won any medals at the Winter Olympics.

Hosted Games

Greece has hosted the Summer Olympic Games on two occasions, the inaugural modern Olympics in 1896 and again in 2004. Both were held in Athens, which along with Los Angeles and Tokyo are the cities that have hosted the Olympic Games twice, with London and Paris being the only two cities to have hosted them three times.

Games	Host city	Dates	Nations	Participants	Events
1896 Summer Olympics	Athens	6 – 15 April	14	241	43
2004 Summer Olympics	Athens	13 – 29 August	201	10,625	301

Athens also hosted the 1906 Intercalated Games, which at the time were considered to be Olympic Games by the International Olympic Committee.

Medal tables

Medals by Summer Games

Source:

Medals by Winter Games

Source:

Medals by summer sport

Source:

Medal tables by athlete

Athletes with most medals

The table below lists the athletes that have won more than one Olympic medal while competing for Greece. It does not include medals won for other nations and mixed teams. The athletes are shown in order by the number of total medals won; in case of the same number of total medals they are sorted by gold, silver and then bronze medals.

Athlete	Sport	Games				Total
Pyrros Dimas		[Greece at the Greece at the 1992 Summer Olympics\|1992 Summer Olympics\|1992]–[Greece at the Greece at the 1996 Summer Olympics\|1996 Summer Olympics\|1996]–[Greece at the Greece at the 2000 Summer Olympics\|2000 Summer Olympics\|2000]–2004	3	0	1	4
Konstantinos Tsiklitiras		1908–1912	1	2	1	4
Ioannis Frangoudis		1896	1	1	1	3
Eleftherios Petrounias		[Greece at the Greece at the 2016 Summer Olympics\|2016 Summer Olympics\|2016]–[Greece at the Greece at the 2020 Summer Olympics\|2020 Summer Olympics\|2020]-[Greece at the Greece at the 2024 Summer Olympics\|2024 Summer Olympics\|2024]	1	0	2	3
Kakhi Kakhiashvili		1996–2000	2	0	0	2
Miltiadis Tentoglou		2020–2024	2	0	0	2
Nikolaos Andriakopoulos		1896	1	1	0	2
Georgios Orphanidis		1896	1	1	0	2
Nikolaos Kaklamanakis		1996–2004	1	1	0	2
Dimosthenis Tampakos		2000–2004	1	1	0	2
Ioannis Mitropoulos		1896	1	0	1	2
Sofia Bekatorou		2004–2008	1	0	1	2
Ilias Iliadis		2004–2012	1	0	1	2
Anna Korakaki		2016	1	0	1	2
Dimitrios Kasdaglis		1896	0	2	0	2
Stamatios Nikolopoulos		1896	0	2	0	2
Thomas Xenakis		1896	0	2	0	2
Leonidas Sabanis		1996–2000	0	2	0	2
Anastasia Kelesidou		2000–2004	0	2	0	2
Alexandros Nikolaidis		2004–2008	0	2	0	2
Petros Persakis		1896	0	1	1	2
Petros Galaktopoulos		[Greece at the Greece at the 1968 Summer Olympics\|1968 Summer Olympics\|1968]–1972	0	1	1	2
Mirela Maniani		2000–2004	0	1	1	2
Vasileios Polymeros		2004–2008	0	1	1	2
Sotirios Versis		1896	0	0	2	2
Charalambos Cholidis		1984–1988	0	0	2	2

Top medalists

The tables below list the top Olympic medalists for Greece, sorted by gold, silver and then bronze medals.
;Men

Athlete	Sport	Games				Total
Pyrros Dimas		1992–1996–2000–2004	3	0	1	4
Akakios Kakiasvilis		1996–2000	2	0	0	2
Miltiadis Tentoglou		2020–2024	2	0	0	2
Konstantinos Tsiklitiras		1908–1912	1	2	1	4
Ioannis Frangoudis		1896	1	1	1	3
Nikolaos Andriakopoulos		1896	1	1	0	2
Georgios Orphanidis		1896	1	1	0	2
Nikolaos Kaklamanakis		1996–2004	1	1	0	2
Dimosthenis Tampakos		2000–2004	1	1	0	2
Eleftherios Petrounias		2016–2020-2024	1	0	2	3
Ioannis Mitropoulos		1896	1	0	1	2
Ilias Iliadis		2004–2012	1	0	1	2

