1996 Summer Olympics Basil Poledouris. Muhammad Ali lit the Olympic cauldron and later received a replacement gold medal for his boxing victory in the 1960 Summer Olympics. For the torch ceremony, more than 10,000 Olympic torches were manufactured by the American Meter Company and electroplated by Erie Plating Company. Each torch weighed about and was made primarily of aluminum, with a Georgia pecan wood handle and gold ornamentation. The 1996 Summer Olympic programme featured 271 events in 26 sports. Softball, beach volleyball and mountain biking debuted on the Olympic program, together with women's football and lightweight rowing. In women's gymnastics, Lilia Podkopayeva became
1996 Summer Olympics medal table 1996 Summer Olympics medal table The 1996 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, were a summer multi-sport event held in Atlanta, Georgia, United States from 19 July to 4 August 1996. A total of 10,318 athletes from 197 National Olympic Committees (NOCs), competed in 271 events in 26 sports. Athletes from 79 NOCs won at least one medal, leaving 118 countries without a medal. The United States won the most gold medals (44), as well as the most medals overall (101). It also won its first medal in a women's' team sport, the victorious gymnastics