Luxembourg at the Olympics facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Luxembourg at the Olympics
IOC code	LUX
NOC	Luxembourg Olympic and Sporting Committee
Website
Medals Ranked 93rd	Gold Silver Bronze Total 2 3 0 5
Summer appearances
1900 1904–1908 1912 1920 1924 1928 1932 1936 1948 1952 1956 1960 1964 1968 1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020
Winter appearances
1928 1932 1936 1948–1984 1988 1992 1994 1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 2018

Luxembourg is a small country in Europe, but it has a big history at the Olympic Games! Athletes from Luxembourg have been competing in the Olympics for over a hundred years. They have won medals in both the Summer and Winter Games, showing that even a small nation can achieve great things in sports.

Luxembourg's official sports group, the Luxembourg Olympic and Sporting Committee, started in 1912. That same year, they sent their first team to the 1912 Summer Olympics in Stockholm, Sweden.

Luxembourg at the Summer Olympics

Luxembourg has had some amazing athletes win medals at the Summer Olympics. So far, three athletes have earned medals for their country.

Early Summer Olympic Heroes

In 1920, Joseph Alzin won a silver medal in weightlifting. This was a huge achievement for Luxembourg!

Years later, in 1952, runner Josy Barthel made history by winning a gold medal. He was the fastest in the men's 1500-meter race at the 1952 Summer Olympics.

There's also an interesting story about another runner, Michel Théato. He won a gold medal in the men's marathon at the 1900 Olympics. For a long time, people thought he was from France. But later, it was found out that he was actually from Luxembourg! So, his gold medal now counts for Luxembourg.

Luxembourg at the Winter Olympics

Luxembourg first joined the Winter Olympic Games in 1928. Since then, they have taken part in ten Winter Games. Even though they started early, they haven't been in as many Winter Olympics as some other countries.

Winter Olympic Medals

Luxembourg has won two medals at the Winter Olympics, both silver. These were won by Marc Girardelli in 1992.

Luxembourg is a low-lying country, meaning it doesn't have very tall mountains. Its highest point is only about 560 meters (1,837 feet) high. Because of this, Luxembourg doesn't have a long history in many winter sports like skiing or snowboarding.

After their first appearances in 1928 and 1936, Luxembourg didn't compete in the Winter Olympics for about 50 years!

Marc Girardelli's Impact

The country returned to the Winter Games in 1988 thanks to Marc Girardelli. He was an amazing alpine skier born in Austria who became a citizen of Luxembourg.

At the next Winter Olympics in 1992, Marc Girardelli won Luxembourg's first two Winter Olympic medals. He earned silver medals in both the giant slalom and super-G skiing events.

Since 1992, neither Marc Girardelli nor Luxembourg has won another Winter Olympic medal. However, other athletes have kept Luxembourg's presence alive. Two ice skaters, Patrick Schmit in 1998 and Fleur Maxwell in 2006, have represented the country.

For the 2010 Winter Olympics, Luxembourg had two athletes ready to compete. But they couldn't participate because one didn't meet the team's rules, and the other got hurt before the Games.

Olympic Medal Tables

These tables show how many medals Luxembourg has won over the years in both the Summer and Winter Olympic Games.

Medals by Summer Games

Games	Athletes	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total	Rank
1900 Paris	1	1	0	0	1	14
1904 St. Louis	did not participate
1908 London
1912 Stockholm	21	0	0	0	0	–
1920 Antwerp	26	0	1	0	1	19
1924 Paris	51	0	0	0	0	–
1928 Amsterdam	49	0	0	0	0	–
1932 Los Angeles	did not participate
1936 Berlin	49	0	0	0	0	–
1948 London	47	0	0	0	0	–
1952 Helsinki	44	1	0	0	1	27
1956 Melbourne	11	0	0	0	0	–
1960 Rome	52	0	0	0	0	–
1964 Tokyo	12	0	0	0	0	–
1968 Mexico City	5	0	0	0	0	–
1972 Munich	11	0	0	0	0	–
1976 Montreal	8	0	0	0	0	–
1980 Moscow	3	0	0	0	0	–
1984 Los Angeles	5	0	0	0	0	–
1988 Seoul	8	0	0	0	0	–
1992 Barcelona	6	0	0	0	0	–
1996 Atlanta	6	0	0	0	0	–
2000 Sydney	4	0	0	0	0	–
2004 Athens	10	0	0	0	0	–
2008 Beijing	12	0	0	0	0	–
2012 London	9	0	0	0	0	–
2016 Rio de Janeiro	10	0	0	0	0	–
2020 Tokyo	12	0	0	0	0	–
2024 Paris	14	0	0	0	0	–
2028 Los Angeles	future event
Total		2	1	0	3	96

Medals by Winter Games

Games	Athletes	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total	Rank
1928 St. Moritz	5	0	0	0	0	–
1932 Lake Placid	did not participate
1936 Garmisch-Partenkirchen	4	0	0	0	0	–
1948–1984	did not participate
1988 Calgary	1	0	0	0	0	–
1992 Albertville	1	0	2	0	2	16
1994 Lillehammer	1	0	0	0	0	–
1998 Nagano	1	0	0	0	0	–
2002 Salt Lake City	did not participate
2006 Turin	2	0	0	0	0	–
2010 Vancouver	did not participate
2014 Sochi	1	0	0	0	0	–
2018 Pyeongchang	1	0	0	0	0	–
2022 Beijing	2	0	0	0	0	-
2026 Milan/Cortina	future event
Total		0	2	0	2	44

Medals by Summer Sport

Medals by Winter Sport

List of Medalists

Here are the amazing athletes who have won Olympic medals for Luxembourg:

Medal	Name	Games	Sport	Event
1 Gold	Michel Théato	1900 Paris	Athletics	Men's marathon
1 Gold	Josy Barthel	1952 Helsinki	Athletics	Men's 1500m
2 Silver	Alzin, JosephJoseph Alzin	1920 Antwerp	Weightlifting	Men's Heavyweight
2 Silver	Girardelli, MarcMarc Girardelli	1992 Albertville	Alpine skiing	Men's super-G
2 Silver	Girardelli, MarcMarc Girardelli	1992 Albertville	Alpine skiing	Men's giant slalom

See also

In Spanish: Luxemburgo en los Juegos Olímpicos para niños