;Women

Athlete	Sport	Games				Total
Sofia Bekatorou		2004–2008	1	0	1	2
Anna Korakaki		2016	1	0	1	2
Voula Patoulidou		1992	1	0	0	1
Fani Chalkia		2004	1	0	0	1
Emilia Tsoulfa		2004	1	0	0	1
Athanasia Tsoumeleka		2004	1	0	0	1
Ekaterini Stefanidi		2016	1	0	0	1
Anastasia Kelesidou		2000–2004	0	2	0	2
Mirela Maniani		2000–2004	0	1	1	2

Additional disputed medals of 1896

There is confusion about certain results and medals in the first Summer Olympics of 1896. The Hellenic Olympic Committee, claiming different sources, cites in its website some different results for certain events and some additional medals for Greece, which are contradictory to those appearing in the IOC website. They are cited here separately and are not included in any of the other tables.

Athlete	Sport	Event	Medal according to HOC	Position according to IOC	Medalist according to IOC
Efstathios Chorafas	Swimming	Men's 100 metre freestyle	Silver	Unknown	Otto Herschmann
Konstantinos Akratopoulos - Aristidis Akratopoulos	Tennis	Men's doubles	Bronze	4	Edwin Flack - George Stuart Robertson
Aristovoulos Petmezas	Gymnastics	Men's horizontal bar	Bronze	Did not participate	-
Efstathios Chorafas	Swimming	Men's 1200 m freestyle	Bronze	Unknown	-
Georgios Paraskevopoulos	Cycling	12 hour race	Bronze	Did not finish	-

Summary by sport

Aquatics

Swimming

Greece first competed in swimming at the inaugural 1896 Games, sweeping the top three spots in one event open only to Greek sailors and winning two silver and one bronze medal in international events. Greek swimmers have won only two silver medals since then at the 2016 and 2024 Games.

Games	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
Athens 1896	1	3	2	6
Rio 2016	0	1	0	1
Paris 2024	0	1	0	1
Total	1	5	2	8

Diving

Greece won a gold medal in Diving at the 2004 Games.

Games	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
Athens 2004	1	0	0	1
Total	1	0	0	1

Water Polo

Greece has won silver medals at the 2004 Games and 2020 Games.

Games	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
Athens 2004	0	1	0	1
Tokyo 2020	0	1	0	1
Total	0	2	0	2

Athletics

Greece first competed in athletics at the first Games in 1896, winning the men's marathon. Since then, Greece have won numerous medals in athletics especially from the 1992 Games through to the 2020 Games, in what is Greece's most successful sport at the Olympic Games.

Games	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
Athens 1896	1	3	6	10
St. Louis 1904	0	0	1	1
London 1908	0	3	0	3
Stockholm 1912	1	0	1	2
Melbourne 1956	0	0	1	1
Barcelona 1992	1	0	0	1
Atlanta 1996	0	1	0	1
Sydney 2000	1	3	0	4
Athens 2004	2	2	1	5
Rio 2016	1	0	0	1
Tokyo 2020	1	0	0	1
Paris 2024	1	0	1	2
Total	9	12	11	32

Cycling

Greece competed in all six of the cycling events at the first Games in 1896, winning one event and taking three second-place finishes. As of 2020, those were still the only cycling medals earned by Greek competitors.

Games	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
Athens 1896	1	3	0	4
Total	1	3	0	4

Fencing

Greece competed in all three fencing events at the inaugural 1896 Games, winning two and adding a second-place finish in the men's sabre and third-place in the men's foil. However another bronze medal is considered nowadays in the same event. Those remain the only fencing medals Greece has won to date.

Games	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
Athens 1896	2	1	2	5
Total	2	1	2	5

Gymnastics

Greece sent 52 gymnasts to the first Games in 1896, winning six medals including two of each color. Since then, Greece have won many medals in Gymnastics from the 1996 Games through to the 2020 Games.

