Canada at the Summer Olympics

Canada has taken part in 28 Summer Olympic Games, only missing the very first ones in 1896 and the 1980 games that many countries did not attend. Canada first joined the games back in 1900. Even though the 1906 games were called unofficial many years later, Canada still won medals there, including a gold and a silver. When Canada competes, they use the letters CAN, which is their special code with the IOC.

Hosted games

Canada has hosted the Summer Olympic Games one time. This happened in Montreal, which is in Quebec, during the 1976 Summer Olympics.

Medal tables

See also: All-time Olympic Games medal table and List of Olympic medallists for Canada

Medals by year

  Host country

Canada also won 1 gold medal and 1 silver medal at the 1906 Intercalated Games, which the IOC no longer counts as official Olympic Games, so these medals are not included in this table.

Medals by sport

  Leading in that sport

One of Canada's ice hockey gold medals was earned at the 1920 Summer Olympics. This medal is not shown in this table, which is why the numbers in the medals by year and medals by sport tables don’t match.

Canada has not won Olympic medals in some sports, including aquatics (water polo), archery, badminton, baseball, basketball (3-on-3), canoeing and kayaking (slalom), cycling (BMX freestyle), cycling (BMX racing), field hockey, handball, karate, modern pentathlon, skateboarding, sport climbing, surfing, table tennis, volleyball (indoor), and wrestling (Greco-Roman).

Aquatics

Artistic swimming

Main article: Artistic swimming at the Summer Olympics

Canada has done very well in artistic swimming at the Olympics, winning medals in every games where the sport was held, except in 2004 and 2008.

In 1992, Sylvie Fréchette was first given a silver medal in the women's solo event. This happened because a judge made a mistake in entering a score. After Canada asked for a review, Fréchette was later given a gold medal instead.

Diving

Main article: Diving at the Summer Olympics

Canada's only gold medal in diving was won by Sylvie Bernier in Los Angeles. At the 2012 Olympics, Émilie Heymans became the first Canadian Summer Olympian to win a medal in four games in a row.

Marathon swimming

Main article: Marathon swimming at the Summer Olympics

Canada has only won one Olympic medal in marathon swimming, a bronze by Richard Weinberger in 2012.

Swimming

Main article: Swimming at the Summer Olympics

After George Hodgson won two gold medals in the 1912 Stockholm games, it was 72 years before Alex Baumann became the second Canadian swimmer to win Olympic gold, winning both individual medley events in world record time at the 1984 Los Angeles games. Victor Davis (1984), Anne Ottenbrite (1984), Mark Tewksbury (1992), Penny Oleksiak (2016), Maggie Mac Neil (2020) and Summer McIntosh (2024) are the other Canadian swimmers to win gold medals. In 2004, Canada did not win a medal in swimming for the first time in 40 years. At the Tokyo Olympics, Penny Oleksiak became the most decorated Canadian Olympian ever, winning a total of 7 medals. At the Paris Olympics in 2024, Summer McIntosh became Canada's first three-time Olympic gold medalist in swimming.

Water polo

Main article: Water polo at the Summer Olympics

Canada has never won an Olympic medal in water polo. Their best finish was fifth in the women's tournament at the 2000 games.

Archery

Main article: Archery at the Summer Olympics

Canada has never won an Olympic medal in archery. The best result was a fifth-place finish by a woman in the individual competition at the 1976 games.

Athletics

Main article: Athletics at the Summer Olympics

Canada has not always been strong in athletics, but the country has won medals in 15 of the 23 games they have taken part in. One amazing moment was when Percy Williams won two gold medals in the 100m and 200m races at the 1928 Amsterdam games. Another great achievement was when Donovan Bailey won gold in the 100m race at the Atlanta games in 1996, and the men's 4 × 100 m relay team also won gold.

Sometimes, athletes' results change after the games. For example, in 1912, Frank Lukeman was moved up to bronze in the men's pentathlon after another athlete was found to have broken the rules. In later years, some athletes were found to have used unfair methods, and their medals were taken away, which moved others up in the rankings.

Canada also won medals in 1906, but those games are not counted as official Olympics today.

Badminton

Main article: Badminton at the Summer Olympics

Canada has not won any Olympic medals in badminton. The sport began in the Olympics in 1992. Canada's best result was finishing in fourth place in the women's doubles event at the 2012 games.

Baseball and Softball

Baseball

Main article: Baseball at the Summer Olympics

Canada has never won an Olympic medal in baseball. Their best finish was fourth at the 2004 games.

Softball

Main article: Softball at the Summer Olympics

Canada has won one Olympic medal in softball, a bronze in the women's tournament at the 2020 games.

Basketball

Main article: Basketball at the Summer Olympics

Canada has won one Olympic medal in basketball, a silver medal in 1936.

