Azerbaijan made its Summer Olympics debut as an independent nation in 1996, competing across nine sports and winning one silver medal.
Key Facts
- Total athletes
- 23 (20 men, 3 women)
- Sports contested
- 9
- Medals won
- 1 silver
- Silver medalist
- Namik Abdullayev, wrestling freestyle 52 kg
- Olympic debut
- First Summer Olympics as independent state
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Following Azerbaijan's independence from the Soviet Union, the country established its National Olympic Committee and gained recognition to compete as a sovereign nation. The 1996 Atlanta Games presented the first opportunity for Azerbaijan to participate in the Summer Olympics under its own flag.
Azerbaijan sent 23 athletes to the 1996 Atlanta Summer Olympics, competing in nine sports: athletics, boxing, diving, fencing, judo, shooting, swimming, weightlifting, and wrestling. The delegation represented the country's debut on the Summer Olympic stage as an independent state.
Azerbaijan earned one medal at the Games — a silver won by Namik Abdullayev in men's freestyle wrestling at 52 kg — marking a successful inaugural performance and establishing a foundation for future Olympic participation by the newly independent nation.
Result
at Atlanta, Georgia, United States