The 1956 Summer Olympics were held mainly in Melbourne, Australia, the first Games held in the Southern Hemisphere, though strict Australian quarantine laws forced the equestrian events to be held separately in Stockholm, Sweden, months earlier. The Games took place against the backdrop of the Suez Crisis and the Soviet invasion of Hungary, prompting several countries to boycott and producing a notably violent water polo match between Hungary and the Soviet Union remembered afterward as the Blood in the Water match. At the closing ceremony, athletes marched together rather than by nation for the first time, a gesture credited to a suggestion from a young Australian, which became a lasting Olympic tradition.
Facts
Founding Year Founding Date Host History Frequency
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Associated With
Source National Olympic Committee of Kenya (Wikipedia)
Competitors Include
Source Ágnes Keleti (Wikipedia)
Source Al Oerter (Wikipedia)
Source Wikipedia, Bill Russell
Source Wikipedia, Dezso Gyarmati
Source Ellen Preis (Olympedia)
Source Éva Székely (Wikipedia)
Source Galina Zybina (Olympedia)
Source Gavriil Kachalin (Olympedia)
Source Helmut Bantz (Wikipedia)
Source Isaac Berger (Wikipedia)
Source László Papp (Wikipedia)
Source Marianne Werner (Olympedia)
Source Milkha Singh (Wikipedia)
Source Olga Fikotová (Wikipedia)
Source Täve Schur (Wikipedia)
Source Tom Simpson (Wikipedia)
Source Vladimir Kuts (Wikipedia)
Source Wolfgang Behrendt (Wikipedia)
Derived From
Features
Source Wikipedia: Athletics at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Source Wikipedia: Basketball at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Boxing, Sports Source Wikipedia: Boxing at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Source Wikipedia: Canoeing at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Source Wikipedia: Cycling at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Diving, Sports Source Wikipedia: Diving at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Source Wikipedia: Equestrian events at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Source Wikipedia: Fencing at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Source Wikipedia: Field hockey at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Source Wikipedia: Gymnastics at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Rowing, Sports Source Wikipedia: Rowing at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Source Wikipedia: Sailing at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Source Wikipedia: Shooting at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Source Wikipedia: Swimming at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Source Wikipedia: Water polo at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Source Wikipedia: Weightlifting at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Source Wikipedia: Wrestling at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Sources
1. Wikipedia, List of Olympic Games Host Cities
WikipediaHost cities table, 1956 Summer Olympics row (year)
1956 Summer Olympics: Melbourne, Australia
Host cities table, 1956 Summer Olympics row (host)
1956 Summer Olympics: Melbourne, Australia
entity record, description/name (scope)
The 1956 Summer Olympics were held mainly in Melbourne, Australia, the first Games held in the Southern Hemisphere, though strict Australian quarantine laws forced the equestrian events to be held separately in Stockholm, Sweden, months earlier. The Games took place against the backdrop of the Suez
View the Source 2. Wikipedia, Olympic Games
Lead section, second paragraphQuote, Lead section, second paragraph
The Summer and Winter Olympics are each held every four years, and themselves occur two years apart within the four-year Olympiad.
3. Wikipedia, 1956 Summer Olympics
Lead paragraph, opening sentenceQuote, Lead paragraph, opening sentence
were an international multi-sport event held in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, from 22 November to 8 December 1956.
Wikipedia: Athletics at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Features: Athletics, Lead sectionQuote, Features: Athletics, Lead section
At the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, 33 athletics events were contested, 24 for men and 9 for women.
Wikipedia: Basketball at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Features: Basketball, Lead sectionQuote, Features: Basketball, Lead section
Basketball at the 1956 Summer Olympics was the fourth appearance of the sport of basketball as an official Olympic medal event.
Wikipedia: Boxing at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Features: Boxing, Lead sectionQuote, Features: Boxing, Lead section
Boxing at the 1956 Summer Olympics took place at the West Melbourne Stadium.
Wikipedia: Canoeing at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Features: Canoeing, Lead sectionQuote, Features: Canoeing, Lead section
At the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, nine events in sprint canoe racing were contested.
Wikipedia: Cycling at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Features: Cycling, Lead sectionQuote, Features: Cycling, Lead section
The cycling competition at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne consisted of two road cycling events and four track cycling events, all for men only.
Wikipedia: Diving at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Features: Diving, Lead sectionQuote, Features: Diving, Lead section
At the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, four diving events were contested.
Wikipedia: Equestrian events at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Features: Equestrian, Lead sectionQuote, Features: Equestrian, Lead section
The equestrian events at the 1956 Summer Olympics were held in Stockholm due to the Australian quarantine regulations and included dressage, eventing, and show jumping.
Wikipedia: Fencing at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Features: Fencing, Lead sectionQuote, Features: Fencing, Lead section
At the 1956 Summer Olympics, seven fencing events were contested, six for men and one for women.
Wikipedia: Field hockey at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Features: Field Hockey, Lead sectionQuote, Features: Field Hockey, Lead section
The men's field hockey tournament at the 1956 Summer Olympics was the eighth edition of the field hockey event for men at the Summer Olympics.
Wikipedia: Gymnastics at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Features: Gymnastics, Lead sectionQuote, Features: Gymnastics, Lead section
Gymnastics at the 1956 Summer Olympics was represented by 15 events: 7 for women and 8 for men.
Wikipedia: Rowing at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Features: Rowing, Lead sectionQuote, Features: Rowing, Lead section
Rowing at the 1956 Summer Olympics featured seven events, for men only.
Wikipedia: Sailing at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Features: Sailing, Lead sectionQuote, Features: Sailing, Lead section
The Sailing program of 1956 consisted of a total of five sailing classes (disciplines).