Main article: 3x3 basketball at the Summer Olympics

Canada has not won an Olympic medal in 3-on-3 basketball since it began in 2020. Their best finish was fourth place in the women's tournament at the 2024 games.

Boxing

Main article: Boxing at the Summer Olympics

Canada has had some good moments in Olympic boxing, earning medals in eight different games. A famous moment was when Lennox Lewis won a gold medal in the super heavyweight category in Seoul.

Breakdancing

Main article: Breaking at the Summer Olympics

Canada's Phil Wizard won the gold medal in the first Olympic men's breakdancing competition at the 2024 games.

Canoeing and kayaking

Main article: Canoeing and kayaking at the Summer Olympics

Canada has not won an Olympic medal in whitewater events. Their best result was finishing fourth in the men's K-1 competition at the 2004 games.

Adam van Koeverden and Caroline Brunet have both won several medals for Canada recently.

Cycling

Main article: Cycling at the Summer Olympics

Two Canadians have won gold medals in cycling: Lori-Ann Muenzer at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, and Kelsey Mitchell at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Another Canadian cyclist of note is Clara Hughes, who won bronze medals in Atlanta (1996). She also won medals in the 2002 Winter Olympics and 2006 Winter Olympics in speed skating, and is the only Olympian to win multiple medals in both the summer and winter games.

BMX racing

Canada has never won an Olympic medal in a BMX racing event since its introduction to the Olympics in 2008. Their best finish was fifth in the men's competition at the 2016 games and the women's competition at the 2024 games.

BMX freestyle

Canada has never won an Olympic medal in a BMX freestyle event since its introduction to the Olympics in 2020. Their best finish was tenth in the men's competition at the 2024 games.

Mountain biking

Main article: Mountain biking at the Summer Olympics

Road

Track

Equestrian

Main article: Equestrian events at the Summer Olympics

Canada won its first gold medal in equestrian events when the show jumping team triumphed in Mexico City. Later, Eric Lamaze secured another gold medal in an individual event at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Fencing

Main article: Fencing at the Summer Olympics

Canada has won one Olympic medal in fencing. This was a bronze medal earned by Eleanor Harvey in the women's individual foil at the 2024 games.

Field hockey

Main article: Field hockey at the Summer Olympics

Canada has not won any Olympic medals in field hockey. The best performance by the Canadian team was finishing in fifth place in the women's tournament at the 1984 games.

Football (Soccer)

Main article: Football at the Summer Olympics

Canada joined Olympic football in 1904, sending one club team to St. Louis. They played against two American teams and won the gold medal. Canada's men's soccer team is not expected to qualify for the Olympics soon. The women's national team has done very well, winning bronze medals in 2012 and 2016, and then a gold medal at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.

Golf

Main article: Golf at the Summer Olympics

Golf was part of the Summer Olympics only in 1900 and 1904. In those games, George Lyon won the gold medal for individual golf.

Gymnastics

Main article: Gymnastics at the Summer Olympics

Canada has won medals in several types of gymnastics at the Summer Olympics. Kyle Shewfelt won a gold medal in artistic gymnastics in Athens. Lori Fung won a gold medal in rhythmic gymnastics in Los Angeles. Canadians have also won medals in trampolining.

Main article: Artistic gymnastics at the Summer Olympics

Handball

Main article: Handball at the Summer Olympics

Canada has never won a medal in handball at the Olympics. The best they have done was finishing sixth in the women's tournament back in 1976.

Ice hockey

Main articles: Ice hockey at the Olympic Games and Canada at the Winter Olympics § Ice hockey

Canada won the gold medal when ice hockey became an Olympic sport in 1920 in Antwerp. Later, the sport became part of the Winter Olympics starting in 1924.

Judo

Main article: Judo at the Summer Olympics

Canada has earned 7 medals in judo at the Olympics. Doug Rogers won a silver medal when judo first appeared in the 1964 Tokyo Games. More recently, Jessica Klimkait and Catherine Beauchemin-Pinard each won bronze medals at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.

Karate

Main article: Karate at the Summer Olympics

Canada has not yet won a medal in karate at the Summer Olympics. The country's best performance was finishing in a tie for seventh place in the men's +75 kg event at the 2020 games.

Lacrosse

Main article: Lacrosse at the Summer Olympics

Lacrosse was included in the Olympic Games only in 1904 and 1908. During both of these years, Canadian teams won the gold medals. In 1904, another Canadian team made up only of Mohawk players also won a bronze medal.

Modern pentathlon

Main article: Modern pentathlon at the Summer Olympics

Canada has not won any Olympic medals in modern pentathlon. The country's best performance was finishing eleventh in the men's team competition at the 1988 games and in the women's competition at the 2012 games.

