A podium sweep is when one team wins all available medals in a single event in a sporting event. At the highest level, that would be when one nation wins all the medals in the Summer Olympics Athletics. Many Olympic sports or events do not allow three entries into a single event in the Olympics, making a sweep impossible. But in Athletics (excluding relays) the maximum for a single country is three.

In the beginning, before the Olympics became a global event, sweeps were more common amongst fewer competing countries and larger numbers of entries from a single country. After the 1908 Olympics, a sweep became an increasingly treasured status symbol of national dominance in an event. 1964 was the first Olympiad to have no sweeps. Since then there were no sweeps in 1972, 1996 and 2000.

Sweeps have happened in every long term event in the individual program, except the 5000 metres. It has happened eight times in the 200 metres and 110 metres hurdles, seven in the Shot Put. A steeplechase event has had a sweep five times, by four countries.

Ray Ewry led 5 sweeps, including three from 1904, with Irving Baxter, Charles King and Joseph Stadler joining him in two each and Robert Garrett in one, plus adding a different sweep in 1900. That other sweep joined Josiah McCracken who was part of a different sweep. Ellery Clark, Robert Garrett and James Connolly swept two events together in 1896. Archie Hahn, Nate Cartmell and William Hogenson duplicated that in 1904. More recently, Carl Lewis has led three Olympic sweeps, Mike Powell has finished behind him in two. Yuriy Sedykh, Glenn Davis and Lee Calhoun have also led two sweeps, Sedykh later a participant in a third in 1988 that involved a reordering of the same three from 1980. Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce led the Jamaican 100m sweep in 2008 and participated in the 2020 Tokyo 100m sweep, with a silver.