Wikipedia: Shooting at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Features: Shooting, Lead sectionQuote, Features: Shooting, Lead section
At the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, seven events in shooting were contested, all for men only.
Wikipedia: Swimming at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Features: Swimming, Lead sectionQuote, Features: Swimming, Lead section
At the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, 13 swimming events were contested, seven for men and six for women.
Wikipedia: Water polo at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Features: Water Polo, Lead sectionQuote, Features: Water Polo, Lead section
Ten nations competed in water polo at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne.
Wikipedia: Weightlifting at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Features: Weightlifting, Lead sectionQuote, Features: Weightlifting, Lead section
The weightlifting competition at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne consisted of seven weight classes, all for men only.
Wikipedia: Wrestling at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Features: Wrestling, Lead sectionQuote, Features: Wrestling, Lead section
At the 1956 Summer Olympics, 16 wrestling events were contested, all for men.
National Olympic Committee of Kenya (Wikipedia)
Associated With: National Olympic Committee of Kenya (NOCK), Lead paragraph 2Quote, Associated With: National Olympic Committee of Kenya (NOCK), Lead paragraph 2
Kenya made its debut at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne
Galina Zybina (Olympedia)
Competitors Include: Galina Zybina, Results table, Games column [competed-in]Quote, Competitors Include: Galina Zybina, Results table, Games column [competed-in]
1956 Summer Olympics
Gavriil Kachalin (Olympedia)
Competitors Include: Gavriil Kachalin, Coaching resultsQuote, Competitors Include: Gavriil Kachalin, Coaching results
1956 Summer Olympics
Ellen Preis (Olympedia)
Competitors Include: Ellen Preis, Results tableQuote, Competitors Include: Ellen Preis, Results table
Foil, Individual, Women
Marianne Werner (Olympedia)
Competitors Include: Marianne Werner, Results table, Games [competed-in]Quote, Competitors Include: Marianne Werner, Results table, Games [competed-in]
1956 Summer Olympics
Täve Schur (Wikipedia)
Competitors Include: Täve Schur, LifeQuote, Competitors Include: Täve Schur, Life
he won a bronze medal in the team time trial at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne
Wikipedia, Bill Russell
Wikimedia FoundationCompetitors Include: Bill Russell, lead paragraph, competed-inQuote, Competitors Include: Bill Russell, lead paragraph, competed-in
He was named NCAA tournament Most Outstanding Player (MOP), and captained the gold medal-winning U.S. national basketball team at the 1956 Summer Olympics.
Ágnes Keleti (Wikipedia)
Competitors Include: Ágnes Keleti, lead paragraph, competed-inQuote, Competitors Include: Ágnes Keleti, lead paragraph, competed-in
She was the most successful athlete at the 1956 Summer Olympics.
Milkha Singh (Wikipedia)
Competitors Include: Milkha Singh, lead paragraph, competed-inQuote, Competitors Include: Milkha Singh, lead paragraph, competed-in
He represented India in the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome and the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.
László Papp (Wikipedia)
Competitors Include: László Papp, lead paragraph, competed-inQuote, Competitors Include: László Papp, lead paragraph, competed-in
He was left-handed and won gold medals in the 1948 Summer Olympics in London, the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki, and the 1956 Summer Olympics held in Melbourne, Australia.
Éva Székely (Wikipedia)
Competitors Include: Éva Székely, lead paragraph, competed-inQuote, Competitors Include: Éva Székely, lead paragraph, competed-in
She won the gold medal at the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki and the silver medal at the 1956 Summer Olympics, set six world records, and won 44 national titles.
Wolfgang Behrendt (Wikipedia)
Competitors Include: Wolfgang Behrendt, IntroductionQuote, Competitors Include: Wolfgang Behrendt, Introduction
Wolfgang Behrendt (14 June 1936 - 22 June 2026) was a bantamweight amateur boxer from East Germany, who won the gold medal at the 1956 Summer Olympics for the United Team of Germany.
Helmut Bantz (Wikipedia)
Competitors Include: Helmut Bantz, lead paragraph, competed-inQuote, Competitors Include: Helmut Bantz, lead paragraph, competed-in
He won a gold medal in the vault at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, competing for the United Team of Germany.
Wikipedia, Dezso Gyarmati
WikipediaCompetitors Include: Dezso Gyarmati, Article textQuote, Competitors Include: Dezso Gyarmati, Article text
He participated in five different Summer Olympics, winning three gold medals with the Hungarian team at the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki, the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, and the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.
Al Oerter (Wikipedia)
Competitors Include: Al Oerter, Lead or career sectionQuote, Competitors Include: Al Oerter, Lead or career section
The throw was good enough to win the competition by more than 5 inches (130 mm).Oerter began his Olympic career at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne.
Olga Fikotová (Wikipedia)
Competitors Include: Olga Fikotová, Article text (competition)Quote, Competitors Include: Olga Fikotová, Article text (competition)
Two years later, she was still a medical student at the Charles University in Prague when she competed for Czechoslovakia in the 1956 Summer Olympics held in Melbourne, Australia in the discus.
Vladimir Kuts (Wikipedia)
Competitors Include: Vladimir Kuts, Article text (competition)Quote, Competitors Include: Vladimir Kuts, Article text (competition)
Having lost his world record again in 1955, Kuts was still one of the favourites for the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne.
Tom Simpson (Wikipedia)
Competitors Include: Tom Simpson, Lead, competitionsQuote, Competitors Include: Tom Simpson, Lead, competitions
He won a bronze medal for track cycling at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Isaac Berger (Wikipedia)
Competitors Include: Isaac Berger, Lead paragraphQuote, Competitors Include: Isaac Berger, Lead paragraph
competed for the United States at the 1956, 1960 and 1964 Olympics
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