Rowing

Main article: Rowing at the Summer Olympics

Rowing has been one of Canada's best sports at the Summer Olympics. Two rowers, Marnie McBean and Kathleen Heddle, won gold medals in both the Barcelona (1992) and Atlanta (1996) games. Canada has often succeeded in the eight events, with the men's team earning medals nine times and the women's team earning medals four times.

Rugby

Main article: Rugby at the Summer Olympics

Main article: Rugby union at the Summer Olympics

Canada did not get to play rugby union in the Olympics before it stopped being part of the games in 1924.

Main article: Rugby sevens at the Summer Olympics

The Canadian rugby sevens team won a bronze medal in the women's tournament at the 2016 games, the first time the sport was included. They also won a silver medal in the women's tournament at the 2024 games.

Sailing

Main article: Sailing at the Summer Olympics

Canada had a special moment in sailing at the 1988 Seoul Olympics. During a race, a Canadian sailor named Lawrence Lemieux was close to winning a medal. But he stopped to help two sailors from Singapore whose boat had turned over. For this brave act, Lemieux received an award from the leader of the Olympic games, Juan Antonio Samaranch.

Shooting

Main article: Shooting at the Summer Olympics

Linda Thom won Canada’s first summer Olympic gold medal in 16 years at the 1984 Los Angeles games. This happened because Canada did not win any gold medals in Munich (1972) or Montreal (1976), and did not take part in the Moscow (1980) games. Since this win was a surprise and the sport is not very popular, the event was not shown live on TV. Canadian television crews had to quickly put together taped images to show the event.

Skateboarding

Main article: Skateboarding at the Summer Olympics

Canada has not yet won an Olympic medal in skateboarding. The best result came when Cordano Russell finished in seventh place in the men's street competition at the 2024 games.

Sport climbing

Main article: Sport climbing at the Summer Olympics

Canada has not won any Olympic medals in sport climbing. The best result for Canada was finishing in 14th place in the women's combined competition at the 2020 games.

Surfing

Main article: Surfing at the Summer Olympics

Canada has not yet won an Olympic medal in surfing. The best result for Canada was a tied-for-17th place finish in the women's shortboard competition at the 2024 games.

Table tennis

Main article: Table tennis at the Summer Olympics

Canada has not won any Olympic medals in table tennis. The sport began in the 1988 games, and Canada's highest place was a tie for fifth in the men's singles event in 1996.

Taekwondo

Main article: Taekwondo at the Summer Olympics

When taekwondo first appeared in the Olympic Games at the 2000 Sydney games, Dominique Bosshart won a bronze medal for Canada. Later, Karine Sergerie won a silver medal in the 67 kilogram event, which was Canada's best-ever result in taekwondo at the Olympics.

Tennis

Main article: Tennis at the Summer Olympics

Canada won its first Olympic tennis medal when Sébastien Lareau and Daniel Nestor won in the men's doubles event at the 2000 Sydney games. Later, Gabriela Dabrowski and Félix Auger-Aliassime took a bronze medal in mixed doubles at the 2024 games.

Triathlon

Main article: Triathlon at the Summer Olympics

Simon Whitfield won the gold medal when triathlon was first added to the Summer Olympics in the 2000 Sydney games. He placed 11th in the 2004 Athens games and then won a silver medal at the 2008 Beijing games, just missing out on another gold.

Volleyball

Canada won its only volleyball medal at the 1996 Atlanta games. The medal was earned by the beach volleyball team of John Child and Mark Heese when beach volleyball became an official event.

Beach

Main article: Beach volleyball at the Summer Olympics

Indoor

Main article: Volleyball at the Summer Olympics

Canada has not won an Olympic medal in indoor volleyball. The best performance was a fourth-place finish by the men's team in the 1984 games.

Weightlifting

Main article: Weightlifting at the Summer Olympics

Canada has won medals in weightlifting thanks to athletes like Gerald Gratton in 1952, Jacques Demers in 1984, and Christine Girard in 2008 and 2012. Sometimes, athletes who win medals later lose them for using unfair methods, and others move up in the rankings. This happened to Christine Girard in both 2008 and 2012, where she ended up with even better medals than she first thought!

Wrestling

Main article: Wrestling at the Summer Olympics

Canada has won three gold medals in wrestling at the Summer Olympics. Daniel Igali won a gold medal at the 2000 Sydney games, Carol Huynh won at the 2008 Beijing games in freestyle, and Erica Wiebe won at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro games, also in freestyle.

Freestyle

Greco-Roman

Canada has not won an Olympic medal in Greco-Roman wrestling. The best result was a fourth-place finish in the men's light heavyweight competition at the 1956 games.