Men

OlympiadEvent CountryGoldSilverBronzeSource1896AthensHigh jumpEllery Clark 1.81m James Connolly 1.65mnone awardedRobert Garrett 1.65mLong jumpEllery Clark 6.35m Robert Garrett 6.00mJames Connolly 5.84m1900Paris110 metres hurdlesAlvin Kraenzlein 15.4s John McLean at 3yardsFrederick Moloney at 1foot4000 metres steeplechaseJohn Rimmer 12:58.4Charles Bennett 12:58.6Sidney Robinson 12:58.8Triple jumpMyer Prinstein 14.47 mJames Connolly 13.97 mLewis Sheldon 13.64 mStanding triple jumpRay Ewry 10.58 mIrving Baxter 9.95 mRobert Garrett 9.50 mStanding high jumpRay Ewry 1.655 mIrving Baxter 1.525 mLewis Sheldon 1.500 mShot putRichard Sheldon 14.10 mJosiah McCracken 12.85 mRobert Garrett 12.37 mHammer throwJohn Flanagan 51.01 mTruxtun Hare 46.26 mJosiah McCracken 43.58 m1904St. Louis60 metresArchie Hahn 7.0 sWilliam Hogenson 7.2 sFay Moulton 7.2 s100 metresArchie Hahn 11.0 sNate Cartmell 11.2 sWilliam Hogenson 11.2 s200 metresArchie Hahn 21.6 sNate Cartmell 21.9 sWilliam Hogenson400 metresHarry Hillman 49.2 sFrank Waller 49.9 sHerman Groman 50.0 s800 metresJames Lightbody 1:56.0Howard Valentine 1:56.3Emil Breitkreutz 1:56.41500 metresJames Lightbody 4:05.4Frank Verner 4:06.8Lacey Hearn MarathonThomas Hicks 3:28:53Albert Corey 3:34:52*Arthur Newton 3:47:33110 metres hurdlesFred Schule 16.0 sThaddeus Shideler 16.3 sLesley Ashburner 16.4 s200 metres hurdlesHarry Hillman 24.6 sFrank Castleman 24.9 sGeorge Poage400 metres hurdlesHarry Hillman 53.0 sFrank Waller 53.2 sGeorge Poage 56.8 sLong jump Myer Prinstein 7.34 m Daniel Frank 6.89 m Robert Stangland 6.88 mTriple jump Myer Prinstein 14.35 m Fred Englehardt 13.90 m Robert Stangland 13.36 mPole vault Charles Dvorak LeRoy Samse Louis WilkinsStanding long jump Ray Ewry Charles King John BillerStanding triple jump Ray Ewry Charles King Joseph StadlerStanding high jump Ray Ewry Joseph Stadler Lawson RobertsonShot put Ralph Rose Wesley Coe Lawrence FeuerbachHammer throw John Flanagan John DeWitt Ralph RoseTriathlon Max Emmerich John Grieb William Merz1908London110 metres hurdles Forrest Smithson 15.0 WR John Garrels 15.7 Arthur Shaw 15.810 miles walk George Larner 1:15:57.4 WR Ernest Webb 1:17:31.0 Edward Spencer 1:21:20.2Discus throw Martin Sheridan 40.89 m Merritt Giffin 40.70 m Bill Horr 39.45 m1912Stockholm 100 metres Ralph Craig Alvah Meyer Donald Lippincott 800 metres Ted Meredith Mel Sheppard Ira Davenport 110 metres hurdles Fred Kelly James Wendell Martin Hawkins Triple jump Gustaf Lindblom Georg Åberg Erik Almlöf Shot put Pat McDonald Ralph Rose Lawrence Whitney Two handed javelin throw Julius Saaristo Väinö Siikaniemi Urho Peltonen1920Antwerp Javelin throw Jonni Myyrä Urho Peltonen Pekka Johansson 400 metres hurdles Frank Loomis John Norton August Desch1924Paris Pole vault Lee Barnes Glenn Graham James Brooker Shot put Bud Houser Glenn Hartranft Ralph Hills1928Amsterdam 3000 metres steeplechase Toivo Loukola 9:21.8 WR Paavo Nurmi 9:31.2 Ove Andersen 9:35.6 Pole vault Sabin Carr 4.20 William Droegemuller 4.10 Charles McGinnis 3.951932Los Angeles200 metersEddie Tolan 21.2George Simpson 21.4Ralph Metcalfe 21.5 Javelin throw Matti Järvinen 72.71 m Matti Sippala 69.80 m Eino Penttilä 68.70 m1936Berlin 10,000 metres Ilmari Salminen 30:15.4 Arvo Askola 30:15.6 Volmari Iso-Hollo 30:20.2 High jump Cornelius Johnson 2.03 m Dave Albritton 2.00 m Delos Thurber 2.00 m Decathlon Glenn Morris 7900 Bob Clark 7601 Jack Parker 72751948London 110 metres hurdles William Porter 13.9 Clyde Scott 14.1 Craig Dixon 14.1 3000 metres steeplechase Tore Sjöstrand 9:04.6 Erik Elmsäter 9:08.2 Göte Hagström 9:11.8 Shot put Wilbur Thompson 17.12 m Jim Delaney 16.68 m Jim Fuchs 16.42 m1952Helsinki 200 metresAndy Stanfield 20.7Thane Baker 20.8James Gathers 20.8 110 metres hurdlesHarrison Dillard 13.7Jack Davis 13.7Arthur Barnard 14.1 Shot putParry O'Brien 17.41 mDarrow Hooper 17.39 mJim Fuchs 17.06 m DecathlonBob Mathias 7,887 ptsMilt Campbell 6,975 ptsFloyd Simmons 6,788 pts1956Melbourne 200 metres Bobby Morrow 20.6(OR) Andy Stanfield 20.7 Thane Baker 20.9 110 metres hurdles Lee Calhoun 13.5(OR) Jack Davis 13.5 (OR) Joel Shankle 14.1 400 metres hurdles Glenn Davis 50.1 (=OR) Eddie Southern 50.8 Joshua Culbreath 51.6 20 kilometres walk Leonid Spirin 1:31:27.4 Antanas Mikėnas 1:32:03.0 Bruno Junk 1:32:12.0 Discus throw Al Oerter 56.36 m (OR) Fortune Gordien 54.81 m Desmond Koch 54.40 m1960Rome110 metres hurdlesLee Calhoun 13.8William May 13.8Hayes Jones 14.0400 metres hurdlesGlenn Davis 49.3 (OR)Clifton Cushman 49.6Dick Howard 49.7Shot putBill Nieder 19.68 m (OR)Parry O'Brien 19.11 mDallas Long 19.01 mDiscus throwAl Oerter 59.18 m (OR)Rink Babka 58.02 mDick Cochran 57.16 m1968Mexico City 400 metres Lee Evans 43.86 (WR) Larry James 43.97 Ron Freeman 44.411976MontrealHammer throw Yuriy Sedykh 77.52 m Aleksey Spiridonov 76.08 m Anatoliy Bondarchuk 75.48 m1980MoscowHammer throw Yuriy Sedykh 81.80 m WR Sergey Litvinov 80.64 m Jüri Tamm 78.96 m1984Los Angeles200 metres Carl Lewis 19.80 OR Kirk Baptiste 19.96 Thomas Jefferson 20.261988Seoul 400 metres Steve Lewis 43.87 Butch Reynolds 43.93 Danny Everett 44.09 Long jump Carl Lewis 8.72 m Mike Powell 8.49 m Larry Myricks 8.27 mPole vault Sergey Bubka 5.90 m Radion Gataullin 5.85 m Grigoriy Yegorov 5.80 m Hammer throw Sergey Litvinov 84.80 m OR Yuriy Sedykh 83.76 m Jüri Tamm 81.16 m1992Barcelona 3000 metres steeplechase Matthew Birir 8:08.84 Patrick Sang 8:09.55 William Mutwol 8:10.74 Long jump Carl Lewis 8.67 m Mike Powell 8.64 m Joe Greene 8.34 m Hammer throw Andrey Abduvaliyev 82.54 m Igor Astapkovich 81.96 m Igor Nikulin 81.38 m2004Athens200 metresShawn Crawford 19.79Bernard Williams 20.01Justin Gatlin 20.03400 metres Jeremy Wariner 44.00Otis Harris 44.16Derrick Brew 44.423000 metres steeplechase Ezekiel Kemboi 8:05.81Brimin Kipruto 8:06.11Paul Kipsiele Koech 8:06.642008Beijing400 metresLaShawn Merritt 43.75Jeremy Wariner 44.74David Neville 44.80 400 metres hurdlesAngelo Taylor 47.25Kerron Clement 47.98Bershawn Jackson 48.062012London 200 metres Usain Bolt 19.32 Yohan Blake 19.44 Warren Weir 19.84