Games	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
Athens 1896	2	2	2	6
Atlanta 1996	1	0	0	1
Sydney 2000	0	1	1	2
Athens 2004	1	0	0	1
Rio 2016	1	0	0	1
Tokyo 2020	0	0	1	1
Paris 2024	0	0	1	1
Total	5	3	5	13

Judo

Greece first competed in judo at the 2004 Games and has won three medals since.

Games	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
Athens 2004	1	0	0	1
London 2012	0	0	1	1
Paris 2024	0	0	1	1
Total	1	0	2	3

Rowing

Greece first won a rowing medal at the 2004 Games and has won more medals since then.

Games	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
Athens 2004	0	0	1	1
Beijing 2008	0	1	0	1
London 2012	0	0	1	1
Tokyo 2020	1	0	0	1
Paris 2024	0	0	2	2
Total	1	1	4	6

Sailing

Greece first competed in the sailing events in 1948 and won its first medal at the 1960 Games and has won numerous medals since then.

Games	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
1960 Rome	1	0	0	1
1972 Munich	0	1	0	1
1980 Moscow	0	0	1	1
1996 Atlanta	1	0	0	1
2004 Athens	1	1	0	2
2008 Beijing	0	0	1	1
2016 Rio	0	0	1	1
Total	3	2	3	8

Shooting

Greece competed in all five shooting events at the inaugural 1896 Games, winning three and medaling in the other two and has won shooting medals again from the 2016 Games onwards.

Games	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
Athens 1896	3	3	3	9
London 1908	0	0	1	1
Antwerp 1920	0	1	0	1
Rio 2016	1	0	1	2
Total	4	4	5	13

Tae Kwon Do

Greece first competed in tae kwon do at the 2000 Games and had a notable success during the 2000s decade, winning medals in 3 consecutive Olympic Games.

Games	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
Sydney 2000	1	0	0	1
Athens 2004	0	2	0	2
Beijing 2008	0	1	0	1
Total	1	3	0	4

Tennis

Greece first competed in tennis at the inaugural 1896 Games, with seven players competing in men's singles and doubles. Greek players won the silver and bronze medals in the singles; a pair of Greek players combined to win the silver in the doubles, nowadays considered a Greek team and therefore a Greek medal. The 1896 medals remain the only tennis medals won by Greek players.

Games	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
Athens 1896	0	2	1	3
Total	0	2	1	3

Weightlifting

Greece first competed in weightlifting at the inaugural 1896 Games, with three lifters competing. Greek lifters won the bronze medals in both events. Since then, Greek lifters won numerous medals from the 1992 Games through to the 2004 Games, including from Greece's top Olympic medalist Pyrros Dimas.

Games	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
Athens 1896	0	0	2	2
St. Louis 1904	1	0	0	1
Barcelona 1992	1	0	0	1
Atlanta 1996	2	3	0	5
Sydney 2000	2	2	1	5
Athens 2004	0	0	1	1
Total	6	5	4	15

Wrestling

Greece first competed in wrestling at the inaugural 1896 Games, with two wrestlers competing in the open weight class event and taking the silver and bronze medals. Since then, Greek wrestlers have won medals from the 1968 Games onwards.

Games	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
Athens 1896	0	1	1	2
Mexico 1968	0	0	1	1
Munich 1972	0	1	0	1
Moscow 1980	1	0	1	2
Los Angeles 1984	0	1	1	2
Seoul 1988	0	0	1	1
Sydney 2000	0	0	1	1
Athens 2004	0	0	1	1
Paris 2024	0	0	1	1
Total	1	3	8	12

Hosted Olympic logos and mottos

1896 Summer Olympics

In 1896 the first modern Olympic Games were hosted in Athens, the capital of Greece. The Games were a revival of the ancient Games held every four years in Olympia, in which participants from all Greek city-states were taking part, during antiquity.
By tradition, Greece is since then the first country to enter the stadium, during opening ceremonies.

2004 Summer Olympics

The 2004 Summer Olympics were hosted predominately in Athens, with a few events in other Greek cities including Thessaloniki, Patras, Volos and Heraklion.
The Games' motto was Welcome Home. The 2004 logo consisted of an olive tree branch, with the colors of the modern Greek flag. The olive tree was a symbol of the city of Athens, while "kotinos" represented the Olympic spirit, as it was the only reward that the athletes were receiving in Olympia, during the ancient Games. The logo was revealed in 1999.