Colombia at the Olympics
Colombia has been part of the Summer Olympics since the 1932 Games in Los Angeles, California, USA. Runner Jorge Perry was the sole athlete that represented Colombia in the 1932 Games. Colombia technically did not have an Olympic Committee yet at that time but they did sponsor Perry's training in the US.
From that point on, Colombia will be in almost all Summer Olympics missing only the 1952 Summer Games in Helsinki, Finland. But they had to wait four decades from their Olympic debut for their first-ever Olympic medal. Boxers Clemente Rojas and Alfonso Pérez both won bronze in the men's featherweight and lightweight divisions respectively. Shooter Helmut Bellingrodt also won the silver medal in the men's running game target.
Bellingrodt again made history through his repeat performance in the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles, California, USA. These three will be the only Colombian Olympic medalists until 1988 when boxer Jorge Julio Rocha also won bronze in the men's bantamweight division.
As a matter of fact, since 1984, Colombia has consistently won an Olympic medal in every Summer Games with their first gold in 2000 when female weightlifter María Isabel Urrutia dominated the 75 kg division in Sydney, Australia.
Colombia has also made an appearance in the Winter Olympics. Alpine skier Cynthia Denzler represented Colombia for both Giant slalom and slalom in the 2010 Winter Olympics which was held in Vancouver, Canada.
Related Pages
- Colombia at the Winter Olympics
- List of all countries that have participated at the Olympic Games.
- About sport in Colombia
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