South Africa at the 1992 Summer Olympics South Africa at the 1992 Summer Olympics South Africa competed at the Summer Olympic Games for the first time since 1960 at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. South Africa was permitted to re-join the Olympic Movement after its citizens voted to abolish apartheid. 93 competitors, 68 men and 25 women, took part in 87 events in 19 sports. The flag was carried at the opening ceremony by marathon runner Jan Tau. In South Africa's debut appearance in Olympic archery, the nation was represented by two archers. Neither advanced past the ranking round. Five cyclists, four men and one
Summer Olympic Games the first athlete to ever win the distance double twice. Following the Soviet Union's 1979 invasion of Afghanistan, 66 nations, including the United States, Canada, West Germany, and Japan, boycotted the 1980 games held in Moscow. Eighty nations were represented at the Moscow Games – the smallest number since 1956. The boycott contributed to the 1980 Games being a less publicised and less competitive affair, which was dominated by the host country. In 1984 the Soviet Union and 13 Soviet allies reciprocated by boycotting the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. Romania, notably, was one of the nations in the