Women

In women's sports, sweeps have only occurred 10 times. The Pentathlon and the 100 metres are the only events to have more than one occurrence.

OlympiadEvent CountryGoldSilverBronze1952Helsinki Discus throwNina Romashkova 51.42 mElizaveta Bagryantseva 47.08 mNina Dumbadze 46.29 m1976MontrealPentathlonSiegrun Siegl 4745Christine Laser 4745Burglinde Pollak 47401980Moscow800 metresNadiya Olizarenko 1:53.43 WROlga Mineeva 1:54.81Tatyana Providokhina 1:55.46PentathlonNadiya Tkachenko 5083 WROlga Rukavishnikova 4937Olga Kuragina 48751988 SeoulFencing (foil) detailsAnja FichtelSabine BauZita Funkenhauser2004Athens Long jump Tatyana Lebedeva 7.07 mIrina Simagina 7.05 mTatyana Kotova 7.05 m2008Beijing100 metres Shelly-Ann Fraser 10.78Sherone Simpson 10.98none awarded Kerron Stewart 10.982012London20 kilometres walk Qieyang Shenjie 1:25:16 ORLiu Hong 1:26:00Lü Xiuzhi 1:27:102016Rio de Janeiro100 metre hurdles Brianna Rollins 12.48Nia Ali 12.59Kristi Castlin 12.612020Tokyo100 metresElaine Thompson-Herah 10.61 ORShelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce 10.74Shericka Jackson 10.76

See also Olympic sweeps in speed skating List of medal sweeps at the World Championships in Athletics

References